Eco-friendly shops shortlisted in Best Small Shops competition!
Posted on in Business News
There is now only 1 week to go until the Best Small Shop in the UK for 2019 is announced at the reception in the House of Commons!
Over the last couple of weeks we have been introducing you to the fantastic shops that have been shortlisted and telling you about the wonderful ways in which they continuously help their communities and why they stood out to the judges.
These two shops stood out in particular due to their care for the environment and the ongoing sustainability of their shops. The Recycled Candle Company and The Naked Pantry New Forest go above and beyond to ensure their products are environmentally friendly while still maintaining excellent customer service!
The Recycled Candle Company
The Recycled Candle Company, which moved into its new shop in Exeter in June this year, sells candles fragranced with its own bespoke scents created in collaboration with a UK-based French perfumier.
With the ever-increasing costs of commercial and non-commercial waste disposal, this shop collects scrap candle wax and takes it away to be recycled and given new life by melting it down, cleaning, dying, and scenting it.
The shop includes a space for candle-making workshops, guest classes or hot-desking, and customers who donate used candles receive a discount whilst the shop's loyalty card rewards returning customers. Last year the retailer initiated a Golden Ticket scheme with other local businesses; tickets were given to customers to use as payment against purchases in the run up to Christmas.
The Naked Pantry New Forest
At The Naked Pantry New Forest customers can bring their own containers to refill with all their kitchen pantry items, household cleaning products, personal care items, and toiletries.
The shop helps the local community reduce its waste by collecting several different waste streams for recycling by TerraCycle and donate all the proceeds to a local hospice. It is a collection point and event host for the local free school uniform swap organiser and has also signed up to be community leaders for becoming a plastic free town. The Naked Pantry is passionate about helping its community to become less dependent on plastic packaging and reducing food waste.
For more information about The Recycled Candle Company and The Naked Pantry New Forest you can visit their pages in the Indie Retail Shop directory. Keep up to date with the Best Small Shops competition by following our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram pages.