Overview:

-Refilleries offer consumers a way to reduce waste by reusing containers.
-"When I went to the grocery store, I would buy plastic garbage bags to throw away," says Claire Mahler, co-owner and founder of 86 Plastic in Troy.
-Refill Emporium co-founder and owner Whitney Wagner says: “Sustainability should be affordable for all, and I want sustainability to be integrated into everyone’s life and all communities."

Want simple, eco-friendly swaps for your everyday household items? Look no further than three Metro Detroit refilleries.

A refillery provides a wide variety of items — from cleaners to beauty products to food — that customers refill with their own or store-provided reusable containers and pay by weight. Consumers can cut down on their waste by reusing containers rather than purchasing single-use plastic products.

“We need that contagious excitement around climate change and being an advocate for the environment because it can’t do it for itself,” said Refill Emporium co-founder and owner Whitney Wagner.

“We have to heal the planet ourselves. We did it; we have to undo it.”

Refilleries also tend to provide natural and locally sourced products, which supports the local economy and further reduces environmental impacts from transportation emissions.

So, grab your mason jars, empty soap bottles, or glass pasta jars and head out to one of these three refilleries to make your shopping a little more sustainable. 

86 Plastic Co

  • Address: 5075 Livernois Road, Troy
  • Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesdays; and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays.
  • Website: 86plasticco.com
  • Contact: 86plasticco@gmail.com

A special education teacher turned entrepreneur; 86 Plastic co-owner and founder Claire Mahler was inspired to open her business by the waste she generated using everyday household items. 

“I was realizing that I was literally just buying my trash,” she said.

“When I went to the grocery store, I would buy plastic garbage bags to throw away. My countertop cleaner spray bottle, and the plastic packaging from my pantry items, I was like, all of this stuff is completely reusable.”

Mahler left her native Michigan for several years to live in California, where she saw how environmentalism was ingrained in the state’s culture. When she moved back to her home state, she saw a lack of awareness around the environment.

“Within a month of moving home, I buy something. I got one item, and they put it in a plastic bag,” Mahler said. “And I kind of forgot how plastic-obsessed the rest of the country is.”

In an effort to make her corner of the world a little more environmentally friendly, she opened 86 Plastic a little more than three years ago. The store offers home goods, bath and body products, and pantry staples. 

Mahler’s passion for education has found its place in her store. She enjoys educating customers in-store and on social media about how to reduce their waste with sustainable everyday products. 

“I live here. I care about animals. I care about people,” Mahler said.

“I care about the fact that this is the only place that is habitable for us, and the thought of destroying that to be able to have gas for our cars or carry-out containers for food for convenience is really sad.”

MI-Fillosophy

  • Address: 1170 Ann Arbor Road, Plymouth
  • Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays; 11 a.m. -7 p.m. Wednesdays; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays.
  • Website: mifillosophy.com
  • Contact: 734-667-2319 or MIFillosophy@gmail.com

MI-Fillosophy founder and owner Ashby Cummings has always been passionate about the environment: while working at a large beauty chain, she squirreled away returned mascara brushes destined for the trash to send to veterinary offices. 

Cummings said she grew tired of the waste generated at big box stores and the emphasis being placed on profit over people. So, she quit and opened MI-Fillosophy about 2 1/2 years ago.

Cummings grew up with parents who both owned their own businesses, she said — so she appreciates the freedom of being her own boss. She said she enjoys teaching others about environmentally friendly consumerism. 

“I love getting to know my regular customers. We have good relationships. I love being able to help them. I love getting to talk to people and hearing what their reason is for wanting to start refilling,” she said.

The store focuses on bulk food staples, such as flour, rice, beans, pasta, spices, dried fruit, sauces, oil and vinegar, tea, and coffee. In the future, Cummings said she hopes to add more self-care items, beauty products, and household items. 

Ashby Cummings, founder and owner of Plymouth’s MI-Fillosophy. Courtesy photo.

Refill Emporium

  • Address: 21524 Harper Ave., St. Clair Shores
  • Hours: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays; Mondays 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
  • Website: refillemporium.com
  • Contact: whitney.wagner@refillemporium.com

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Wagner said she was at the end of her rope. After a scary incident at work, she left her high-stress career of 18 years in retail management to focus on her health and herself. 

Unsure of her next steps, she turned to her close friend and former business partner Shannon Sweetwood for advice. Sweetwood was struggling with juggling the physical demands of motherhood and her then-office job, Wagner said.

“I tell her this idea I have about opening up a refill shop, and she’s like, ‘yeah, we should totally do that.’ I’m like ‘OK,’ and I don’t think anything more of it,” Wagner said.

“About a week later, (Sweetwood) shows up with her little baby and a carrier and a notebook. And we just start building on the idea.”

Wagner and Sweetwood traveled to Metro Detroit farmers markets to bring their business to their customers in the summer and fall of 2021. They opened their brick-and-mortar location in January 2022. 

The pair ran the store for about three years before Sweetwood stepped away from the business earlier this year to focus on her family. Wagner said she’s searching for a new business partner to lighten her workload.

The store offers mostly home goods and beauty products. Wagner also offers recycling and/or composting for all items purchased from the Refill Emporium. She partners with TerraCycle to offer recycling for old tennis shoes, dental care items, and brand-specific food and household packaging materials. Visit the Refill Emporium’s website for a full list of accepted items. 

The store offers a rent-a-rack program for used clothing. Customers can rent a rack of clothing for $30 per week or $125 per month to sell their clothing. Prices are set per item by the customer, who keeps 95% of cash profits or 100% of store credit. 

Everyone can take small steps to reduce their environmental impact, Wagner said, and no one is perfect. 

“Sustainability should be affordable for all, and I want sustainability to be integrated into everyone’s life and all communities,” she said.

“I can’t do everything. I’m only one person, but I hope that with each person who comes through my doors, that I’m able to help them be just a little bit more sustainable, and just a little bit kinder to our planet and to themselves.”

  • Walking Lightly
  • Address: 1031 Hilton Road, Ferndale
  • Hours: Open Tuesday through Sunday (exact hours not specified)
  • Website: www.walkinglightly.net
  • Contact: instagram.com/walking.lightly.mi

Walking Lightly was founded by Tessa Benziger in 2021 after years of running popups and home deliveries. Inspired by refill shops abroad and frustrated by the amount of single-use plastic in grocery shopping, Benziger created a brick-and-mortar space to offer sustainable alternatives to packaging-heavy household goods.

“Our real goal is to change the market,” Benziger said. “Within four years, there’s been a huge shift of people seeking (refill options) rather than me educating people on what it is.”

The store offers refills for bath, body, and home items, as well as dry goods. It sources locally made products and works with suppliers who reclaim their shipping containers, further reducing waste and emissions. Walking Lightly also provides plastic-free, carbon-neutral shipping nationwide, plus several hard-to-recycle item programs, including options for pens, razors, and toothbrushes, and local compost dropoff for individuals and small businesses.

More than a retail shop, Walking Lightly has grown into a community sustainability hub. It hosts monthly workshops, swap-and-shop events, and partnerships with local nonprofits to educate and give back. For Benziger, sustainability is a journey that’s not about perfection, but about empowering families to make lower-waste choices that work for them.