Welcome To The Refillution!

"And on the way back, we can visit the Ecover Pop-Up shop and get a free coffee" said Liz, as we pushed the buggy through Borough Market. There's a car/van hire place, which usually looks pretty seedy, on the site of an old petrol station, which had been transformed for a couple of days. As we approached we saw old car tyres painted in pastel hues, filled with plants- and people at picnic tables drinking coffee and chatting.

"Welcome to the Refillution" said the sign. A team of cheerful people were explaining all about the benefits of using refillable containers - not just for takeaway coffees, but also for household products like shampoo, washing up liquid, etc.

Did we know about ecover products already? Yes we did. Do we use them? Sometimes.

We were invited to take an empty bottle and fill it with detergent from the modified 'petrol pump'. "Our only requirement is that you promise to keep this bottle for a year and refill it." said the girl. I'm a little unsure if she meant 'with Ecover w-u liquid' or with anybody's product. I usually buy very large bottles of cheaper stuff and decant anyway. [My little red bottle in the kitchen is almost 40 years old]

"Please go and have a free coffee" they told us. This was delicious Pact Coffee, and was being served in re-usable cups. Neither of us wanted another of these, we have mugs already. I whipped out my Stojo mug, and the guy was very happy to fill it for me. I like the Stojo, because it packs flat in my bag, Once it is empty I squash it down again. [it does not keep the drink particularly hot - but that's fine with me]

I am not as diligent about using refill shops as other bloggers [like Kezzie] as I sometimes find the extra cost is just a bit too high. I often buy bulk sized bottles/boxes and decant. I bought two huge containers of 'professional' concentrated Flash in a 'bogof' in the cash'n'carry in Leicester in 2014 - and I am just about finished them. [That is not to imply I don't use them very often...just that they've lasted ages - I had one in Dorset, one here] And currently I am using washing powder - again a mega sized cardboard box, but for convenience I refill a tin stored by the machine.

Since writing yesterday's post, I found the Big Issue which I bought to read on the bus and left in my shopping bag. It has a whole section on B Corp. The co-founder of BI was Gordon Roddick [of The Body Shop] and he was an early adopter of B Corp recognition. The magazine has a helpful list of B Corp companies. Some of these you may recognise