Green, Sustainable, Eco-Friendly, Healthy Design: Part II – Store Operations

First, ask yourself how your store’s fixtures and furnishings are maintained. Are chemicals used? If so, can more benign yet effective substances be used? What about how you operate in the space? Just because a space is green, it doesn’t mean the occupants are operating in a sustainable manner.

Air ventilation
Keeping air clean is vital to keeping an interior healthy. Having the right heating / ventilating / air-conditioning (HVAC) system in place, along with adequate fresh air ventilation throughout the day is most important. If you can’t change your HVAC system, and you don’t have access to operable exterior windows and indoor air quality is an issue, then portable air purifiers are in order. Be sure to do your homework as there are a lot of purifiers on the market, i.e., charcoal, carbon and HEPA filters, and ion machines. Just be sure not to get a machine that produces ozone.

Maintenance
Use non-toxic cleaning materials. Avoid bleach and chemicals whenever possible. Lemon juice, hydrogen peroxide and tea tree oil are great bacteria fighters. Vinegar and water can replace ammonia-based glass cleaners.

Recycling
Recycle everything that can be, i.e., paper / cardboard, aluminum, glass, ink cartridges and food waste (composting).

Packaging
Offer customers a discount if they don’t take a bag or box. If they want the pretty packaging, use recycled paper bags / boxes / tissue.

Transportation
Ask employees to carpool, take public transportation, walk or ride their bikes.

Brainstorm
Ask staff to come up with greener ways to do business. Reward them if their idea becomes a company policy. Ask vendors to reduce packaging, use recycled stuffing and to send items via greener methods of transportation.

Marketing
Communicate to your customers all the healthy, green things you are doing. Ask them to consider non-toxic, eco-friendly alternatives in their own homes and businesses. Use e-mail to communicate with customers versus direct mail. And when direct mail is necessary, use recycled paper or Kenaf (one of the new plant based paper alternatives available) and print with soy ink.

Conclusion
After you have audited your store and business, determine where you sit on the green continuum. Then define your green goals and set a time line to accomplish them.

If you’re new to the green arena, take into account time to research and ask questions of every vendor (see sidebar below) you work with. It can take time to get honest answers. Finally, define a budget and a task force to implement and monitor the changes. Remember, it’s never too late to become green and healthy.

Lyn Falk is president of Retailworks Inc and Solterra Studios. She can be reached at www.retailworksinc.com or www.solterrastudios.com.