Shopping sustainably isn’t as hard as it once used to be. Package-free stores are popping up all over the city, and the latest to open in Toronto is bare market.
If the name bare market sounds familiar, it might be because you’ve seen the company’s pop-up shops before. Prior to opening its first brick-and-mortar location on the Danforth at the beginning of February 2020, bare market’s founder, Dayna Stein, hosted monthly package-free pop-ups in the city.
But Stein’s interest in package-free shopping stems much further back.
While living in Vancouver in 2012, Stein completed a degree in Sustainable Food Systems and Food Security, and had access to a refill shop that featured body, DIY, and home care goods. “Purchasing the things I needed from there felt like the one tangible way I was practicing what I was preaching and aligning my dollars with my values,” Stein tells us. “I knew back then there was a gap in the market in Toronto, and I wanted to bring it back here at some point, I just wasn’t quite ready back then.”
But in 2017, Stein was ready to take the leap.
In October 2017, Stein quit her consulting job to focus on bare market.
The concept was always meant to be a physical storefront, but hosting the pop-ups allowed Stein to test different products and price points, and get a better understanding of demand. Her first pop-up opened in June 2018, and was well received Torontonians looking to lessen their footprint.
Now at the permanent location, you can shop much more than the pop-up’s original offerings.
From bulk body items like shampoo, eyeshadow, and makeup remover, to home cleaning products, DIY ingredients like Himalayan sea salt and Avocado oil, and organic produce, bare market has just about everything you need to go bare and make an easy transition into package-free life.
Stein works with local suppliers and specialists to ensure each product stocked in-store makes as little an impact on the environment as possible, and often turns to Etsy, farmer’s markets, and local events to find the best package-free goods the city has to offer.
The store also features a cafe with seating up front.
At the end of the day, Stein sees bare market as much more than a store — it’s a way to start a dialogue on larger environmental and social issues.
“We chose to have a permanent retail space so that we could build community [and] spark this dialogue [through] workshops, panels, movie screenings, classes, and more.”
bare market is open six days a week, from Tuesday to Sunday. You can visit the store at 1480 Danforth Ave. in Toronto. Just remember to bring in your reusable containers!
See more photos from inside bare market below.
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News of malls banning straws and retailers making promises of plastic-free futures signal that sustainability isn’t just a trend, it’s here to stay.
Toronto already has retailers like Eco + Amour and Unboxed Market that provide package-free products for shoppers that look to waste less. And now, a popular zero-waste pop-up market is getting its own permanent retail location.
bare market will be opening its first permanent store location within the next six months.
In an interview with Retail-Insider, Dayna Stein, bare market’s founder, said that the store’s first location will be located in Toronto’s Danforth Area. The decision to open a permanent space came after seeing the success and popularity of the pop-ups, which began in 2018.
Stein has hosted 65 pop-ups since the concept’s inception, with partners like Patagonia and a variety of different farmers’ markets supporting the initiative. “We’re on a mission to help you reduce waste. As Toronto’s first one-stop shop for package-free goods, we offer affordable and locally sourced body and home care products in bulk that are good for you and good for the planet,” the website states.
Instagram/@baremrkt
The first Toronto store will be located at 1480 Danforth Avenue.
Stein plans for the store to open in December 2019 or January 2020, and the store will span over 2,800-square-feet. Shoppers can expect to shop body care, home care, cleaning ingredients, and other lifestyle essentials, all with the mission to reduce waste and cut costs. While the pop-ups focus mainly on lifestyle products, the store will also stock bulk foods and kitchen essentials that are produced locally in Toronto.
In addition, shoppers can expect to see workshops and classes on how to reduce waste at home and live a more healthy life in-store.
Until the permanent location opens, you can shop bare market at one of its upcoming pop-ups. Find the next pop-up on baremarket.ca.
Featured image: Instagram/@baremrkt
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If one of your resolutions for 2019 was to be less wasteful, then this new grocery store on Dundas West needs to be on your radar.
Toronto’s first waste-free grocery store, Unboxed Market, is 100% just that and they want everyone to know it. From how they receive product, to how we (the customer) buy it, it’s all done with as little waste as possible. How does this work, you ask? Well it sounds complicated but it’s actually really easy being green!
Simply bring your empty containers/jars/whatever and weigh them, as this’ll come in handy at checkout (don’t worry if you forget containers at home—you can pay a deposit for theirs.) Then go ahead and peruse the aisles, shop the spice drawers, sample the deli meat at the back, and let your mouth water at the hot food table.
Once you’re all shopped out, the cashier will weigh your goodies and deduct what your container weighs and that’s it—easy grocery shopping all done without the shame of Mother Nature.
Whether you’re on the hunt for fresh and local produce, soft baguettes, fragrant spices, or specialty items like duck eggs or made in-store chorizo, Unboxed Market has it all and it’s all done with as little waste as possible.
Unboxed Market is everything we love about bulk stores mixed with the expertly curated selection you’d find at a higher up grocery store without the crazy jacked-up prices.
Unboxed Market is the brain child of Michelle Genttner and Luis Martins. It came to life after the two witnessed first-hand how much waste there is in the restaurant and hospitality industries.
Both Michelle and Luis were raised to appreciate food and be mindful of where it comes from and it was working in the restaurant industry where they saw the disconnect most people have with their food.
A really interesting fact we learnt from Michelle is that a grocery store’s largest profit loss is produce. This is because sometimes it goes bad before it’s purchased, and one thing they do to stop that loss from happening is they use it in dishes that they serve at the hot table and café. Brilliant, right?
Not only is everything available in the store done with as little packaging as possible but it doesn’t end there. When Unboxed Market receives shipments from suppliers, they ensure that where it comes from is mindful about waste as well. Plus, when products are shipped to the store, Unboxed Market sends the crates back to the suppliers so they can use it again—actual recycling is pretty genius, right?
At Unboxed, Michelle and Luis want to involve the community as much as possible and that involves hosting fun food events for everyone to enjoy. They recently hosted an olive oil tasting with olive oil brand, Olive Pressée and have many plans for in-store events in the future.
Not only does Unboxed supply gorgeous produce and ready-to-eat deliciousness right in the store but they also have a cafe. The cafe is right at the front of the store and it’s there that they serve coffee (duh!), their house-made pastries along with to-go lunches. Just remember to bring your own coffee mug or carafe!
Looking to use more non-toxic products? Well Unboxed Market has you covered because there is literally a wall of clean and non-toxic beauty and household products that you can dispense into your own bottles and take home!
Take a peek inside Unboxed Market below.
Featured Image: Instagram/@unboxedmarket
All other images by StyleDemocracy
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