The Lush Bath Bot is a recyclable vegan floating speaker that’s out to make a point

Announced over a year ago, the Bot has taken longer than expected to hit the market, with some customers complaining of unsatisfied pre-orders or wondering if the product is vaporware. The reason for the delay, says Goswell, was due to Lush’s lack of experience with electronics. The product was ready, but they did not understand how long it would take to obtain the relevant certifications necessary to sell such a device. The Bath Bot is now available in the UK, the EU, and will soon be in the US (except California, which has extra regulations).

Some compromises also had to be made during development. “The components in there are not what we would think of as 100 percent ethical, but we tried our best,” says Goswell. The team had wanted to use recycled materials out of environmental concerns, but had to opt for virgin plastic to keep the device waterproof. The end result is it recyclable though, and Lush says shoppers can bring theirs into store for repairs if needed.

Manufacturing electronics inevitably comes with a carbon cost, but Goswell believes the Bath Bot is justifiable. “Whether it was a single-use device or a cheap, throwaway device that broke in six months, I think that would be a different question, but we’ve made it to last,” he says.

Actually, it is not a cheap device. The £150 price tag has raised eyebrows even among ardent Lush fans on forums such as member 115k. r/LushCosmetics subreddit. As one “Lushie” said, “Why would I buy a $200 speaker from a bathroom store?” You can get a waterproof Bluetooth speaker from established brands for significantly less, probably with better sound quality: the float from Ultimate Ears. Amazing tree 4 sells for about $100 (and often sells for less), while JBLThe cheapest waterproof speakers can sell for less than $40 – you can find them even cheaper on Amazon.

The reasons for the high price, Goswell says, include the fact that it is Lush’s first technological product and the company does not make many, both of which increase costs. Trying to choose more ethical components adds to the price, such as manufacturing in the UK. Ultimately, he says, Lush doesn’t want to pitch the Bath Bot against other Bluetooth speakers, but sees it more as a lifestyle accessory, akin to something like a Philips Hue lamp While it is designed for use in the bathroom, he also likes to take it with him in hotel rooms for ambient lighting.

I decided to test the Bath Bot in its intended environment, running a bath and setting the Lush app ready to connect. Bath drawn, I drop the bath bot in the water where it duly floats around, cycling through colored lights that give the illusion of dyeing the bath water around me. Available in black or white, the Bath Bot has just four buttons – on/off, play/pause, and two volume controls. When I turn it on, it emits a particularly pleasant startup sound with birdsong and a few soft guitar notes.