Cleaning up in the recession (Sainsbury's Basics Shower Gel)

Member Name: edinburgher

Product:	Sainsbury's Basics Shower Gel
Date:	13/06/09 (107 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Pleasant smelling, dirt cheap shower gel

Disadvantages: Packaging isn't recyclable

Touch wood, the recession hasn't affected our household too much. While relatives have faced redundancy and others have suddenly found themselves hundreds of pounds a month better off as tracker mortgages plummeted, we've been trundling along quite the thing. The difference that it has made to our household (and I suspect in thousands of other households) is that has scared the living daylights out of us! The thought that most people are only a few payslips away from disaster is a sobering one and we've tried to save more and cut back on our budgets as a result.

Clean and fresh for £1.20 a year

Sainsbury's Basics shower gel is one of those products that seems almost too good to be true: at £0.10 it costs roughly 10% as much as my usual Radox shower gel and it makes the mind boggle that they can produce anything vaguely useful for this price. It might not sound like much, but put it into context for a moment - Sainsbury's are making it possible to remain clean and fragrant out of the shower for £1.20 a year. For anyone trying to save costs on things that aren't massively fun (like showering), or who is on a tight budget, this product is fantastic.

*Ergo(not)ics*

As is to be expected for £0.10, the packaging for this one is plain and slightly cumbersome, emblazoned with the fair statement 'cleans, no added promises'. The bottle is wide and can occasionally slip out of one's grip in the shower, falling on the tootsies. Please note, I'm yet to sustain any injuries. It's not ergonomically designed with a convenient shower hook and a built in radio - it's a simple bottle for a simple product.

The hole from which the shower gel is dispensed is pretty wide and this can lead quite easily to wastage. This is either because:

a) Sainsbury's have used the cheapest plastic container they could order five million of from China
b) Sainsbury's want you to get through the product faster than normal as it's so cheap

Conspiracy theories aside, using a gentler than normal touch when squeezing the bottle reduces wastage.

Unlike the bulk of products from Sainsbury's (including many in the Basics range), the packaging for this one makes no claims to being recyclable. While this is ok for a short term budget crunch, I'd dread to think how long the packaging will take to break down in a landfill site. Again, what can you expect for £0.10?

*Soaping up in an orchard*

The shower gel is a wonderful translucent green and has a powerful 'appley' aroma. It's a nice enough scent to wake up to in the morning and isn't too overpowering unless you're very tired or hungover. While the scent is decidedly artificial, it's a reasonable facsimile of apples and I suspect that it would appeal to children quite a bit.

It produces a rich, foamy lather and if I close my eyes with a gentle breeze coming through the bathroom skylight it's not at all dissimilar to soaping up near an orchard in spring. I don't suffer from any dermatological conditions or have particularly sensitive skin, but this product has been kind to me and leaves me feeling clean and pampered.

Sainsbury's are on to another winner with this fine product at loose change prices.

Summary: Sainsbury's are on to a winner with another fine product that does what it says for a tiny price