At the front of a Lower Mission refill shop, on a chalkboard that marks milestones of plastics saved, Gabi Dubland lifted her blue chalk and wrote: 10,000.
On a slightly bigger chalkboard at the sunny entrance of a refill store in Vernon, Teresa Sanders raised her blue chalk and scrawled: 100,000. To the owners of both stores sa国际传媒� FILL Vernonsa国际传媒檚 Refill Store and FILL Kelownasa国际传媒檚 Refill Store sa国际传媒� every one of those zeroes says so much.
sa国际传媒淚t takes me back to how it felt in the beginning when I was helping people fill their bottles and seeing the high that they would get in refilling and the impact we were making together,sa国际传媒� said Dubland. She was among the first team of sa国际传媒榝illerssa国际传媒� when the Vernon FILL store opened in December 2019. sa国际传媒淚 was so passionate about what we were doing and so excited, people would always ask, sa国际传媒業s this your store?sa国际传媒檚a国际传媒�
But it wouldnsa国际传媒檛 be long before Dubland could give a different answer to that question: The Vernon store had only been open a few weeks when Dubland and Sanders began to dream of opening a Kelowna store as partners. In November, that dream became a reality.
After completing significant lease-hold improvements in the span of just a month, in November FILL Kelownasa国际传媒檚 Refill Store opened on Lakeshore Roadsa国际传媒檚 Mission Park Shopping Centre, offering 1,250 square feet of opportunity to refill everything from dish soap and deodorant to shampoo and hand sanitizer across price points. Three months later, the store has already celebrated a major milestone: 10,000 plastics saved.
sa国际传媒淲esa国际传媒檝e had a really positive response from the community. People have really embraced it and itsa国际传媒檚 encouraging to see the plastic wesa国际传媒檙e keeping out of landfills,sa国际传媒� says Dubland.
She and Sanders identify as sa国际传媒榮ustainability stewardssa国际传媒� and they remember every photo at the chalkboard.
sa国际传媒淲e were saving so much plastic, the thought of being able to bring that to another Okanagan community was a no-brainer,sa国际传媒� says Sanders. When she opened the doors to the Vernon store sa国际传媒� several months after winning first place in Enterprize Challenge, a startup boot camp that culminates in a Dragonsa国际传媒檚 Den style pitch to judges sa国际传媒� she says it was like sa国际传媒渁 rocket ship took off.sa国际传媒�
Even during COVID-19, FILL has been thriving. The store went online, offered curbside pickup or delivery and began selling surface and hand sanitizer, which arrives in one of three 210 litre drums that circles back and forth from the manufacturer so no new plastic is created. FILL even went through the Health Canada process of creating a new lavender-scented hand sanitizer thatsa国际传媒檚 being used throughout Predator Ridge.
sa国际传媒淲e never considered postponing our plans to open in Kelowna,sa国际传媒� says Sanders. They wanted to ensure if people wanted to refill, they could.
sa国际传媒淩ight from the beginning I felt, I have to make refilling more affordable,sa国际传媒� says Sanders, who opted to have FILL carry plant-based and regular grade safe blends as well as organic. sa国际传媒淲e just want to support people in refilling, so our approach is to find out what someonesa国际传媒檚 needs and price point are, and then help them find the product thatsa国际传媒檚 a fit for them.sa国际传媒�
In the spirit of inclusivity while doing something good for the earth sa国际传媒� and collectively contributing to all those zeroes sa国际传媒� Sanders says FILL has really created a community of passionate supporters, and those relationships have grown even stronger during COVID, despite sometimes shorter, distanced visits and digital communication.
sa国际传媒淐oming in to FILL is an experience. There is a sense of community and fun and a joy in what wesa国际传媒檙e doing. I think people find it very rewarding. Everyone leaves with a smile and I love being able to say to customers at the till, sa国际传媒楾hank you for making the world a greener place.sa国际传媒檚a国际传媒�
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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