April 19, 2020

Online Refill & Bulk Stores

In an effort to reduce plastic waste, the refill model of business is making a comeback. It wasn’t long ago when the milk man would drop off glass bottles of milk at your door. When you were finished with the milk, you would clean it and leave it at your door for pick up.

Now, I still have to drive to my grocery store to buy milk in a glass bottle. But it’s still a similar model. I return my washed glass bottle to the grocery store where the dairy picks it up, sanitizes it and refills the bottle.

We need more business models like this where we’re not constantly throwing away our resources after a single use. It’s wasteful and costs money. So, here are a few stores where you can purchase refills of cleaning products, bath products, or food and send back the containers.

The Good Fill

After my last trash audit, I got serious about finding a solution for liquid dish soap. As I mentioned in the post, since I cook most of the meals for our family, my husband cleans most of the dishes–and thus he has to approve the dish soap.

I tried liquid Castile soap but that was too expensive. I tried making liquid Castile soap from bar soap, but that didn’t cut grease well enough and had the consistency of snot (seriously gross). And since we’re social distancing, the refill shops, I was hoping to check out were closed.

So, I did some googling and found The Good Fill, based in Nashville, TN. At the Good Fill you can order refills of various products including liquid dish soap, laundry detergent, hairspray, and shampoo. The liquids are shipped to you in a thick plastic pouch along with a return mailer with pre-paid shipping.

When you’re finished, you put the empty pouch in the paper mailer and send it back to them where they clean and refill them. Now, I know what you’re thinking…Olivia…that’s plastic. Yes, I know, but if they were to send you glass or metal, it would increase the cost of shipping (and emission) both ways. And since it’s a sturdy pouch that will be reusable many times, I’m going with it. Plus it’s one less piece of plastic that I’m throwing away.

After trying the dish soap, I’m stoked that it feels comparable to our regular dish soap and that’s one less plastic item I have to buy that ends up in the trash!

The Refill Shoppe

The Refill Shoppe, based in Ventura, CA, is unique because you can customize the scents of your cleaning products or soaps. You start by choosing a product, then whether you need a bottle or just a refill, then you can pick up to six scents and the overall strength of scent you want. Then they pack it up and ship it to you with a return mailer.

When you’re finished with the product, you send it back using their return mailer with pre-paid postage. The shop uses a high-pressure rinse, then air dries the pouch and uses UV light to sanitize it before refilling it for the next person.

The Refill Shoppe also has the largest selection of bath, body, and cleaning refills. From all-purpose cleaner, to aloe gel and astringent, there are well over 50 different items you could get refills for. Here’s their bath kit:

With their large selection, I can’t wait to try some of their products out!

Fillaree

Fillaree is based in Durham, NC. It has a similar selection to the Good Fill, except they send their refills in a branded Nalgene bottle. Among other things, they have an all-purpose cleaner, dish soap, and shampoo and conditioner.

Here’s their hand and body wash starter pack which includes:

32 Oz. Returnable refill jug full of soap
16 Oz. Aluminum Body Wash bottle
8 Oz. Glass Hand Soap bottle (Empty)
Metal Funnel (may ship separately)
Compostable Sponge (Black)

Loop

Last year a pilot program on the East Coast called LOOP started delivering toiletries, cleaning products, snacks, and even ice cream in reusable containers in a large tote. With the same model as the milk man, you could order mouthwash, shampoo, nuts, and, did I mention ice cream?, in glass or metal containers. They would get shipped to you in a large reusable tote. When you were finished, you’d put them back in the large tote where they would be picked up, sanitized and refilled.

Loop is currently available in select zip codes of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maryland, and Washington D.C I’m hoping this is a wild success so they will expand to California. I have yet to find a good plastic-free replacement for mouthwash that I like.

The Wally Shop

I talked about the Wally Shop, a Brooklyn-based zero waste bulk shop, a few weeks ago during one of my #GoodNewsFriday posts on Instagram. COVID-19 has been devastating for a lot of small businesses but the Wally Shop has expanded operations during this tough time by growing from a local delivery model to include nation-wide shipping!

I come across a lot of environmentally conscious moms who live in remote places without a bulk section (or a really poorly stocked one). Online bulk stores are a great option for those who don’t have local choices.

The Wally Shop has an array of bulk snacks, staples like beans, dried pastas, oils, teas, and baking ingredients. They ship you your goods in a plastic jar which you send back to them.