Kermit the Frog famously crooned that “It’s Not Easy Being Green.” He was talking about the trials of being a frog in the world of Muppets, but consumers trying to live a green lifestyle might sympathize with the sentiment.
Sarah Tozer’s new shop at 1948 Ridge Road in Homewood is designed to help make environmentally sustainable choices more accessible.
Gaia Market and Refillery opened on May 19. The store specializes in products for those who want to reduce their environmental impact. Her slogan is “attainable sustainable.”
The shop carries items like plastic-free, compostable coffee pods; wooden kitchenware coated in olive oil; fair-trade certified, organic cotton socks (sales contribute to an LGBTQ+ organization); natural deodorants, to name just a few products mentioned recently on the store’s Facebook page.
The heart of the project, and located in the center of the shop, is the refillery, an array of bulk containers of home and personal projects that can be purchased in whatever quantities customers prefer, which Tozer said not only reduces waste but helps people select what they really want and will use.
Customers can bring reusable containers or use container the shop provides
to get the amount of product they need rather than depending on
packaged quantities. (Eric Crump/H-F Chronicle)
The refillery includes things like body lotion, body wash, shampoo, conditioner, dish soap, laundry detergent and household cleaners.
There are reusable containers available for customers to use, but people can also bring their own containers to the store. Tozer weighs containers before they are filled, then weighs again afterward to determine how much product the customer is purchasing.
What customers won’t see on the shelves, although it’s there, is the research that went into product selection. Tozer said she is committed to offering authentic sustainable products and does the work to verify that products live up to their billing.
She said some companies make environment-friendly claims that amount to what she called “greenwashing.”
“Greenwashing is just a general term to describe big companies who literally will just turn their labels green or put a tree on it just to convince consumers that it’s eco-friendly despite changing nothing about the formula or the packaging or their sourcing,” she said. “It’s so prevalent.”
She looks for companies that use biodegradable material, cruelty free methods and fair trade practices.
“I really trust every company here, and I try to go as local as possible,” Tozer said. Gaia’s website includes a list of the companies she buys from.
used pieces, owner Sarah Tozer’s way of using recycling to set up her shop. (Eric Crump/H-F Chronicle)
She tries to stay as local as possible with her product sources because shipping has a big environmental impact. But sometimes that’s not possible.
“I couldn’t find biodegradable garbage bags in a large size that weren’t like $3 per bag,” she said. “I ended up having to go with a French company for that. That’s farther, but it’s worth it.”
She said part of the store’s mission is to make it possible for everyone to do their part for the environment, and that’s why keeping prices reasonable is important.
“The eco-friendly movement can be very exclusive,” Tozer said. “It’s an important critique of the movement, because it’s easy if you have enough money to afford these changes and say, ‘Oh, why isn’t everybody doing this?'”
On the store’s Facebook page, she posted a photo that speaks to her mission of accessibility and inclusion. It shows a sign on a building that reads, “We don’t need a handful of people doing zero waste perfectly. We need millions of people doing it imperfectly.”
Christina Roberts of Flossmoor discovered the store because she follows several local shops on social media, and it was mentioned there. When she heard Gaia was open, she wanted to check it out.
It met her approval.
“It’s fun and funky, but it also aligns with my personal choices on how I want to live — more sustainably,” she said. “I really appreciate the accessibility.”
Affordability was also key to being able to open the store in the midst of the biggest inflation spike in 40 years. Tozer opted for recycled furnishings. Most of the pieces were obtained at thrift stores or were donated.
“I actually garbage picked,” she said. “It was very fun. I love thrifting. It’s super sustainable to buy second-hand.”
Everything was refinished, and the result is a homey, welcoming atmosphere.
Starting a business is actually a second career for Tozer. Her first vocation was chef, but she started to experience carpal tunnel problems. About a year ago, she had surgery. She hoped to return to her culinary career, but she wasn’t getting well enough to do the work.
She had to find a new direction.
“I was always looking on these eco-friendly websites, and just wishing that we had a store here,” she said. “I was like, well, I could probably do that.”
Her sense of environmental responsibility was formed much earlier, though.
“We learned in school about climate change. It was ingrained in me young to care,” she said.
She also learned good practices at summer camp as a child, where it was the “leave no trace” approach to camping. She learned that burying food or other waste can harm wildlife, and that got her thinking about her impact on the world and to be mindful about it.
Tozer is also a composting advocate. She has a bin available so customers can bring food waste to the store, ideally in a biodegradable bag, and she will make sure it gets composted.
She hopes convenient composting and green products make the store a resource that will help people to develop habits of sustainability.
“I want to encourage people to do like one little step at a time. It doesn’t have to be a whole overhaul of your whole life. You can make changes slowly.”