Innovation

 Sustain LA’s main innovation is its refill-station system, designed for waste reduction by allowing customers to refill their everyday household product containers, this includes laundry detergent, dish soap, and powders. What started as basic pop-up refill stations has grown into a fully developed zero-waste retail model built around bulk distribution and reusable containers. The concept began as simple pop-up’s offering core items. As the business grew and demand increased, Sustain LA expanded to a physical store front. The team strategically selected the equipment from restaurant suppliers, planning the layout to maximize the customers who could be in the store at once, this ensured the infrastructure could support large capacity product storage.

The founder and Sustain LA team played a hands-on role in testing and adjusting the system. They worked directly with suppliers, sourced equipment themselves, and continually refined the dispensing process for each product. Because different products dispense differently, they had to experiment, troubleshoot, and create their own solutions to prevent spills and product waste. Yes, innovation relates to a sense of mission. The entire refill model that's grounded in Sustain LA’s mission to reduce waste and make low-impact consumer habits more accessible. They are constantly going through trials, learning and improving the system reflects their purpose of sustainable living through a community-centered solution.

Inspiration

Sustain LA was born from deep awareness of waste challenges embedded within the food and beverage industry. Before launching the business the founder worked as a consultant supporting community events and large scale gatherings. Spaces where the volume of single use items become impossible to ignore. At the same time, she was living a zero waste lifestyle at home, which sparked a question of what if entire communities had access to the same sustainable tools and resources? Her industry research further highlighted this need while places like Canada, the UK, and even Long Beach had "inspirational examples" of refill stations Los Angeles County had none. This gap paired with rising environmental awareness, pushed her to test a pop up refill model. Allowing her to experiment directly with the public and prove that the demand existed for accessible, low waste alternatives. 

The success of those pop-ups "originally eco-stations" led to the opening of a brick and mortar storefront in 2015, transforming Sustain LA into a community hub. The brand gained momentum as "the phrase zero waste exploded on social media", reinforcing that people were curious and ready to make meaningful behavioral shifts. The founder describes Sustain LA as the result of being in the right place at the right time combining community interest, industry awareness, and cultural turning to build a model that makes sustainable living accessible to everyone. 

Overall impact

As one of the region’s first refill-station models, the business has diverted more than two tons of plastic in a short time. This serves as an an immediate and measurable outcome, illustrating the short term effects of the innovation. Since opening in 2015, the shop has evolved from small pop ups to a permanent community hub where customers regularly return for guidance, refills, etc. This type of consistency demonstrates how, where, and when the model gained real traction. Over time Sustain LA has become a trusted fixture in LA’s sustainability landscape.

Socially, Sustain LA’s impact extends beyond environmental behavior. The shop features a dedicated community support section in the shop to help families affected by ICE raids, SNAP challenges and the LA fires from this past year.  They’ve distributed over 120,000 bandages and essential items offering strong immediate and short term relief. At the same time, their educational outreach has created long term shifts in mindset. These interactions show how innovation encourages people "to constantly be learning", proving sustainable habits are achievable in dense urban settings. 

Environmentally and culturally, the long term effects are broader. By reducing demand for single use packaging, Sustain LA lowers plastic production, transportation emissions, and landfill waste. This places them in close alignment with UN SDG #12 Responsible Consumption and Production. Their transparency challenges greenwashing and pushes companies toward more authentic sustainability models. As refill culture gains more attention, Sustain LA provides real-world evidence that community-based innovation can create change even at the industry level, serving “to be an example of sustainable business.” 

Business benefit

Being an innovator with sustainable refill stations has made Sustain LA a complete trailblazer. Naturally, being a unique company with a specific cause and a new way of looking at things has led to the development of a very loyal customer base. The company opened up a new market and caught the interest of a community of consumers interested in prioritizing sustainability, leading to increased revenues and popularity on social media from those specifically seeking them out. 

Their business benefits don’t just come from popularity, but also from what’s saved throughout the supply chain process.  A ton of money is saved through buying right from "restaurant supply stores or food storage organization stores", this decreases the amount of unnecessary and redundant packaging that is typically used through the delivery process. The packaging that they do acquire they reuse, so they get more value and use out of what would have otherwise gone to waste. By ordering products wholesale and in bulk Sustain LA is able to buy and sell at a lower unit price. Additionally they are able to offer customers virtually any specific quantity they need because they hold "big containers of product that someone wouldn't be able to keep in their home" so consumers with special orders will go specifically to their refill stations. Sustain LA is an incredible example of how sustainability does not have to be a huge cost companies must incur with no advantages, but rather that it gives business owners a new way to look at their company and create new efficiencies to save money long term.

Social and environmental benefit

Because of Sustain LA, 2 tons of plastics have been diverted from landfills. Overall, it is a sustainable way for people to reduce their single-use plastics. The store also has a social benefit as they opened up a section of the store for families who were affected by the LA fires. This was their way of supporting the LA community and providing resources. They have kept this community section of the store and opened it up to people who are affected by ICE raids and SNAP benefits. Sustain LA is acting as an example of what sustainable businesses can offer for communities, and still run a for-profit business that is able to donate and give out to the community when needed. 

The company’s mission is to change human behavior of consumption so they can restore the natural balance of the planet. Overall, Sustain LA wants to start the catalyst for more mindful consumption and protection of the planet and the planet’s resources. Today, many household products are sold in single use containers which end up in landfills, yet customers have no other option but to buy these products and containers. Sustain LA offers an alternative, and encourages consumers to have their own refillable containers to reduce their single-use plastic contribution. Ultimately, this way of living might be less convenient, but in the long run be beneficial for the flourishing of our planet and in turn the people living here. Keeping single-use plastic out of landfills now will help ensure a less polluted planet in the future. 

Interview

Leslie VanKeuren Campbel, Founder