Innovation

Just Toledo is an innovative and community-based Toledo refillery dedicated to zero waste and low carbon emissions. A refillery is a shop dedicated to reducing single-use plastic consumption by selling household and personal care items in bulk. Just Toledo has a brick-and-mortar shop in Downtown Toledo. The company sells at the local weekly farmers market and follows a weekly “milkman” model for the refill of soaps, laundry detergent, snacks, and more for those in a 25-mile radius. Just Toledo does not ship products due to added packaging and carbon emissions. Additionally, Just Toledo sources locally with the furthest trip for one product, nail polish, being 2 hours away. The co-owner and founder Courtney Fillion stated that Just Toledo actively works to “keep miles off of things.” Both co-owners formulate the liquid refills in their homes with a focus on low waste and bring the products to work with them. Additional items such as kombucha and reusable menstrual pads from local small businesses are sold at the brick-and-mortar shop as well.

Just Toledo is creating a better world by serving the Toledo community as the only refillery dedicated to sustainable practices. They target those who want to shop for natural and trendy products in addition to the environmentally invested. However, Just Toledo also targets those who are not privileged enough to focus on environmental practices by providing sliding-scale pricing. They offer a 10-40% discount to customers based on self-reported annual income. The founder stated, “Environmentalism is where all activism can interconnect.” This statement is reinforced through the business’s continued efforts to serve the low-income Toledo community. The founders state that they are actively expanding awareness about their business and “finding ways to break down barriers” to provide low-income Toledoans access to environmentally friendly practices. Through its refillery and community-based model, Just Toledo works to transform Toledo in terms of responsible consumption, responsible production, and climate action.

Inspiration

The co-owner and founder of Just Toledo, Courtney Fillion was inspired by her own lifestyle choices; “After years of watching our recycling bin fill at a faster rate than our trash can, we decided to implement some big changes in our household.” She began looking for zero-waste replacements and was successful in finding foodstuff. However, she wasn’t able to find household cleaning products or body products. Instead of giving up, she began to formulate her own using natural, biodegradable ingredients. Courtney started with hand soap, body washes, and shampoos before formulating lotions. These products were first tested on family and friends, then she began selling on a delivery route to limit carbon emissions. Now, they also sell at the farmer’s market and out of the Just Toledo storefront.

Overall impact

Just Toledo differentiated itself early on as building a low-waste operation based on ethical consumption and production of household products. By focusing on the long-term effects of increased carbon emissions, Just Toledo strictly adheres to serving the Toledo community and its immediate areas. They demonstrate this commitment by politely declining to collaborate with partners too far outside of their service area. In addition to this, they decrease their carbon emissions by refusing to ship their products due to the added carbon emissions with packaging and shipping. In the short term, Just Toledo actively works to decrease waste through their refiller-style setup and using packaging only as necessary.

In addition to the environment, Just Toledo benefits local community members. They do this by offering sliding scale pricing and deep discounts to make their goods accessible to customers at varying income levels. This initiative has yet to see major popularity, but Just Toledo is working to increase awareness of this aspect of their business. This commitment to equity has continued to grow, which expands their capability to connect to customers across all income levels.

Business benefit

This business model is new and unique for Toledo. Just Toledo started with a delivery route, then a booth at the farmer’s market. Since then, they have been able to grow to a storefront because of increased sales and customer base. It started with just Courtney and her daughter. Her co-owner Anna Bennett joined the business in January 2023. They have increased their product offerings to meet customer requests and have kept products on because of loyal fans. One of the least popular products is whipped shaving cream, but small batches are made just for these customers. Baby shampoo is another product with small demand, but a woman drives 2 hours for large batches. On the other end, lotion was not a product Courtney was interested in producing but started to make it after customer requests.

As stated, Just Toledo strives to create equitable change. Another method they are considering is purchasing a truck and going into lower-income communities for pop-up shops. Just Toledo leadership wants people who cannot otherwise afford their products to take advantage of the sliding scale offering. The founders want all Toledo neighbors to have access to clean and environmentally friendly products regardless of their zip code.

Social and environmental benefit

Just Toledo benefits both society and the environment by creating effective, sustainable products at equitable prices. The business uses ingredients customers feel comfortable using on their bodies and in their homes. They make it easy to order by delivering the products right to the consumer. In addition, anyone who needs financial aid can apply and will receive a discount on their order. Just Toledo believes everyone should have access to clean and environmentally friendly products and their actions support this statement.

Just Toledo benefits the environment significantly. Their products are formulated with minimal waste in mind, sourced locally, and sold in reusable or recycled containers. The cleaning products are formulated with biodegradable ingredients that are kinder to the environment than traditional harsh cleaning chemicals. Therefore, Just Toledo allows consumers to reduce their waste and their carbon footprint.

Whether intended or not, Just Toledo also works to improve the condition of and empower women in Toledo. The small business was co-founded by two women and is a registered HerHub women-owned business. This is significant because women-owned businesses in America were disproportionately affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, Just Toledo was founded in 2020 and has continued to grow since then. Therefore, Just Toledo contributes to women's representation in business and entrepreneurship in the Glass City. This further paves the path for future female entrepreneurs in Toledo. Just Toledo inspires women one soap refill at a time.

Interview

Courtney Fillion, Co-Owner