Blog
Retail Partner Highlight: Byrds Filling Station
Plaine Products partners with over 270 retail stores and refill shops across the USA to make our products more accessible for you. We are pleased to share with you one of these stores, Byrds Filling Station, to tell you more about them and their history. Read on to learn more about Byrds - it's so inspirational to read how far they've come so quickly! (And if you are looking for a retail store near you, search here.) What inspired you to start Byrds Filling Station? In 2018, theSan Francisco Chronicle published a multi-page story about plastic pollution on our beaches, and one woman’s efforts to eliminate single-use plastics from her life entirely . By ascribing to a Zero Waste lifestyle, she was able to avoid all of the plastics that the article depicted in the photos of broken laundry baskets, cracked water bottles, and the carcasses of animals who had starved to death due to bellies full of plastic. While it took me a while to get my head around this article, I challenged myself to complete ONE WEEK of grocery shopping for my family of 4 without any single-use plastics. Knowing it would be difficult, I set out confidently but was still surprised when all I could buy at the local store was a baguette, a dozen eggs, and a little bit of fresh produce. At that point, I realized that eliminating plastics was not something that our society was set up to allow us to do… which made me want to do it even more, and I had this hunch that others wanted an easier way to shop sustainably, too.Tell us about the early days, how did you get started? From the point where I realized our world was in trouble if we didn’t make it easier to avoid single-use plastics, I started looking for the products that weren’t in plastic, shopping in bulk food bins at our local grocery stores, and shopping online to learn about better ways to purchase the items we needed. Friends and family started to take notice and ask where I found solutions to certain items, so I decided to stock a few of my favorites (including Plaine Products!) in a hallway closet and could give easy access to people who were open to it. That led to finding spots in local farmers markets to really spread the word about plastic-free living and building a website for online shopping options. We started with a milkman-style delivery service that we were able to continue during Covid, but I always knew that there was a much larger plastic-free world than could ever fit in a farmers market tent… so we needed a store!What do operations look like now? What area are you serving? In June 2022, we opened a storefront in downtown San Mateo that carry bulk refills of every major necessity that a household needs. We expanded our personal care from shampoo and conditioner to include all sorts of hair products, a complete cosmetics line, skin care and sun care, as well as cleaning products for every room of the house, and even expanded to food. We offer the largest bulk food selection on the San Francisco Peninsula, along with coffees, teas, spices, fresh organic produce and dairy, and even fresh baked bread. We strive to be a one-stop shop for people who are looking to eliminate waste – particularly single-use plastic – but also to choose clean ingredients that won’t further air, water, or home pollution.What are you most proud of? When people walk in our store, they are floored by how many items we have been able to bring under one roof that don’t use single-use plastics. The comments about, “Wow – this is phenomenal” mean that our message resonates with people who may be interested in lowering their carbon and waste footprints but have been struggling. When someone new comes into our store, we welcome them not just to shop for the day, but to a community. We frequently introduce customers to other customers in the store, or strike up conversations that lead to outside events (jewelry swaps, film screenings, etc) with members of the community… allowing us to engage with people not just to drive a profit, but to educate and be a support system.What has been the most challenging? SUPPLY CHAIN – no question. This year, California was slammed by some gnarly atmospheric rivers (13, to be exact), which took our state almost entirely out of the mega drought. While we welcomed the rain, the damage caused by that quantity of water in such a short time led to many disruptions in our supply. For the last 3 months of the year, we have been dealing with manufacturers and distributors who couldn’t ship product, or would have delays of weeks over their normal shipping times, or back-up distributors who lost packages or couldn’t deliver either. Things seem to be calming down, but making sure that our bins are full of the products that our customers have come to know and love keeps me up at night.What are your most popular products? We sell a large amount of bulk coffee – more even than some of our large grocery competitors! People enjoy fresh ground peanut butter so much that when our supply chains snarled, we bought 180 pounds of it to make sure that we could get through the month. We also have a very popular tea and spice rack that will be doubling in size in the near future. Laundry detergent and dish soaps probably take the top prize for most sold items. It’s a wonderful feeling to stop buying 5 gallons of laundry detergent because we really need 30 gallons…What are the hardest zero waste items to find? Great question – the one thing that I really wanted to find was cheese, but I can’t seem to figure this one out without putting in a true deli counter. Some other things that have proven tricky are Ball jars (I know, sounds weird, but it’s true) and snack foods.What are you excited about for the future? After going to Expo West this spring, we have a big investment in the works to be able to add more inventory. Unfortunately, some of the supply chain difficulties have delayed this a bit, but it’s getting close now. We anticipate that we’ll be able to truly be the one-stop shop for plastic-free (or at least very low-waste) groceries and necessities by summertime. I’m as excited about that as the customer who once shouted, “I can buy everything I need here and break up with plastic overnight!” as she held a butternut squash over her head.
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Plastic Free Styling Gel Soars with Clean Ingredients
Plaine Products' plastic-free Styling Gel blends the hold of a gel with the softness and manageability of a styling cream. With aloe as the main ingredient, it will nourish and moisturize hair while adding control. This gel can add texture or volume to straight hair, tame flyaways and frizz, or enhance and define curls.
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We’re Saying Goodbye to Hand Sanitizer
Thank you for loving our Hand Sanitizer! We added Hand Sanitizerduring the height of the pandemic and want to start off by thanking you for trusting us to keep you safe.As Plaine Products continues to grow, we’re learning more about the space we’re in and how to best use our resources. For transparency, Hand Sanitizer sales have been steadily dropping since the end of 2021. In order to make space and create funds for additional products—like our Styling Gel, Deep Conditioner, and a larger-sized Hair Repair (coming soon!)—we’ve had to make the difficult decision to discontinue our Hand Sanitizer. While it pains us to write this, we know it’s the best choice for the direction of Plaine Products and our core mission: providing your favorite personal care products in refillable, reusable packaging. Once our inventory is gone, we’ll be removing Hand Sanitizer from our website. We currently have travel sizes still available here. And don't forget, per theCDC’s recommendations,washing your hands with soap and water often is your best bet for staying safe and germ-free. And ourhand wash isn't going anywhere!
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Reducing Plastic Waste in Hospitality
Plaine Products is partnering with hotels and short-term vacation rentals to offer refillable options for personal care products. This is a positive step in reducing plastic waste in the hospitality industry by eliminating the need for single-use plastic containers such as shampoo and conditioner bottles, and soap packages! It also offers a wonderful guest experience, thanks to clean ingredients and salon-quality products.According to sustainability and plasticsexpert Marissa Jablonski, "a single 200-room four-star hotel can use about 300,000 pieces of single-use plastic in a month if it is at full capacity." The estimate includes 20,000 plastic water bottles, 49,765 plastic amenities and amenity packages, 216,693 pieces of plastic for food and beverage operations, including plastic wrap, storage bags, and latex gloves, and 13,375 plastic bags. The number does not even include plastic laundry bags used by third-party services to protect laundered clothing for staff and guests. Or bags used by food suppliers. With the significant amount of possible plastic waste generated by hotels, it's clear that there is a need for more sustainable alternatives. Reuse and Refill in Rentals and Hotels "We have been thrilled to see the number of Airbnbs, VRBOs, property management companies, and boutique hotels that have been reaching out to us looking help reducing plastic waste," says CEO and cofounder Lindsey McCoy. "We are working with these companies in a variety of ways," says McCoy. For single rental units, we follow our traditional model of sending full bottles as refills and taking back empty bottles to be reused.For larger boutique hotels and property management operations we can provide bottles to be refilled on-site with our bulk buckets (which can also be returned to be reused). We also offer bulk refill options for hotels with shower-mounted dispensers. Our interest is in making it as easy as possible to use less single-use plastic personal care items in the hospitality industry. We have added hospitality options toour wholesale program. "As a property manager overseeing multiple Airbnbs and hosting numerous guests, guest experience is crucial to us. However, the increasing waste generated by traditional shampoos and packages has raised concerns. I have been moving towards a more sustainable lifestyle personally and in my business. I believe that your hair & body wash can help us make a significant difference." There are governmental efforts being made that will help in reducing plastic waste in hospitality. Thanks to CA Assembly Bill 1162 as of January 1st, 2023,Californian hotels with more than 50 rooms will cease to provide guests with personal care products such as shampoo, conditioner, or soap in single-use plastic containers. The measure will roll out to smaller establishments in 2024 and hopefully set an example for other states to follow as they move towards more eco-friendly alternatives. @masonloftsnashville If you're interested in staying at hotels that carry Plaine Products, you can consider Loyal Duke Lodge or Mason Lofts at West End in Nashville, Tennessee. These establishments have embraced the initiative to reduce plastic waste and provide a more sustainable experience for their guests.
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Introducing our newest partnership with Sustaio!
Want to get rewarded for doing good? Who doesn't?! Check out our newest partnership with Sustaio and find out how you can reduce your carbon footprint and earn rewards for doing so. What is Sustaio? Sustaio is a cutting-edge platform that helps you quantify your climate impact within your home. It tracks the emissions footprint of your home’s utilities so you can take meaningful steps to reduce it. As a reward for your efforts, you’ll earn valuable Sustaio Credits that can be redeemed for a wide range of real-world products in our marketplace. With 78% of people in the US saying that a sustainable lifestyle is important to them, learning how to help combat climate change by reducing your carbon footprint can be very helpful. "Sustaio empowers people to live climate-smarter by quantifying & incentivizing emissions-reducing behavior; think Rakuten meets Nerdwallet for sustainable living. Sustaio gamifies real-time tracking of utility use and home efficiency actions for the everyday individual to effectively reduce their footprint within their home," says Olivia Pedersen, founder & CEO of Sustaio.How is Plaine Products involved? When you create a Sustaio account, you will begin tracking your monthly utility bills. Every action you take to be more energy efficient each month will be reflected in your utility bills and rewarded with Sustaio Credits. These valuable Sustaio Credits can be redeemed for a wide range of real-world products including exclusive discounts with us! Sustaio Credits can be redeemed in their marketplace with brands that offer sustainable products and/or products that help people get outside better. We’re proud to be a part of their mission! In a nutshell, Sustaio is the place where you can get rewarded for reducing your carbon footprint!
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5 Suggestions for Celebrating Earth Day
Earth Day is nearly here! How will you celebrate this year? Here at Plaine Products, it's practically#EarthDayEveryDay and we have lots of great suggestions on how you too can celebrate with us!Earth Day has been celebrated for over 50 years as a special day dedicated to appreciating our planet and taking action to protect it. It's a time to think about the impact of our actions on the environment and to take steps towards creating a more sustainable future. Here are five ways to join millions of people worldwide in celebrating Earth Day:Plant a tree or start a pollinator garden Trees are an important part of our ecosystem, providing oxygen, absorbing carbon dioxide, and creating habitats for wildlife. By planting a tree or starting a garden, you can help reduce the carbon footprint and increase biodiversity in your area. And, with bee and butterfly populations on the decline, starting a native, pollinator garden can also help! You can plant wildflowers to encourage pollinators like bees and butterflies to visit your yard and we help pollinate our food sources. Not only is this a fun and rewarding activity, but it also provides long-term benefits to the environment.Reduce your energy consumption Reducing your energy consumption is a great way to celebrate Earth Day. You can start by turning off lights and appliances when you're not using them, unplugging electronics that aren't in use, and adjusting your thermostat to reduce energy usage. These simple steps can make a big impact on the environment and reduce your carbon footprint. Start composting Composting is a great way to reduce waste and create nutrient-rich soil for your garden. By composting food scraps and yard waste, you can reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills and create a sustainable source of fertilizer for your plants. You can start small with a simple compost bin in your backyard or join a community composting program.Participate in a community clean-up Joining a community cleanup is a great way to celebrate Earth Day while making a tangible impact on your local environment. You can organize a cleanup event in your neighborhood, park, or beach, or join an existing event in your community. By picking up litter and properly disposing of it, you can help protect wildlife and prevent pollution. Want to run a beach cleanup but not sure where to start? We've got sometried and true tips for planning and running your own successful beach cleanup! Or, if you need help finding a cleanup near you, check out theGreat Global Cleanup , a worldwide campaign to rid the environment of waste and plastic pollution for good.Educate yourself and others Education is key to creating a more sustainable future. Take some time to learn about environmental issues and the impact of human activity on the planet. Share your knowledge with friends, family, and your community to help spread awareness and encourage others to take action. By working together, we can create a more sustainable future for ourselves and future generations.How will you celebrate Earth Day this year? We'd love to hear your ideas! And be sure to tag us on social media with the hashtag#ProgresswithPlaine to show us all the ways you are helping the planet. Let's work together to make a positive impact on the environment and create a more sustainable future.
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Greenwashing & Goodwashing
"Every time you spend money, you're casting a vote for the kind of world you want.” (Anna Lappe) What are Greenwashing & Goodwashing? Greenwashing is when companies claim to care about their impacts on the environment by promoting their efforts as being more sustainable than they really are. These claims range from a bit of exaggeration to blatant lies. Goodwashing is very similar to greenwashing. It happens when companies claim to care about people, communities, and stakeholders— again, inflating, exaggerating, or even entirely fabricating the positive impacts of their actions. We’ve all likely seen products labeled as “eco-friendly” (usually with green or blue fonts and images of nature scenes). We might be less likely to notice greenwashing & goodwashing when companies engage in other actions intended to mislead stakeholders regarding their environmental (greenwashing) and social (goodwashing) performance and benefits, while they continue with business as usual. Common tactics include: lack of certifications, fake endorsements, deceptive imagery, exaggerated claims, and hidden partnerships and investments. The two easiest approaches I’ve found to avoiding greenwashing & goodwashing are: Shop local and as close to the source as possible, buying from farmers, producers, makers, craftspeople— supporting small businesses in the community. (Or better yet, when possible, consider borrowing, bartering, or buying used; we’ll discuss those options in more detail in future posts.) Choose products and services from companies that are Certified B Corporations Why? Certified B Corporations meet the highest verified standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability. The Certification process uses credible, comprehensive, transparent, and independent standards of social and environmental performance. It’s a super rigorous process: hundreds of thousands of companies have completed the B Impact Assessment, but only 6,320 (as of January 2023) have scored high enough and jumped through all of the hoops to become Certified B Corporations. Look for this logo: Are there companies other than those that are Certified B Corporations who truly walk their talk around issues related to social impact, sustainable/resilient/regenerative economies, CSR/ESG, JEDI, stakeholder/rights-holder capitalism, etc.? Absolutely! It’s just more difficult to evaluate and ascertain the validity of their claims. Examples of companies telling stories vs those who authentically walk their talk: Lip Balm: Burts Bees vs The Body Shop, Beauty Counter, or Eco Lips Say you’re looking for some lip balm. You consider this plastic tube of yummy smelling beeswax mixed with other moistening goodness from Burt’s Bees, taking a moment to notice the rabbit with stars “no animal testing” logo and the ubiquitous and misleading “recyclable plastic” sign. Maybe you even surf over to the Burt’s Bees website and read that they feature “ingredients from nature” and “responsible sourcing” (without any data or information to back up those claims). You look for the B Corporation logo and don’t see one (because they’re not a Certified B Corp). Then you head over to The Body Shop, Beautycounter, or Eco Lips and you read about their lip care products— all of which are made with certified organic ingredients and certified fair trade sources, by people earning living wages. Because all three brands are Certified B Corporations that truly walk their talk around sustainability and social impact. They’re among the now 50+ members of the newly formed B Corp Beauty Coalition, which includes Plaine Products, a hair and skin care company started by sisters, Lindsey and Ali, and University of Florida Grads (Alison) who dreamt of a world with less plastic waste. In short: The quick and easy answer to avoiding greenwashing & goodwashing is to be conscientious consumers by buying from well-known and trusted local sources, and/or by choosing products and services from Certified B Corporations. Resources for more info: How to Avoid Greenwashing - Network for Business Sustainability How Can Business Combat Greenwashing? - B Lab Forces for Good Podcast What is greenwashing—and how do you avoid it? - National Geographic A Guide to Greenwashing and How to Spot It - EcoWatch How to tell credible eco-labels from “greenwash” - Corporate Knights Greenwashing.com If you’d like to read more about how to avoid greenwashing & goodwashing, the complete version of this post is here. If you’d like to sign up for “(How to) Do Good Well,” a monthly email newsletter with tips & tools for how we (as business & community leaders, consumers, citizens, and changemakers) can all leverage the power of business (and our resources — of our time, talent, energy, attention, capital, and connections) as a force for good… creating strategic impact to benefit people, the planet, and prosperity… simply enter your email address here: https://dogoodwell.substack.com/subscribe. This was a guest post by Dr. Kristin Joys, an impact strategist with over 25 years of experience educating & empowering changemakers. In addition to her day job as the founder & director of the Social Impact & Sustainability Initiative in the Entrepreneurship & Innovation Center at the University of Florida, she is founder of do good well consulting, a certified B Corporation. Kristin also serves as Chair of Teaching & Curriculum Innovation for B Academics and Director of Strategic Impact & Senior Advisor for Academic Partners for Florida for Good.Each spring she directs the UF Business for Good Lab: Social Impact & Sustainability Consulting program where teams of students work as consultants, helping companies to walk their talk around sustainability, track their progress towards the UN SDGs, and apply to become certified B Corporations.
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When NOT to send your bottles back
We love that so many in our Plaine Products community want to return their bottles forreuse . The return rate of our bottles that get sent back for us to reuse and refill is fantastic - 70-80%! But we can't always reuse the bottles. Sad, we know.Given the zealousness of our community's desire to reuse and refill with us, we wanted to share a few examples of when NOT to send your bottles back to us. Why don't we want you to return these types of bottles? Unfortunately, we can't reuse every bottle. And if we can't reuse it, we recycle it. Why not just recycle it at home instead of sending it back to us? By not sending back unusable bottles you are helping to decrease our carbon footprint and our shipping costs.4 Reasons you SHOULD NOT send back a bottle Large Dents If your bottle has large dents, we can’t use that for the next customer, so please recycle at home. Large dents like these make the bottles unsuitable for reusing and refilling. Also, this box could have been reused but product leaked all over it. Did you know that we reuse our boxes as well?! When returning your bottles please be sure that they are rinsed and dried with the lids securely tightened. Hard Water Spots If your bottle has hard water spots and stains, don’t send it back to us. Just put it in your own recycling bin at home. Our warehouse manager, Chris explains, "I'm a bottle washer, not a miracle worker. Heavy soap deposits and especially hard water spots are hard or impossible to clean. These will likely be pulled off the washing line and sent directly to the aluminum recycler." If anyone has suggestions on how to remove hard water stains let us know ! Mold and Other Funkiness If the bottom of the bottle gets dirty or funky like this because you’ve had it for a while, please recycle it at home. Basically, if you wouldn't want to receive a bottle back that looks like what you are about to send back to us - recycle it instead! Other Companies' Bottles Please don’t send us other companies’ bottles. We’re just going to recycle them, so no need to ship them all the way here when you can recycle them at home. BUT consider sending that company a message encouraging them to adopt a refill model like ours. Even though we can’t reuse these types of bottles, aluminum is infinitely recyclable, so recycle it at home knowing it will stay out of the waste stream. And don't let that stop you from ordering your Plaine Products refill, you can just skip the return label!
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3 Reasons to Use Deep Conditioner
All hair can benefit from using a Deep Conditioner. Our hair gets damaged daily from styling, hot tools, color treatments, sun exposure, and more. The key to helping prevent damage and achieve healthier, stronger hair, is to use a deep conditioner. Even if you already have healthy, non-damaged hair you can benefit from the use of deep conditioner as a way to maintain your beautiful locks. Here are 3 good reasons why you should incorporate deep conditioner into your regular hair care routine: #1 Prevents Damage Deep Conditioner can help prevent hair breakage and split ends by adding moisture to your hair. The ingredients in Plaine Products' ultra-hydrating Deep Conditioner work to penetrate the hair strands on a much deeper level than our regular conditioner and increase your hair's hydration. Your hair needs to be properly moisturized to avoid dry, brittle hair, and using a deep conditioner on a regular basis will help maintain healthy hair. # 2 Restores Shine A deep conditioner works to smooth and hydrate the individual hair shafts leading to a return of the natural shine of your hair. If your hair has lost some of its shine, it is probably in need of the nutrients and moisturizing benefits a deep conditioner can provide. # 3 Promotes Elasticity Hair with more elasticity is stronger, healthier hair that won't break! Deep conditioning can help improve the elasticity of your hair by nourishing, strengthening, and moisturizing your hair. It increases the elasticity of your hair allowing it to resist stretching and breaking longer. Deep conditioner is designed to be left in your hair for longer than your regular, daily conditioner. A few extra minutes, whether that be 5 or 30 minutes, will allow the deep conditioner to provide more hydration and leave you with healthier, shinier hair.
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DO YOU NEED A RETURN LABEL?