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My Journal Zero Waste Living

Exciting NEWS! My own small business is here!

January 20, 2016

Wow, I’m so excited to write this blogpost, because I’ve been wanting to write about this for so long! And now I can finally share with you that I’ve been working on establishing my own small business in the last few months! Greenderella is not only a blog anymore but also a brand that will be selling…drummroll please…. reusable produce bags made of organic cotton! YAY!!

 

Greenderella bags

 

Now you might wonder why I get so excited about reusable produce bags? You wouldn’t be the first who looked at me with a question mark in their eyes when I told them about my new idea. 😀

Ok, so this is the story behind it. After watching an eye-opening documentary called “Plastic Planet” (which I strongly recommend), my new years resolution of 2013 had been to go plastic-free for a whole month. That month had changed me a lot in the way I looked at plastic and my shopping behavior. The first thing I noticed back then was, that plastic is EVERYWHERE! The second I started to pay attention, I was pretty overwhelmed and shocked how much we already rely on it, considering the immense harm it is doing to this planet. The ocean alone is being polluted with over 650 tons of plastic every hour! I couldn’t even imagine that a life without plastic is possible but I tried to stick to my resolution and surprisingly I did manage to clear a lot of plastic out of my life. After all, it wasn’t even that difficult!

 

reusable produce bag

 

One of the utensils that became irreplaceable for me, were reusable produce bags that I had bought in America. Instead of using those small plastic bags at the fruit- & vegetable section (the ones you only use to get the veggies home and then throw away) I was now able to save a lot of plastic, just by replacing single-use plastic bags alone. By the way, it’s estimated that worldwide over 1 trillion plastic bags are being used each year. Don’t even try to wrap your head around that, it’s frustrating.

 

Greenderella cotton bags

 

What surprised me was that there were so few people who use reusable produce bags. At least in Germany it is still a rare sight, from what I experienced. At the same time, people keep coming up to me, asking about the bags and loving the idea. Hence, my idea was born! My new mission was to get more people to use reusable produce bags and for this I wanted to create and sell my own bags. I saw it as a chance to work with something I am passionate about and that could potentially create a little bit of positive change in the world.

 

reusable produce bag

 

I still don’t know if this idea of mine will work out – at all! – but I need to try, even though that means to be bolder than I usually am, spend my savings and jump into something I have absolutely NO clue about (I studied musicology and love Disney movies, so you can imagine how much of a business woman I am, haha).

 

packaging, branding

 

Eventhough I had the idea almost 3 years ago, I couldn’t kickstart this whole thing until after I finished university last year and little did I know that creating a business (even on this small scale) would take me such a long time. It took months to find a suitable factory that could make the bags, getting the product right, pricing, sampling, lab tests, the customs, the brand licenses and legal stuff etc. … there were hiccups everywhere. I’m so thankful that I have such great people around me, that keep helping and cheering me on. Even though not everything turned out to be as smooth as I had planned, I can’t tell you how good it felt when I was holding the bags in my hands for the first time, when they arrived just a few weeks back! *happydance*

 

Fritzi couldn't wait to help unwrapp

Fritzi couldn’t wait to help unwrap

 

So what is gonna happen next?

  • Online Shop: now that the bags are here, the first step will be to integrating a shop into the webpage. There have been some issues that still need to be solved but the shop should be up soon, so stay tuned!

 

  • Additional Blog Topic: Since these bags are all about using less plastic, which is my main goal and message, I will start posting  articles on this topic as well. It will get an own category in the menu bar and these articles will also be readable in German.

 

  • Spread the word! Another step will be to spread the word! It’s what I’m starting with, as of this minute. Though, I must admit, I’m still a bit nervous to go out there. No turning back. Mamaaaa! But don’t get me wrong, this is a good kind of nervous. It will be so fun to get this rolling! So please go ahead and tell everyone you know and your cat about this! 😉

 

  • Greenderella on the market: Besides selling the bags over this site I will start selling them on markets too, starting with one of my favorite markets in Hamburg (Germany) called Marktzeit. You’ll find me and my bags there on the 30th of January, 6th of February, 12th and 19th of March. It would be so cool to meet you there! This market btw also hosts the legendary Vincent Vegan foodtruck and these guys, who make the most awesome sweet nut spreads (try the pistachio one, yum!). Now is this tempting or what?

 

  • Other Platforms: Greenderella bags will also be available on other online platforms and shops. For now, I have done a soft-launch on Amazon.de, where you can already find the bags today!

 

greenderella bags

 

So this is it for now, but there is more to come very soon. Thank you for reading this long post. I hope so much that you guys like the bags! This year will be an exciting one. Let’s see what this step into self-employment will hold for me – I keep you updated. For now my mantra is: “Just keep swimming, just keep swimming.” 😀  How about you? Do you have any bold plans or fun ideas for your 2016?

MerkenMerken

MerkenMerken

  • Reply
    Eva @ Four Leaf Clover
    January 27, 2016 at 5:45 pm

    I know I\’ve already told you everywhere and anywhere that I\’m so excited for you and for this product, but I really truly can\’t wait to get my hands on them! So looking forward to the shop!

    • Reply
      Greenderella
      February 16, 2016 at 3:31 pm

      Thank you sooo much Eva! I appreciate all the love and am so happy that you like the bags! The shop will come very soon. It\’s more complicated than I thought 😀 Big hug!

  • Reply
    Francesca
    February 6, 2016 at 12:19 pm

    I hope they will be available for purchase soon! 😀

    • Reply
      Greenderella
      February 16, 2016 at 3:28 pm

      Hi Francesca! We\’re still working on the online shop but I hope it will go online very soon! If you would already like to purchase bags, you can send me a message at franziska (at) greenderella.com and I can send you bags with a bill. Sorry for the delay! 😀

  • Reply
    Fabienne
    February 15, 2016 at 3:48 pm

    Das ist echt cool, ich bin gerade auf der Suche nach Baumwollsäcken für Obst und Gemüse und habe bisher nur die von RE-SACK gefunden. Deine sind aber hübscher. 🙂 Wann und wo wird man sie in der Schweiz kaufen können? Dann warte ich nämlich noch mit meiner Waschbär-Bestellung.

    • Reply
      Greenderella
      February 16, 2016 at 3:24 pm

      Hallo Fabienne, das freut mich sehr zu hören!! Wir sind gerade noch dabei den Online Shop zu erstellen (dauert leider doch länger als ich dachte) aber ich denke, dass er in den nächsten zwei Wochen online gehen sollte. Ansonsten kannst du mir aber auch gerne eine private Nachricht schreiben (franziska (at) greenderella.com) und dann schicke ich dir jetzt schon welche per Rechnung. Wie du magst! Liebe Grüße, Franzi

  • Reply
    Judith
    March 11, 2016 at 10:09 am

    Ich habe die Säcke vorgestern bei Amazon bestellt und gestern erhalten. Sie sehen super schön und solide aus, vor allem gefällt mir, dass es sie in pink gibt (grün war schon ausverkauft). Bei meinem nächsten Einkauf werde ich sie direkt benutzen 🙂 Danke dafür!

    • Reply
      Greenderella
      March 11, 2016 at 6:18 pm

      Das freut mich riesig zu hören liebe Judith! Vielen Dank für dein tolles Feedback. Ich hoffe sie werden dir gute Dienste leisten! 🙂 Übrigens sind die grünen auch bald wieder online. 😉

  • Reply
    Dennis
    April 19, 2016 at 1:46 pm

    hey,

    habe gerade deine coolen Beutel erhalten und frage mich, ob ich die zuerst waschen sollte oder direkt nutzten kann?

    • Reply
      Greenderella
      April 19, 2016 at 1:51 pm

      Hey Dennis, das freut mich! 😀 Da die Beutel aus Bio-Baumwolle sind, kannst du sie gleich benutzen. Waschen kannst du sie wenn sie dreckig sind am besten bei 30°C in der Waschmaschine (nur aufpassen, dass nichts in der Maschine ist, worin sie sich verhaken könnten ;)). Viel Spaß damit und liebe Grüße! 🙂

      • Reply
        Dennis
        April 19, 2016 at 2:19 pm

        Huch, schnelle Antwort, vielen Dank! Hoffe die Teile kommen gut an. Ich leiste mal meinen Beitrag dafür und teile die Blogseite auf FB!

        • Reply
          Greenderella
          April 20, 2016 at 7:04 am

          Das ist ja nett, vielen Dank fürs Teilen! 🙂

  • Reply
    Nessi
    April 27, 2016 at 11:41 pm

    Hallo 🙂
    Mich würde interessieren, wie viel die Beutel wiegen. An sich finde ich die Beutel richtig klasse, nur dass man dann beim Einkauf deren Gewicht mitzahlt ist halt nicht so toll ^^
    Liebe Grüße, Nessi

    • Reply
      Greenderella
      April 28, 2016 at 8:13 am

      Hallo Nessi! Schön, dass dir die Idee gefällt! 🙂 Der große Beutel wiegt ca. 30g und der kleine Beutel ca. 15g. Das macht auf der Waage kaum einen Unterschied (der kleine Beutel wird manchmal gar nicht registriert), aber um es trotzdem zu umgehen, kann man (wann immer möglich) die Verkäufer bitten die Beutel vorher zu wiegen und gegen zu rechnen. Das klappt z.B. auf dem Wochenmarkt super. Bei Supermärkten, bei denen man selbst abwiegen muss, wiege ich die Sachen meist vorher und packe sie dann erst in den Beutel. Liebe Grüße zurück! 🙂

  • Reply
    Nessi
    April 28, 2016 at 12:20 pm

    Vielen Dank für die schnelle und ausführliche Antwort! Hast mich überzeugt 🙂
    Ist es okay, wenn ich sie auch direkt bei dir bestelle, statt über Amazon?

    • Reply
      Greenderella
      April 28, 2016 at 12:25 pm

      Das freut mich!! 🙂 Ja, das kannst du sehr gerne machen. Melde dich am besten einfach nochmal über meine E-mail bei mir. franziska_schleiter(at)yahoo.de Dann können wir genaueres besprechen. 🙂

  • Reply
    Tina
    April 28, 2016 at 8:26 pm

    Hi,
    Just wanted to tell you that it is absolutely fantastic! Keep it up 🙂 i am really happy and relieved that you shared this difficult (and exciting) experience with the rest of us – i am going through the same thing myself actually! Originally i wanted to start with cosmetic business but that has grown into a practitioner (naturopathy and life coaching) kind of business 🙂 both of my projects are happening but very very slowly – i thouht i\’ll be out and about by now, but it\’s taking time and liads of bureaucracy. It is a struggle, not to give in and i shall keep you in mind that it is indeed possible to start from scratch 🙂 so thanks again for sharing your journey & i will definitely share your online store 😉 Tina @ WorldNaturelle

    • Reply
      Greenderella
      May 1, 2016 at 2:58 pm

      Dear Tina, thank you so much for your lovely, heartwarming comment. How awesome that you are starting your own business as well! I think it\’s such an exciting journey and it\’s totally ok to make small steps or taking detours. It\’s a great learning process either way and once you reach goals, it feels so good to having accomplished them yourself. 🙂 Wishing you the best of luck to your business!!

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