A former school teacher has opened a new family-run business at Figtree Grove with the aim of bringing sustainable shopping options to people who might not otherwise have the chance.
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Jane Kerr said her daughter Gracie Kerr-Nicholson, 20, and son Callum Kerr-Nicholson, 23, were both involved in the business that was originally to open in June.
"We weren't sure from one day to the next when we could open the doors but we got the go-ahead to open last Thursday," Ms Kerr said.
"Lockdown gave us time to source more products. It isn't a typical store, everything in the store has an eco-friendly story. Some items are locally made or sourced from fair trade businesses, others are compostable or are made from recycled water or milk bottles. The recycled products are beautifully produced, you would never know they started their lives as water or milk bottles."
Bare Necessities is located in the Figtree Grove site formerly occupied by Hello World.
Ms Kerr said it was important for her to open such a store at a time when the community was becoming increasingly aware of the impact of plastics on the environment. She has always looked for such stores and wanted to do something even broader than what she had seen before.
"The mission behind Bare Necessities is to make a difference by offering ecological and sustainable shopping alternatives for day-to-day items. We look forward to helping consumers reduce the use of single-use plastics."
Ms Kerr chose to stock the shop with products that would appeal to anyone looking to make changes that would benefit the planet. She said there was everything from chocolates and sweets to pantry food sold in paper bags by weight.
"There is also a wide variety of eco-friendly homewares, skin products, toys and personal goods."
Ms Kerr said everything she stocked had a planet-friendly story, such as neoprene fashion tote bags upcycled from leftover wetsuit production that was once headed for landfill. The skin products were made in Sydney and packaged in glass or aluminium so everything was recyclable or reusable. She said even the cute plush toys were made from 100 per cent recycled water bottles.
"The main purpose behind Bare Necessities is to provide eco-friendly substitutes to everyday items. People want to make changes to help the environment and at Bare Necessities we've brought together a range of eco products that provide sustainable alternatives. Small changes made by all of us can make a big impact. We have sourced everything from locally made candles to up-cycled handbags to toys from recycled goods."
Ms Kerr said she managed to employ young enthusiastic staff who really had their head around eco-friendly products.
"They are very happy to work here and were really excited when the store was able to open. And we've had a great response from shoppers who are saying they have never seen a shop like ours before. Some have been following my daughter's posts on social media and have been waiting for it to open. When they do they say it is different to any other shop," she said.
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