Lip balm and website FAQs

most commonly asked
product inFormation
ingredients
packaging
subscription inFormation
delivery & reFunds

most commonly asked

Yes! By swapping conventional plastic lip balms for a&b refills you help declare an intergalactic end to plastic and solve the global plastic waste problem. If a refill accidentally ends up in nature, it will biodegrade into CO2, water and biomass in a similar timeframe as tree leaves or a piece of natural wood, and it’ll do it without releasing hazardous chemicals that could harm the ecosystem. When incinerated, there are less harmful gases compared to plastics like polypropylene (PP).

*Always check the detailed recycling instructions from your local waste management authority or municipality.

The bio-based content in all our recipes is maximised, and all our refill pods are made from 100% bio-based material (i.e. natural stuff). The main components of our refill pods are wood and plant-based binders, with wood from the wood industry’s processing side streams. All a&b refill materials are made from sustainably sourced, GMO-free raw materials that are food contact approved (according to EU standards).

The best way is industrial composting*, which means the material degrades into CO2, water and biomass in a bio waste treatment plant. Separate biowaste collection exists in many countries and regions already, and by 2023 it’s set to be mandatory in the EU.

You can put your refill in your home compost bin but the breakdown may take a considerable amount of time, as the conditions are milder compared to industrial compost. We’re experimenting with this at the minute to see how it works.

*Always check the detailed recycling instructions from your local waste management authority or municipality.

By holding this QR code up to your phone in camera mode, you'll be taken to a part of our website where you can manage your subscription and order more refills. Useful, right? In future, this code will also be a portal to loads of interesting information about how much your orders and the stuff we’re doing is helping the planet.

Here’s a full list of the ingredients in each of our lip balms:

Comforting Coconut Lip Balm

INGREDIENTS: Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Squalane, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Parfum (Fragrance)*, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Tocopherol

*a blend of natural ingredients

Tropical Mango Lip Balm

INGREDIENTS: Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Parfum (Fragrance)*, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Squalane, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Limonene, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Tocopherol, Citral

*a blend of natural ingredients

Mixed Berry Lip Balm (our ‘nearly natural’ balm)

INGREDIENTS: Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Squalane, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Parfum (Fragrance), Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Limonene, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Linalool, Tocopherol

Sweet Vanilla Lip Balm

INGREDIENTS: Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Parfum (Fragrance)*, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Squalane, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Tocopherol

*a blend of natural ingredients

Our Comforting Coconut, Sweet Vanilla and Tropical Mango lip balms are all made from naturally derived ingredients. Our Mixed Berries lip balm is 98.62% of natural origin with a small part synthetically derived. Unfortunately natural doesn’t always mean sustainable or responsible. We’re working our hardest to make flavours you’ll love using ingredients that our planet loves. It’s a pretty big job, so bear with us.

Your a&b subscription is perfectly flexible to suit your life and lips. To try and make things even simpler, we’ve included some steps below:

1. Start your a&b subscription by choosing either one of our plans.

For your first order, you’ll need to choose a subscription plan that includes your lifetime-use case. After that you can either select the 3 x refill pack or the 1 x case plus 3 x flavour refill pack.

2. Each refill should last about a month, so you'll be billed for your chosen pack every 3 months after your initial order.

3. In your account, you’ll be able to change your plan at any time. Whether that’s bringing an order forward, pushing it back, missing an order or stopping altogether – it’s up to you (although we don’t recommend the last one).

Soon we’ll be offering a flexible yearly subscription, which will cut the carbon emissions involved in transporting your order. Until then, you can schedule your deliveries for whatever suits your life and lips. For each delivery you can choose a mixture of our four flavour options, or just stick to your favourite, it's completely up to you. And you can change your flavours before your next shipment.

There is no minimum contract for your subscription and you’re free to cancel at any time.

product inFormation

ingredients

Here’s a full list of the ingredients in each of our lip balms:

Comforting Coconut Lip Balm

INGREDIENTS : Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Squalane, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Parfum (Fragrance)*, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Tocopherol

*a blend of natural ingredients

Tropical Mango Lip Balm

INGREDIENTS : Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Parfum (Fragrance)*, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Squalane, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Limonene, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Tocopherol, Citral

*a blend of natural ingredients

Mixed Berry Lip Balm (our ‘nearly natural’ balm)

INGREDIENTS : Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Squalane, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Parfum (Fragrance), Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Limonene, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Linalool, Tocopherol

Sweet Vanilla Lip Balm

INGREDIENTS : Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Wax, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Parfum (Fragrance)*, Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil, Squalane, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract, Tocopherol

*a blend of natural ingredients

packaging

a&b lifetime-use cases and compostable refills are safe and circular by design. Our refill materials can be recycled via industrial composting*. They fully biodegrade without leaving permanent microplastics behind. They are made of sustainably-sourced raw materials, taking advantage of wood waste from industrial side streams. Most of our recipes are 100% bio-based.

* Always check the detailed recycling instructions from your local waste management authority or municipality.

*Always check the detailed recycling instructions from your local waste management authority or municipality.

The preferred disposal method is industrial composting*, which means the material degrades into CO2, water and biomass in a biowaste treatment plant. Separate biowaste collection exists in many countries and regions already, and by 2023 it’s set to be mandatory in the EU.

In case industrial composting is not a feasible option, our refills can be disposed of with energy waste. When incinerated, the CO2 and CO emissions are smaller compared to that of polypropylene (PP), for example. In a home compost the breakdown of our refills may take a considerable amount of time, as the conditions are milder compared to industrial compost. Home composting is something we are currently experimenting with.

* Always check the detailed recycling instructions from your local waste management authority or municipality.

subscription inFormation

Your a&b subscription is perfectly flexible to suit your life and lips. To try and make this even simpler, we’ve included some steps below:

1. Start your a&b subscription by choosing either one of our plans.

For your first order, you’ll need to choose a subscription plan that includes your lifetime use container. After that you can either select the 3x refill pack or the 1x container plus 3x flavour refill pack.

2. Each refill should last about a month, so you'll be billed for your chosen pack every 3 months after your initial order. After this, you'll receive refill packs based on how often you use it.

3. In your account, you’ll be able to change your plan at any time. Whether that’s bringing an order forward, pushing it back or stopping altogether - it’s up to you (although we don’t recommend the last one).

There is no minimum contract for your subscription and you’re free to cancel at any time.

For a refill-only subscription, your pack will cost £18 every order. An order will automatically be made 3 months after your first subscription, but you can change that frequency if you like. Payment will be taken for every pack of refills you receive. For example, if you receive a pack of refills every three months, you will be charged £18 (free delivery) every three months.

Once you’ve purchased your subscription, you’ll need to create an account to manage it. Head over to the login page and select ‘Create Account’ to get set up (make sure you sign up with the same email address that you used to purchase your subscription). Your subscription should then appear in your account like magic. From here, you can then choose the flavours you’ll receive and when.

delivery & reFunds

UK orders totalling over £18 (not including any discounts or shipping costs) are delivered for free.

Our standard UK shipping charge is £3.99 and orders are despatched by Royal Mail 2nd Class.

Occasionally, if a package is eligible for free or standard delivery but is too heavy or valuable to be sent via Royal Mail, it will be sent by courier at no extra cost to you.

Our delivery costs are comprised of picking and packing charges, storage, the actual packaging, plus the cost of delivery itself. We strive to keep delivery costs as low as possible whilst ensuring the quick and safe delivery of customer's purchases.

Once payment has been processed we aim to ship all orders within two (2) working days of receipt – though we strive to be quicker.

Working days for us are Monday to Friday (not including UK Bank / Public Holidays).

Delivery times for orders placed at our online shop are estimated as follows:

UNITED KINGDOM ORDERS

UK Standard (Royal Mail 2nd Class): 3–6 working days.

Unfortunately, due to Brexit and the UK leaving the European Union (EU), any orders we despatch to the EU are now liable for local VAT, import duties and courier processing / paper work charges.

This has made the cost prohibitive and economically unviable for us to continue selling in the EU.

So we have taken the difficult decision to stop selling in the EU for the immediate future (though we are constantly looking at how we can resume delivering to our European friends).

We apologise for the disappointment and inconvenience this may cause.

We want you to receive your order securely and as soon as possible. However with the best will in the world, occasionally packages do go missing.

Before you let us know, first please check the estimated delivery time. Please allow us a few days to pick, pack and despatch your order and some time for it actually to be delivered to you.

MISSING ORDERS
Contact us if your order does not arrive when it should (see above). We’ll find out what happened to your order and get it to your doorstep as soon as possible.

Important: We cannot replace missing orders that are received by someone else on your behalf. We also cannot replace orders where the delivery address has been entered incorrectly by the person placing the order.

MISSING ITEMS
Please contact us immediately if your delivered order is missing any products. We'll find out what happened to your order within three (3) working days and we'll get them to you as soon as possible or give you the option of a full refund of the missing items.

We guarantee all our products for twelve (12) months from the date of purchase. In the unlikely event of one of our products failing we will exchange the product for you or, if you wish, give you a full refund.

Please contact the Above & Beyond Customer Care team using our online form.

Let us know your order number and the nature of your issue, and we will advise on how to return the product for an exchange or organise a refund.

If you decide to return a product to us, or if you have a faulty product and wish to have a refund instead of an exchange, we will notify you via email of your refund and we aim to do this within fourteen (14) working days.

The refund will go to your original payment method, so for example if you paid for your goods by card then we will refund your money back to that specific card, or if you paid using PayPal, then we will refund you via PayPal. And so on.

Important: We can only refund shipping costs if the return is a result of our error or if you are returning a faulty product. We can only process returns and refunds for items purchased directly from our online shop at aandb.world.

All our goods and services are priced in GB£ sterling.

The prices on our website are standardised and are the same for every country we ship to.

The prices include VAT at the current rate for the UK and Isle of Man.

The VAT element, if applicable to your order, will be shown at the checkout and on the email invoice / receipt that we will send you.

For countries and destinations outside of the UK and Isle of Man (including but not limited to the EU, Guernsey, Jersey, Las Palmas and Santa Cruz de Tenerife), no VAT or tax element is included in the cost of your order.

When you place an online order you will receive a VAT invoice / receipt in the form of an official email from our website.

If you are eligible you can use this receipt to claim any VAT back on your order.

Each emailed invoice / receipt contains all the information you need to claim back VAT including:

Unique invoice number (this is the "order number")
Date (the full date and time of order is shown in the email subject line)
Customer’s name, shipping and billing address
Description of the goods or services (in the order summary section)
Quantity of each type of item
Price per item, excluding VAT (shown next to each item)
Total amount excluding VAT (the subtotal)
Total amount of VAT
Total amount including VAT
Our VAT number (shown in the email footer)
Our business name and address (shown in the email footer)
Rate of VAT charged (shown in the email footer)

UK prices include VAT. For all other countries including the EU, there is no VAT or tax element included in the price.

For VAT registered businesses in the UK, you can use your email invoice / receipt to reclaim VAT.

Our website is not set-up to sell VAT free business-to-business so you will need to reclaim using your email invoice / receipt.

For all other countries including the EU, as there is no VAT included in the price you pay, there is no VAT element to reclaim or remove.

For all orders delivered outside of the UK the purchaser may have to pay import duties, VAT and taxes, which are levied once a package reaches your country.

Customs policies vary widely from country to country. Any local duties, VAT, taxes or customs charges assessed by your government are your responsibility. You must meet any additional charges for customs clearance.

Charges for customs clearance and import duties must be borne by you; we have absolutely no control over these charges and cannot predict what they may be. We recommend you contact your local customs office for further information prior to placing your order.

Please also note, international shipments may be subject to cross-border inspections by customs authorities.

So in summary, we cannot be liable for any additional taxes or import duties levied.