Earth Month is a great time to discover environmentally-friendly small businesses in your community.
Some businesses reduce waste, through upcycling and sustainable packaging. Others are encouraging the re-use of containers and products through refillerys and resale shops. Energy efficiency and sustainable sourcing are additional ways that small businesses are intentional about minimizing their environmental footprint.
Check out how these Greater Seattle area small businesses celebrate Earth Month every month, and #SpendLikeItMatters as part of your sustainability journey.
Waste Minimization
Footprint Wine Tap
When you’re getting a little existential about climate change on your third glass of wine, it’s comforting to know that at least you’re drinking sustainably. Owned by Kenneth Dillon, Footprint Wine Tap is Seattle’s first and only sustainable keg wine on-tap bar. Sourcing fine wines from the Pacific Northwest, they specialize in biodynamic and organic wines. From wine production and transport to the furnishings in their space, Footprint Wine Tap aims to reduce their carbon footprint on all fronts.
Bonus: Order a bite to eat with your glass! They serve delicious pâté and crostini dishes.
Frayed Threads Mending
Rachel Weigelt opened Frayed Threads Mending In 2021 as a sustainability-focused mending and repair business. At Frayed Threads, Rachel does clothing mending, repair, and tailoring, as well as creates zero-waste products from upcycled textiles. Rachel believes mending clothes shows respect to those who grew, wove, and formed the fibers, serves as self-expression, and is an integral part of our everyday lives. Extend the life of your clothes with Rachel at Frayed Threads Mending.
Lulumiére
Linda Takano opened Lulumiére’s brick and mortar in 2021, but she’s been running the soy wax candle and shower steamer business since 2013. Scent has always been an important part of Linda’s life, and she loves the mix of science and art in candle pouring. Every candle sold at Lulumiére is more than just a candle — it’s made with intention. Lulumiére means light, and Linda is sending out little lights to you. She includes essential oils in each candle, in the hopes of encouraging renewal and deep breaths.
Bonus: Instead of tossing out your old candle tins, get them refilled at Lulumiére.
Nightshade Tattoo
In 2019, Joseph McSween’s tattoo studio, Nightshade Tattoo, expanded into a tattoo studio and a plant store with the help of his partner Aleisha Tilson. Aleisha and Joseph wanted to increase creativity and art through green spaces, because both nature and art improve mental and emotional health. They hope to spread these green spaces by providing a variety of unique and rare botanicals to your home. Joseph and Aleisha hope to provide a space at Nightshade where you can release your creativity by working with a tattoo artist to create a custom piece of art.
Fun-fact: Joseph and Aleisha’s love of all things green extend to their waste management practices. All of their packaging supplies are made with recycled materials and are biodegradable.
Refugee Artisan Initiative
Drawing on her own experience as an immigrant, Ming-Ming Tung-Edelman founded Refugee Artisan Initiative to provide employment for refugee and immigrant women. Refugee Artisan Initiative partners with immigrant women to foster an inclusive and prosperous transition to the US through artisan skills and training in zero waste, small batch manufacturing. Ming-Ming has created a community that values and invests in refugee and immigrant women as they achieve economic independence. When you visit the shop you’ll find a wide range of handmade and small-batch manufactured artisan goods, from upcycled burlap totes to beautiful jewelry.
Fun-fact: Refugee Artisan Initiative upcycles 5,000 pounds each year from landfills
Seeking Kombucha
After years of success at local farmer’s markets, in February 2021 Jeanette Macias and Lyz Bartolome opened the brick and mortar for their small batch kombucha business, Seeking Kombucha. The kombucha is available on tap, and can be taken to go in resusable containers. It is always 100% raw, organic, and vegan, and gluten-free whenever possible.
Shikorina Pastries
Hana Yohannes has always loved pastry making and wanted to use her passion as a way to uplift and support her community. In 2020, Hana opened her bakery Shikorina Pastries to bring people together and spread a little happiness through cookies, cakes, tarts, and more! All of the ingredients are ethically sourced, and are fair-trade, organic, and/or local. For Hana, it’s a priority that her business does good by the community and she’s put a lot of effort into making the business a community-oriented and inclusive space.
Bonus: Shikorina Pastries is a zero-waste shop.
Tinkertopia
Tacoma artists Darcy and Richard Ryan “R.R.” Anderson opened Tinkertopia to take safe and clean scraps, junk, and miscellaneous things and transform them into materials for early education art classes, learning games, science experiments, crafts, costuming, and more. At their planet-conscious arts and crafts store they take donations of materials that would otherwise end up in a landfill – from watch cogs to mannequin limbs.
Refillery
Mimi’s Zero Waste Market
In 2021, Heather Williams and Berenice Cuautle Arellano founded Mimi’s Zero Waste Market to offer a convenient way for eco-conscious Seattleites to shop. Alongside bulk laundry detergents and skin care products, you can stock up on pantry staples, including spices, flours, grains, and teas — all in whatever quantity you need using your own clean, reusable containers. Heather and Berenice, who runs the inventory and systems at Mimi’s, source their products from ethical and sustainable businesses, and features many local and POC-owned suppliers.
Bonus: Heather also offers shopping by appointment on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays.
Scoop Marketplace
Ditch your groceries wrapped in plastic, grab your empty (and clean!) pasta sauce and peanut butter jars, and head to Scoop Marketplace, Kirkland’s zero-waste store. There, owner Stephanie Lentz has giant containers of everything from pantry staples including rice, dried beans, and spices to household goods like shampoo and laundry detergent.
Why go through the trouble of opting for packaging-free goods? Lentz wants to help you lighten your carbon footprint — and feel good while doing it.
Resale
Black Noise Records
Brother and sister duo Nico and Alexandra Sanchez opened Black Noise Records in Downtown Bellingham in 2021 to elevate the quality of independent music in Bellingham and the Greater Seattle Area. A musician himself, Nico originally started Black Noise Records as an independent label that naturally grew into a brick-and-mortar shop. You can find new and used records and cassette tapes, but the shop’s collection mainly consists of records that are sold or traded in by the community, making Black Noise a unique reflection of Bellingham. Whether you’re looking to grow your collection or start it, look to Black Noise Records the next time you’re looking to buy, sell, or trade your vinyl.
Cherry Consignment
Nyla Bittermann opened Cherry Consignment in 2009 with the goal to create a place where women can shop for great finds at a great price. Cherry Consignment is both family friendly and community-focused. If you’re looking to consign your clothes, call Cherry Consignment to set up an appointment, then you receive 40% of what they sell for. You can spend it on a new wardrobe, save it, or cash it out.
Bonus: Whatever Nyla and her team don’t sell, you can choose to pick back up and donate!
Childish Things
As your kids get older, it can be hard to keep up with their growing need for shoes, clothes, and toys. At Childish Things, you can browse a wide selection of gently loved baby, kids, and maternity items. Since 2008, Childish Things has offered premium brands and popular items from Robeez, Angel Dear, Tuffo, Iplay, Klean Kanteen, Momma Goose and more. Owner Wendy Powell loves resale for its cost-effective and environmental benefits and hopes to provide a resource for local families.
Note: You can sell your gently used items Monday – Saturday for cash or store credit!
Our Fabric Stash
Imagine a world where people consigned all their unused scraps of fabric so that other people can use them for their creative endeavors. Deborah Boone brought that eco-collective dream to life when she opened Our Fabric Stash. Her store is a place for creatives and “stash-aholics” to buy and sell pre-owned fabric, fabric scraps, fiber, textiles, yarns, thread, sewing machines, and more. The store is well-known for its unique products and special community.
Bonus: Our Fabric Stash also hosts exciting classes and workshops.
Second Gear Sports
Started by Mark Bremen, an Air Force veteran turned turned entrepreneur, Second Gear Sports is West Seattle’s first and only sports and recreation consignment store. The team’s community focus makes it the first stop for athletes and outdoor enthusiasts of all ages.
Two Big Blondes Plus Size Consignment
Owned by Lisa Michaud, Two Big Blondes Plus Size Consignment offers a warm and inviting place to shop for everyone, and quality clothes at great prices. It is the only consignment store in the region that specializes in plus-size women’s clothing.
Fun Fact: Consignment shops are a great way to reduce waste from the fashion industry.
Energy Efficiency
Askatu Bakery Cafe
Askatu Bakery Cafe is a unique bakery where all of the baked goods are allergen-free! Owner Estela Martinez founded her bakery to provide allergen-free sweet treats to those who struggle to find them. Grab a cupcake, cookie, or brownie and enjoy how easy and delicious it is to eat worry-free.
Bonus: Askatu is an EnviroStars-recognized business.
Sustainable Products
Cafe Flora
Since its opening in 1991, Cafe Flora has been a pionedering vegetarian restaurant at the forefront of Seattle’s local, organic, and sustainable foods movements. In 2008, then general manager, Nat Stratton-Clarke, acquired the restaurant, and has maintained its community-oriented spirit ever since.
Good Sister Shop
Ennjoili Fleck aims to increase the support of PoC-owned brands, especially in the wellness industry, at her West Seattle shop, Good Sister Shop. In 2021, she opened her brick and mortar store dedicated to providing lifestyle goods as well as clean beauty and wellness products to the community to help you consume consciously. Ennjoili stocks a collection of brands and products that highlight underrepresented communities or causes as well as promote sustainability, community, and love for our planet.
Portage Bay Cafe
Owners John and Amy Gunnar share their passion for sustainable, organic, local food while making customers’ brunch dreams come true. “Eat like you give a damn” while getting cozy in the Portage Bay Cafe!
Sweet Alchemy
After graduating from UW with an Art degree, Lois Ko began pursuing her dream of creating the best ice cream in the Pacific Northwest. In 2016, she opened Sweet Alchemy where she prioritizes sustainability and strives to only use local, organic ingredients, including honey from the University of Washington apiary
Terra Plata
Terra Plata owners Tamara Murphy and Linda Di Lello Morton are passionate about “earth to plate” dining, inspired by seasonal, locally produced food. On a nice evening, patrons enjoy beautiful rooftop dining, surrounded by an edible garden.
The Cura Co.
The Cura Co. is the brainchild of Kiko Eisner-Waters who sought to curate an art gallery and design boutique to highlight woman-made, sustainable, artisan goods from all around the world. The Cura Co. is committed to cultivating more socially conscious consumers and connecting people through the origin stories of its merchandise.
Valerie Madison Fine Jewelry
Valerie Madison Fine Jewelry offers custom, made-to-order pieces for the elegant, ethical, environmentally conscious consumer. Valerie designs and creates her stunning pieces using conflict-free diamonds, gemstones, and almost 100% recycled metals. All jewelry is made in Valerie’s Madrona studio.