My 9-to-5 is pretty sweet these days. Writing about the city’s best local shopping means I explore different neighborhoods and talk to small-business owners who are excited to share their passions. It also has me reflecting on shopping, and ways to do it responsibly. This week, I pulled together suggestions for places that help you reduce the waste inherent in shopping, such as stocking products with less packaging or offering refills for makeup, hair products, cleaning products, and more, so you get the good stuff without the trash. Check out these low- and no-waste suggestions.
At either of The Good Fill’s locations (The Nations and East Nashville), you can buy personal care, makeup, and cleaning products that are refillable and/or don’t require one-use plastics. You can bring your own containers — the website has great info on how to clean them first — or buy reusable ones. When you see me walking through Five Points with a giant bag of empty bottles, you’ll know I am on my way to buy dish soap, laundry detergent, hair conditioner, and toothpaste tablets. I suspect my house guests hate trying to decipher my handwriting to figure out what is in each bottle, but it’s the price we pay for not throwing more crap out.
So much stuff we buy and use regularly comes in plastic that many of us don’t even think about. At Sage Refill Market in 12 South, you can grab essentials in refillable or reusable containers and other alternative packaging. Check out their night cream in glass jars, refillable dental floss, and soap sticks for removing laundry stains. (I should buy a couple of those. Earlier this year, a bartender saw me spill wine on myself from across the room and brought me a stain stick to save my blouse. Instead of being embarrassed, I wrote about it.)
In addition to selling low-toxin and low-waste products, Good Better Best’s shop in The Nations is a Vinted Go location. That means if you are buying or selling on the second-hand app Vinted, you can pick up purchases and ship others. Of course, sending things through the mail does have some environmental impact, but buying second-hand still seems like a win. GBG also offers delivery of their refills. They call themselves the “modern-day milkman” for the stuff you need every day.
I have yet to make it to Tare Bulk Foods in Dickson, but they have more than 170 spices and 120 dry goods available in bulk, so it’s on my must-shop list. (I’m planning a trip to Sewing Parts Online soon, so I’m about to have a Dickson adventure. Anywhere else I should go?) They’re also opening a second location in Columbia, where I’m smitten with Gold’s Deli, so I will find any excuse for a Columbia day trip.
