Summer Break
I am on the road for the summer. First I went down and dropped my elderly (14yo!) dog with my mom and on my way stopped by shops in Visalia, LA, Phoenix and Tucson. I then swung back up trough San Diego and LA again to head home to pick up my summer travel team (my fam). We are now touring around first through the Pacific Northwest and then turning East and heading to the Midwest.
Why am I driving thousands of miles around the country? It is part to drop inventory with shops whom I already have a relationship with, and it's part to meet many new shop owners. I want to help shops with sourcing their most sustainable, local and closed loop products for their customers. I'm also hoping to help them overcome other hurdles such as funding and marketing.
I find these face to face interactions the best way to kick off a business relationship. I get a sense of their shop, what's important to them, and they get to try samples and see products before committing to carry them.
So much travel might be tiresome for some people, but I find it to be an adventure and my family loves to come along when they can. This is such a beautiful country, the landscapes and vistas are breathtaking and driving through is the best way to see them all in my opinion.
I will be back in town end of July, but I'm keeping my retail operations on hold until the end of August as I restructure my business. I want to be sure I am serving all my clients to the best of my ability, both the other Zero Waste shops and the retail customers in my community.
Why am I driving thousands of miles around the country? It is part to drop inventory with shops whom I already have a relationship with, and it's part to meet many new shop owners. I want to help shops with sourcing their most sustainable, local and closed loop products for their customers. I'm also hoping to help them overcome other hurdles such as funding and marketing.
I find these face to face interactions the best way to kick off a business relationship. I get a sense of their shop, what's important to them, and they get to try samples and see products before committing to carry them.
So much travel might be tiresome for some people, but I find it to be an adventure and my family loves to come along when they can. This is such a beautiful country, the landscapes and vistas are breathtaking and driving through is the best way to see them all in my opinion.
I will be back in town end of July, but I'm keeping my retail operations on hold until the end of August as I restructure my business. I want to be sure I am serving all my clients to the best of my ability, both the other Zero Waste shops and the retail customers in my community.
Exciting Possibilities
So, what will my biz look like in September? I am working to building a distribution/wholesale platform to help eco-conscious retailers to find those products that will best serve their customers and fit their ideals. I want to up-end some of the traditional retail model like high minimum orders, expensive and polluting shipping, non-close-loop packaging that must be disposed of by the consumer or retailer and a lot more.
This is going to be a major undertaking, and will be the focus of my time. I do want to return to holding booths at markets, but they are going to focus on the products that I make that I believe are the best option in those categories and aren't available in other nearby shops. This will include my composting systems, my dryer balls made of local Climate Beneficial Transitional (TM) sheep's wool and my hand crocheted and knitted items made from natural local organic fiber. I am not planning to host a refill bar at the markets in the future. BUT..........
This is going to be a major undertaking, and will be the focus of my time. I do want to return to holding booths at markets, but they are going to focus on the products that I make that I believe are the best option in those categories and aren't available in other nearby shops. This will include my composting systems, my dryer balls made of local Climate Beneficial Transitional (TM) sheep's wool and my hand crocheted and knitted items made from natural local organic fiber. I am not planning to host a refill bar at the markets in the future. BUT..........
The Future of Retail
I am working with a gentleman who has created some mind-blowing tech in the field of refill and hope in the-not-too-distant-future, to bring that tech to the Sacramento/Davis area. I don't have a solid timeline to share, I will keep you posted. If it all works out how I envision, it's going to be big, like BIG.
That's all for now, I will try to share some stories of my travels, but my days are so jammed pack I can't make promises!
That's all for now, I will try to share some stories of my travels, but my days are so jammed pack I can't make promises!
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