Retail
Digitising Reuse: How EcoX Modernised Refills and Returns with Circulayo
2025
22.9Kg
Carbon
Saved
12.3Kg
Single-use
Savings
292
2-Litre Plastic Bottles Equivalent
EcoX is a Portuguese company dedicated to sustainability and the circular economy, turning used cooking oil into household cleaning products, all sold in reusable packaging. Customers can purchase, refill and return EcoX products at a variety of stores throughout Portugal, with expansions being seen in Spain.
The impact goes beyond the product. It raises awareness, educates customers, and shows how reuse can be practical and powerful. EcoX is helping people rethink the way they shop, clean, and consume – resulting in a cleaner environment and a more conscious consumer.
Technology Overview
To overcome these challenges, EcoX enlisted the help of Circulayo to bring a smarter, digital approach to reuse and refill. By implementing Circulayo’s Flow Platform and Circulayo Connect technology, EcoX introduced a simple and engaging system that transformed the reuse experience, all powered by QR codes.
This solution not only modernised how customers interacted with EcoX products but also gave the EcoX team access to powerful data and insights, helping them streamline operations, improve efficiency, and demonstrate measurable impact.
Customised with EcoX branding, Circulayo Connect serves as a direct channel to customers, turning each reusable item into an opportunity for education, engagement, and behaviour change.
Key Features:
• Track the packaging’s journey: Customers can see product details (such as detergent ingredients), the number of refills completed, and their environmental savings.
• Educate through data: Visualises the environmental benefits of reuse, helping customers see the real-world value of their eco-friendly habits.
• Location-enabled guidance: Shows the nearest return and refill points based on the customer’s location.
• Incentivise reuse: Engaging challenges, rewards, and referral campaigns encourage repeat behaviour, e.g. “Refill this bottle 5 times to earn a 10% discount voucher”, to earn ‘Eco points’ to redeem coupons and discounts.
Each bottle became a digital touchpoint. A simple scan connected customers directly to their impact, rewards, and refill journey.
From refill station performance to environmental savings, the platform offers detailed insights that support scale and optimisation.
Key Features:
• Real-time dashboard: Tracks and logs refill and return activity across all kiosks, assisting in identifying improvement opportunities.
• Circulayo Connect user activity: Every user and their refill and return activity is tracked
• Environmental data collection: With each refill and return, EcoX can view the collective savings of its system.
Deployment
EcoX’s digitalised refill system made its debut at a sustainability fair in Portugal. At the fair, customers were invited to bring their used cooking oil and purchase an EcoX cleaning product in a reusable bottle or refill an existing one, receiving a discount on cleaning products.
Each bottle was tagged with a QR code. After filling their bottle, attendees were prompted to scan the QR code with their phone.Customers could receive feedback on how much plastic, CO2, water and natural resources they had saved.
The pilot focused on consumer onboarding, showing how to scan bottles, track environmental impact, and claim rewards.
The pilot achieved the following results:
• 12.3g of plastic saved
• 22.9Kg of CO2 emissions avoided
• 9,316,920L of water saved
• 6,854Kg of raw materials saved
• 94 reuses recorded
Once rolled out into stores, the impact will continue to grow as each reusable is refilled. If scaled to 10 stores, the impact grows to 150Kg of plastic and 278Kg of CO2 saved per day.
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