working towards sustainable sex products
By Misty • Mar 27th, 2008 • Category: Company Announcements, EventsI care about the environment. I care about being “green” and try to “do my part”, whether at work or in my personal life. I buy organic. I recycle, reuse and try to reduce. I compost. I buy composting baggies for picking up my dog’s waste (http://www.ecoanimal.com/poopbags.html) . Heck, I buy composting bags for my compost. I try.
And in my position as Senior Buyer I am always thinking about packaging and waste when I’m reviewing or picking up new items. It’s not always easy and there aren’t a lot of options in this industry right now… but I keep an eye out for those that are more earth-friendly.
Like our wooden toys – the Fling, link to Tryst, Romp and Rendezvous Rings.
With our exclusive line of ME Bath and Body Products we strove to use all natural and, when possible, organic ingredients. We also take into consideration whether the packaging can be recycled or, even better, reused…. which is the case with our all natural Ignite ME Massage Candles.
But even with our efforts, we have to rely on our vendors and manufacturers to do the same.
So it’s amazing when we receive an email like the following:
“Here at Outlaw (Outlaw products at GV) , we care about the environment and the conservation of materials. As you may know, we use every tiny usable piece of leather we can to avoid waste, we buy from local sources, and we are always on the lookout for more environmentally friendly materials.
We are currently working on becoming less dependent on paper and gasoline and moving toward a more friendly, electronic future. ”
I’ve always loved Outlaw’s harnesses – the look, feel, quality and user-friendliness. And these harnesses are hot. They fit great – and fit a variety of body sizes and shapes.
And not only is she constantly thinking of hot new designs, but she’s also thinking about her impact as a manufacturer… that makes it all the hotter!
And it’s not just the small women-owned businesses that are turning their attention to this industries environmental impact. One of our larger vendors, who imports as well as manufactures products in the US, recently proclaimed that they were planning to go green. Not only are they looking at recycling but also at water filtration, solar energy, RoHS and WEEE… and it’s all being done as a way to reduce their impact as a major player in manufacturing.
Fun Factory manufactures in Germany so they are held to the strict rules of the European Union, automatically making their manufacturing practices more earth-friendly.
I think it’s great. And I know there are many more companies out there – large and small – that recycle, reuse and look at ways to reduce.
As an industry that relies heavily on electronics and non-composting materials it’s important we look at the little things each of us can do – as individuals, as retailers and as manufacturers. Keeping an eye on recycling, of packaging, packing materials (including re-using packing materials or using Cornstarch packing peanuts which you can simply put in your sink and wash down the drain… yes, it’s that easy… GV’s been using these for years!), reduce plastics in packaging and start looking at recyclable plastics, cornstarch and other biodegradable materials.
There are many ways each of us can reduce our “footprint” and, as a buyer of goods, it’s exciting to see these changes and a growing awareness happening in our industry!
If this is something that interests you, and if you are local to the Bay Area, help us kick of Earth Day 2008 on April 25th with our panel Green sex for Earth Day and everyday! An exploration of environmentally sustainable sex products. It’ll be at our Berkeley location (mapquest) between 7-8:00 pm. We’re also offering the earth 15% off everything in the store! So…hope to see you there!
Misty >> Since starting at Good Vibrations in 2003, Misty has worn many hats. Starting in sales she brought her queer sensibilities (2nd generation!!) to the merchandising department in 2005 and continues to branch out into different parts of the company. Fiercely femme, she enjoys wearing tight clothes, screening queer porn, getting her nails done, spending time with monsters and changing the world one day at a time.
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[...] working towards sustainable sex products I care about the environment. I care about being “green” and try to “do my part”, whether at work or in my personal life. I buy organic. I recycle, reuse and try to reduce. I compost. (tags: environment sex) [...]