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Refill business launches Crowdfunder to invest in zero waste shopping
An eco-friendly retail business is calling on customers and supporters to help it upgrade its popular refill and zero waste shop.
All is Good, based in Penistone, has launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise the £18,000 investment it needs to expand the refill section of its community store, making it more accessible, user-friendly, and cost-effective.
Green ‘dragons’ – or eco-investors – from the community are being asked to support the development by ‘pledging’ an investment of any amount to help the shop buy 18 giant 200-litre barrels of household and cleaning products; extend its rack of zero-waste dispensers for dried food; and expand its range of reduced-waste frozen food.
Investors will then get all their money back, in terms of value of goods in-store with an extra 10 percent on top for all pledges above £20, and rewards such as coffee, cake and exclusive offers thrown in too.
Karen Close, who set up ‘All is Good Yorkshire’ with business partner Leanne Gill in October 2021, said: “Sales have grown and grown in our refill section, and we’ve wanted to invest in making it bigger and better for a while now but have been stuck because of the cost of the initial outlay.
“This is fabulous way to help our us cover our costs upfront and we will be very grateful for any support that existing and potential customers would like to give us.
“We love that we’ll then be able to pay everyone back, in full, through products and rewards. It will be our way of saying thank you for believing in, and supporting, our green business. It’s a win-win for everyone and we are very excited about this development.”
Karen turned to crowdfunding after talking to Save The High Street, which is working with Barnsley Council to support community shops across the borough. Its community director Julie Holden introduced her to OurPledge, a specialist sustainable business consultancy which supports green start-ups and SMEs across the UK.
CEO of OurPledge Rachael Castell said: “Businesses like All is Good are community hubs which champion zero waste shopping - and the vanguard of the retail sector’s future. They’re pioneering more sustainable models of delivery and packaging; and exploring alternatives to the supermarket norm.
“Customers keen to live greener lifestyles can develop new shopping habits and reduce their carbon footprints simply through their everyday transactions.
“Anyone who pledges to support All is Good’s crowdfunder will see very good returns on their investment for themselves, in terms of receiving a higher value of product on account, and also for the planet in terms of helping along a sustainable business in their own community.”
OurPledge has worked in partnership with crowdfunding platform Crowd0 to set up All is Good’s campaign.
Crowd0 is a new digital platform dedicated to helping small, purpose-driven businesses secure investment for developments from multiple backers in their own communities.
Co-founder of Crowd0 Oliver Duffy said: “All is Good is a great fit for Crowd0. The business shares many of the same values we do around sustainability, and we look forward to helping Karen raise money through her community to expand the shop’s refillable and zero waste options.”
The All is Good crowdfunder launched on June 13th and will run for six weeks.
The business needs to raise £18,000 to invest in large barrels of household and cleaning products from its UK-based B Corp supplier Fill/Refill Co including shampoo and conditioner, washing-up liquid and floor cleaner. These better-value barrels will replace smaller ones, cut the number of deliveries needed to store, keep prices down and create a more clutter-free environment with improved access for wheelchairs and pushchairs. More user-friendly pumps will also make them ‘self-service’ so customers of all ages can refill their own bottles.
All pledges will be redeemable in full against future purchases across the store, with extra rewards.
All is Good sells locally-sourced food, arts, crafts and gifts; ethical brands and environmentally-friendly goods, as well as refill and zero waste goods.
Its refill area has grown from a four-metre square corner of the shop to a 40m square room of its own in just 18 months.
Karen said: “Since opening, we’ve increased the number of refill products we stock from five to 20, doubled the number of zero waste dry goods we sell and added refillable wine, gin and rapeseed oil to our range.
“Our customers have really embraced this new way of shopping which shuns single-use plastic packaging and helps reduce so much of the waste prevalent in conventional shopping. We look forward to investing in growth.”
Penistone Against Plastic Pollution Community Lead Chris Leak said: “This is fantastic news for Penistone and we’d like to encourage as many people as possible to back this crowdfunding initiative to help All is Good make their zero waste, plastic-free, refill shopping area bigger and better.”
Penistone Against Plastic Pollution Community Lead Chris Leak said: “This is fantastic news for Penistone and we’d like to encourage as many people as possible to back this crowdfunding initiative to help All is Good make their zero waste, plastic-free, refill shopping area bigger and better.”
See the All is Good crowdfunder here
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