MADISON, Alabama — As National Small Business Week shines a spotlight on the entrepreneurs driving the local economy, one boutique in downtown Madison is proving that “small” can lead to big changes for the environment.
Located on Main Street, Lemon and Lavender is more than just a gift shop. It has earned the distinction of being North Alabama’s very first “refillery”—a retail concept designed to eliminate single-use plastic waste by allowing customers to reuse their own containers for household essentials.
How the Refill Works
Owner Brandi Booth says the goal was to make sustainable shopping “too simple” to pass up.
“You can bring in anything. Bring in your old laundry detergent container, whatever it is that you want to refill,” Booth explains. “You just put your container on the scale, scan it to capture the ‘tare’ weight, and then fill it. The system subtracts the weight of the bottle so you’re only charged for the contents inside.”…