Ecomart - Zero Waste Shop - West End of Glasgow

Aim

Raising money to open up a zero waste food refill shop in the West End of Glasgow.

Welcome

Hi everyone, my name’s Helen. In the past few years I have become increasingly aware of the problems facing our planet and all that call it home. Therefore, I’m really excited to be starting up Ecomart, a business selling zero waste products to help people live a more sustainable lifestyle.                                                  

I believe that it is very important that we all change the way we live and treat our planet to help preserve it for future generations. I want to be able to do something that will help make a transition to a more sustainable lifestyle as easy as possible for everyone.

I officially set up Ecomart in August 2019 and since then have had a couple of stalls and have been working to set up a zero waste shop in the West End of Glasgow. To be able to achieve this I have decided to crowdfund to help fund the new shop. 

What a zero waste shop is

Shopping at a zero waste shop is a great way to help you cut down on the amount of rubbish that you throw out. At Ecomart you will be able to bring one of your own containers to fill up on loose products. Firstly, you weigh and label your empty container. You then fill up on your chosen product before re-weighing your container and getting another label with the cost for the weight of the product that you have got - don't worry, there will be plenty of help on hand to explain everything and it's easy enough to pick up.

              Thank you to the Lavemill Larder in Troon for the photos.

What the problem is

At the moment we are at a critical point in our history, where we must change the way we treat our planet if we want it to survive. Temperatures are continuing to rise with most of the earth’s warming happening in the past 35 years. Ice sheets are melting at an increasing rate with the rate of Antarctica's ice loss tripling in the last ten years. We need to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5°C from pre-industrial levels and we’re already 1°C warmer, so, if the pace continues, we’ll reach 1.5°C by 2040.

The world consumes 100.6bn tonnes of materials every year. In the last two years alone, consumption has jumped by more than 8%. However the percentage of resources reused has dropped from 9.1% to 8.6%. This means that also the amount of waste human’s throw away every year is increasing. Homes in the UK throw out around 400kg of waste every year.

This huge amount of waste has increased the amount of waste that has been getting into our waterways and by 2050 it is estimated that there will be more plastic by weight than fish in the sea. Plastic waste even effects humans as we consume over 50,000 particles of microplastic every year and also breath in over 50,000 particles every year too. 

On top of this, we are destroying many animal's habitats with 1 million species at risk of extinction. 

Why zero waste shops can help our planet

There are now over 270 zero waste shops in the UK and I want to add to this growing number to give 100s more people in Glasgow the opportunity to live a more sustainable lifestyle.

Shopping at a zero waste shop can help to make a difference to our planet. It fits into the idea of a circular economy, rather than linear or recyclable meaning that everything is either recycled, repurposed, reused or repaired. It is my hope that eventually everyone will have access to these type of shops and it will become the norm for everyone to shop like this. Everyone starting off small can add up to a big change. 

The average household buys around 104kg of plastic packaging in their weekly shop every year. This amounts to 624kg of CO2 so when shopping, buying products without packaging can make a big difference. 

You can work out how much packaging you buy using this link https://www.ovoenergy.com/plastic-footprint:

Therefore, shopping at Ecomart can help you to:

The shop is for everyone and there will always be plenty of help on hand. There will also be lots of sessions to show people how everything works so no matter who you are, everyone will be welcome. The prices in the shop will also be as competitive as possible. 

What the funding is needed for

To open up Ecomart there are a lot of different things that I need funding  for, including:

My initial target is for £10,000. This is because I am eligible for the RBS Back Her Business, meaning that they will give half of the amount I am trying to fundraise up to £5000 as long as I raise all of my initial target. This also means that it is an ALL OR NOTHING campaign.

However, to open up Ecomart and provide a good range of products, as well as a specialised scale and till to make shopping at Ecomart as smooth as possible I really need to raise my stretch target too, which is £20,000. This will really help to make Ecomart as best as it can be. So please continue to donate and support the crowdfunder even once I've passed my initial target. 

Products that will be stocked

Ecomart will stock a range of different products and I hope to increase the range of products as the number of customers grow. To begin with we will stock food including:

• White rice
• Brown rice
• White penne pasta
• Whole wheat penne pasta
• Spaghetti
• Chickpeas
• Green lentils
• Red kidney beans
• Raisins 
• Sultanas

Ecomart will also have various herbs and spices  as well as fresh, locally grown fruit and vegetables. 

I'll also be selling washing up liquid, fabric conditioner, laundry liquid and have products to help you live a more sustainable lifestyle including bamboo toothbrushes, soap bars, shampoo bars, metal straws and cleaners, washing-pads and many other things. 

How you can help 

There are many ways you can help Ecomart become a reality. 

Every little bit will help, whether that's a small donation, sharing the crowdfunder or getting in contact!

Contact Us

You can contact us in the following ways and also like our social media to stay up-to-date with everything. 

• [email protected]
• Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/ecomartuk
• Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/ecomartuk/
• Twitter – https://twitter.com/ecomartuk 

   Thanks for reading this and for your support!

This project successfully funded on 20th March 2020