The zero waste revolution: Peckham joins the fight against plastic packaging
Peckham’s new zero waste shop
All imagery: Gather.co.uk
Peckham’s new zero waste shop Gather
Whilst UK supermarkets are slowly waking up to consumers growing awareness of the impact and unnecessary use of plastic packaging there has been a wave of new zero-waste shops in London. SE15 now has two plastic-free shops, newly opened zero waste store Gather in Peckham follows in the footsteps of BYO in Nunhead which opened last year.
Gather owners Tash and Laura
Peckham’s new zero-waste store aims to make living sustainably that little bit easier. Gather, which is run by friends Tash and Laura sells a range of goods such as grains and pulses, dried fruits, pasta, oats and seeds as well as house hold products, bamboo toothbrushes and toiletries.
Like with any zero-waste store, the idea is that you bring your own containers, jars or cloth bags and fill it with the amount of food or product you require - meaning less waste and no unnecessary plastic packaging.
“We’re a refillery. A place to gather your necessities, from food to cleaning products to toiletries”
What we like about Gather is that the owners don’t claim to be the ‘perfect’ zero wasters. They understand that is is hard to go 100% plastic-free and recognise whatever small change you make to the way you shop is better than doing nothing ‘whatever point you're at on your journey towards a life of less waste, you'll find our store is a preach-free zone. ‘ - Gather.
Gather in Peckham says it aims to be as sustainable and responsible as possible by getting their products as nearby as possible, furnishing their shop with repurposed seconds and donating to to environmental charities.
We think it is great that these type of zero waste shops are opening up near us, giving locals the opportunity to live more sustainable lives however, it is not necessarily possible for everyone to shop in this way so it’s important to recognise that the big supermarkets chains need to take responsibility to ensure their consumers are able to purchase products with the lowest possible impact on the environment - hopefully those supermarkets will look to shops like Gather and BYO for plastic free inspo!
Gather is open five days a week from Wednesday to Sunday, so make sure you pop into your local refill store!
121 Bellenden Road (just a five minute walk from Peckham Rye station)
