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 鈥� FILL Vernon鈥檚 Refill Store and FILL 琉璃神社鈥檚 Refill Store 鈥� every one of those zeroes says so much.
鈥淚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,鈥� said Dubland. She was among the first team of 鈥榝illers鈥� when the Vernon FILL store opened in December 2019. 鈥淚 was so passionate about what we were doing and so excited, people would always ask, 鈥業s this your store?鈥欌��
But it wouldn鈥檛 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 琉璃神社 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 琉璃神社鈥檚 Refill Store opened on Lakeshore Road鈥檚 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.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had a really positive response from the community. People have really embraced it and it鈥檚 encouraging to see the plastic we鈥檙e keeping out of landfills,鈥� says Dubland.
She and Sanders identify as 鈥榮ustainability stewards鈥� and they remember every photo at the chalkboard.
鈥淲e were saving so much plastic, the thought of being able to bring that to another Okanagan community was a no-brainer,鈥� says Sanders. When she opened the doors to the Vernon store 鈥� several months after winning first place in Enterprize Challenge, a startup boot camp that culminates in a Dragon鈥檚 Den style pitch to judges 鈥� she says it was like 鈥渁 rocket ship took off.鈥�
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 that鈥檚 being used throughout Predator Ridge.
鈥淲e never considered postponing our plans to open in 琉璃神社,鈥� says Sanders. They wanted to ensure if people wanted to refill, they could.
鈥淩ight from the beginning I felt, I have to make refilling more affordable,鈥� says Sanders, who opted to have FILL carry plant-based and regular grade safe blends as well as organic. 鈥淲e just want to support people in refilling, so our approach is to find out what someone鈥檚 needs and price point are, and then help them find the product that鈥檚 a fit for them.鈥�
In the spirit of inclusivity while doing something good for the earth 鈥� and collectively contributing to all those zeroes 鈥� 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.
鈥淐oming in to FILL is an experience. There is a sense of community and fun and a joy in what we鈥檙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, 鈥楾hank you for making the world a greener place.鈥欌��
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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