Casa Refill: no plastic, but plenty of Mexican heritage

A bark from Mexico, an idea that found its way to Zurich, and a promise: no plastic, no throwing away. Casa Refill is a Swiss brand for care products that you don’t buy new, but refill. Founded by Viviana Hürlimann, the brand grew out of a refill concept she discovered in Mexico. The products themselves are made in Switzerland and Mexico, combining plant-based know-how from Mexico with Swiss quality standards. Anyone who wants to experience it in person can visit the brand’s own refill station in Sihlcity, Zurich.

The story of a return journey

The idea behind Casa Refill wasn’t born at a drawing board, but while travelling. Viviana Hürlimann came across a refill principle for care products in Mexico – and brought it back to Switzerland. Out of that encounter grew a brand that brings two worlds together: Mexico’s tradition of plant-based formulas and the Swiss expectation of quality and consistency. The result isn’t a straight copy of a concept, but a translation of it – made in two places, designed for a third: the everyday life of customers here.

The range

Casa Refill focuses on care products that can be refilled rather than bought new each time. Solid shampoos are at the core of the range. According to the brand, they last twice as long as classic liquid shampoos – a point that ties directly into the refill idea: less packaging, less volume, less waste per use. Anyone who regularly uses care products and wants to cut down on the plastic pile in the bathroom will find a range built precisely for that.

The craft behind the refill

Production is split across two countries: Switzerland and Mexico. This combination isn’t a coincidence, but a deliberate choice – it brings together local raw material with Swiss processing standards. One active ingredient stands out in particular: tepezcohuite, an extract from the bark of Mimosa tenuiflora, an ingredient with a long tradition in Mexican plant-based healing practices. It’s the brand’s signature, the thing that sets a Casa Refill product apart from an ordinary one.

For packaging, the brand relies on material that doesn’t become a problem after use: compostable corn-starch packaging or recycled cardboard. For customers, that means less worry about where the empty packaging ends up after refilling. Casa Refill’s products are also free from animal testing – a point that’s increasingly seen as a baseline requirement for care products, though it’s far from standard everywhere.

What the brand stands for

Casa Refill positions itself clearly around its origin and its way of manufacturing. The brand itself states that every product meets the highest Swiss quality and sustainability standards – a claim best read as an aspiration, not as an externally verified fact. The brand also states that it uses exclusively natural ingredients. Together with its origin story, these two statements form the foundation of the brand’s identity: plant-based, refillable, uncompromising about where the raw materials come from.

What’s new at Casa Refill

2026 marks several outward-facing milestones for Casa Refill. The brand is appearing for the first time at ORNARIS, the Swiss trade fair dedicated to trends, design and innovation – an appearance that introduces Casa Refill to a wider professional audience. Since June 2026, the brand has also been showcasing its sustainable products as part of a partnership with Iron BodyFit. And since July 2026, another collaboration has been developing, this time with a yoga brand, around the theme of wellbeing. Three moves, then, all pointing in the same direction: out of its own refill station and into new contexts.

For readers in Switzerland

Anyone who wants to experience Casa Refill in person, not just online, can visit the refill station in Sihlcity, Zurich – a place where the refill principle can be experienced directly rather than just described. Production itself takes place in two locations, Switzerland and Mexico, allowing the brand to combine Swiss processing with Mexican raw materials.