Retail column: Will people buy ‘green’?
| Saturday, Feb 28 2009 02:09 PM
Last Updated Friday, Mar 27 2009 01:02 PM
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Sasha Windes behind the counter at the Fresh & Green.
Trulaine Woken of Cone’s Health Foods and Vitamins with her counter made of bamboo and countertop made of recycled glass.
Earth Day will be here in just a few weeks. Is it smart to stock up on green inventory to capitalize on the annual tribute to all things environmental?
Maybe. Maybe not.
On the one hand, President Barack Obama made investment in green technology a key component of his campaign rhetoric, and just shepherded through an economic stimulus package that spends heavily in this area.
So green is on consumers’ minds like never before.
At the same time, we’re in a recession.
I pay for curbside recycling. I regularly return to stunned cashiers the plastic bags they foist upon me for one item I can easily carry.
But since the economic downturn began, I have wavered in my commitment. Those recycled content paper towels cost more than regular ones. At some point, I have to choose between Mother Earth and another single mom.
Me.
The fact of the matter is, consumers like to think they are environmentalists, but when times get tough, how green are they, really? More than you might think, said Sasha Windes, co-owner of Fresh & Green, a specialty store that carries only eco-friendly products.
Toxin-free pillows and bedding might cost a little more than their conventional counterparts, but factoring in the medical cost of allergies and asthma from excessive exposure to chemicals, you save money in the long run, Windes insists.
Windes and business partner Jennifer Jordan launched a virtual store online in November 2007, and opened their physical store in northwest Bakersfield last June.
“We’re completely off the beaten path and hard to find, but people drive in from as far away as Frazier Park and Pine Mountain because they’re educated about the issues and they really care,” Windes said.
But Cone’s Health Foods & Vitamins in southwest Bakersfield carries “very little” in the way of green consumer goods, said co-owner Trulaine Woken.
That’s not for lack of awareness. When her store recently relocated to the Town and Country shopping center, Woken paid extra for green construction touches such as counters made from recycled glass, and paint free of solvent emissions.
But that was on her dime. She’s not asking customers to fork over extra bucks for, say, green cleaning products.
“I’m just not sure people would pay for it, especially with Trader Joe’s so close. They can sell those types of things a lot cheaper because of their size and purchase power,” Woken said.
Ditto at Fresh & Easy, a grocery store chain that focuses on organic food, health food and gourmet products.
“A lot of our environmental initiatives are built into the store itself,” said spokesman Brendan Wonnacott. “And it’s reflected in our business practices, like reusable crates and things like that.
“But we’re a small store, only 10,000 square feet, so there’s not a lot of room for that kind of merchandise.”
Makes sense. Still, I wonder if there’s a little bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy going on in smoggy Bakersfield. Are there so few green products to buy that nobody around here buys them?
Perhaps I’ll splurge on those recycled paper towels after all.
