Friday night I had a domestic emergency, piles of washing up to do and not a drop of Ecover washing up liquid to be found. Shamefully for someone who should be better prepared I have to admit I resorted to a trip to the corner shop and one of those leading detergent brands. Lesson learned though and I quickly vowed never to let it happen again.
Not wanting to hang around with my new resolution I hopped on the bike on Saturday and headed down to Unpackaged in Islington, London with my refill bottles in tow. The idea behind this innovative store is to remove as much packaging as possible from the whole business of buying groceries. You bring along your own refill containers, in my case this time a couple of empty Ecover bottles and another empty bottle for olive oil which you then simply refill from a large bulk container. The result is less waste going to landfill and it’s cheaper too so everyone’s a winner!
I was very impressed with the product range on offer which included lots of organic wholefoods (rice, pasta, beans etc) as well as the whole Ecover range in refillable containers. It’s also one of the nicest shops around to visit with great attention to detail and it comes as no surprise to learn when you see the place that Unpackaged was voted runner up in the Jupiter Big Idea category at this years Observer Ethical Awards. Such a good idea and full credit to Catherine the owner who has done such a great job in making it all happen.
