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Village Refillery helping to reduce waste, live clean

April 8, 2021   ·   0 Comments

By Sam Odrowski

Reducing is the new recycling and those hoping to reduce their waste don’t have to look any further than the Village Refillery (28 Mill Street, Unit 109B).

The newly opened business is a place where people can refill their reusable containers with products they use every day, from shampoo and conditioner to household cleaning supplies.

Village Refillery also added bulk foods recently, eliminating the need for plastic food packaging, which accounts for millions of tonnes of municipal waste each year.

Bruna Zarlenga, owner of Village Refillery grew up in Brazil, surrounded by nature in a very environmentally conscious household, which has pushed her to live a clean life and inspire others to do the same.

“The need to have sustainable shopping practices has always been there but it certainly increases every year due to how most people continue to live their lives. The last year has been a big wake up call to humanity when it comes to how long we may actually still have on this planet,” noted Zarlenga.

“When I look back and see my home forest, the Amazon, burning and other fires spreading, Indigenous territories being invaded for old practices in which are not sustainable nor necessary anymore such as oil drilling and so on, it tells me that the time is actually perfect to embark in an adventure like I have in order to get more people to change their mindset and lifestyle.”

A few years ago, when refilleries were first emerging, Zarlenga said she started travelling to the Toronto area to refill products for her and her family, but the amount of driving she was doing defeated the purpose.

“There was nothing around Orangeville, nowhere that I could get to a little more easily, so that was really like the driving force behind that idea,” she told the Citizen.

The Village Refillery first opened its doors in November of last year and became busy quite fast, with in-store shopping, curbside pickup, and deliveries, according to Zarlenga.

“I could see with my own eyes, that there is a business, there is interest, and the possibility to grow,” she noted.

However, once the COVID-19 lockdown happened on Dec. 26, 2020, the volume of customers tapered off.

Zarlenga told the Citizen her store has all the COVID-19 protocols in place and is still a safe location to shop.

Going forward, she said she’s going to continue working hard to ensure Village Refillery is successful and continues to help people reduce their waste.

The Village Refillery will remain open under the current lockdown, as it is considered a full service grocery store.

To learn more about the business, visit: https://www.thevillagerefillery.ca/ or call 647-927-7099.

Mayor Sandy Brown (left) and Coun. Grant Peters (right) stopped by the Village Refillery on Tuesday, April 7 to give owner, Bruna Zarlenga (centre) a plaque recognizing her new business.

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