{"id":320763,"date":"2026-03-09T14:40:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-09T14:40:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/320763\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T14:40:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T14:40:12","slug":"small-business-mobile-refill-business-tackling-plastic-waste-in-northland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/320763\/","title":{"rendered":"Small Business: Mobile refill business tackling plastic waste in Northland"},"content":{"rendered":"
I have customers come and see me at meeting points with their own containers, and I fill them for them. It\u2019s cheaper than buying those types of products anywhere else.<\/p>\n
What inspired you to start the business?<\/p>\n
I live in rural Kaipara, and I got absolutely sick to death of just one plastic bottle after another. Yes, you can recycle them, but you\u2019ve got to pay for everything associated and it\u2019s just a waste. For me to refill things I need, and for other people in our area, I\u2019ve got to travel 45 minutes to the biggest town.<\/p>\n
I thought I couldn\u2019t be the only person who was frustrated by this in the area, and so I looked into it more and found that, of course, a lot of people are bothered about the environment and sustainability and how much plastic we waste, but other factors get in the way.<\/p>\n
I already had my camper van, which is what I used to travel around in, so I made some customer shelving, found some suppliers, and off I went.<\/p>\n
You\u2019ve been in business since October last year. What\u2019s been the reaction?<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been great and really heartening, because like I said, a lot of people want to do the right thing and are interested in being sustainable, so having an opportunity brought to them is overjoying.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s going to be slow growth because I haven\u2019t got thousands of dollars to spend on advertising, so it\u2019s mainly growing by word of mouth, but every time I go somewhere, a new person turns up and is interested.<\/p>\n
The key is just overcoming those barriers for people, changing their behaviour and the way they shop.<\/p>\n
Why should Kiwis be smarter about their plastic usage?<\/p>\n
People have gotten into the habit of the convenience of going to the supermarket and picking something up off the shelf. If people stop and think, \u201chang on a minute, I don\u2019t have to throw that bottle away, it\u2019s in perfectly good order, I can reuse it\u201d, we can accomplish a lot.<\/p>\n
My average customer will come and refill maybe four or five different products, so if you think of that over time, the amount of bottles that don\u2019t have to be produced or don\u2019t end up in landfill adds up really quickly. I\u2019m not an anti-recycler, but it\u2019s a complicated thing to do, so little things like refilling bottles isn\u2019t as complicated in comparison.<\/p>\n
Leigh Bowness-Barker, founder of The Refillery, is on a mission to reduce plastic waste in Kiwi households.<\/p>\n
What are your plans for the future?<\/p>\n
In my ideal world, everything would be refillable, from things like vinegars and wet goods like oils and sauces, as well as dry goods. Another good one that someone pitched to me the other day was engine oil. I kind of laughed at it to start off, but that\u2019s actually a really good idea. So there are plenty of options there.<\/p>\n
I\u2019d also quite like to franchise. I was talking to a lady last week who\u2019s moving to the South Island, and she absolutely loved the idea, so I\u2019m keeping in touch with her. Obviously, there\u2019s only so much I can do driving around myself, and I am only a few months in. But if I can keep up the momentum, there is definitely an opportunity.<\/p>\n
Another thing I\u2019d love to do is to create my own brand of refillable products, although that\u2019s much further down the line.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s your advice to a budding entrepreneur wanting to start a business?<\/p>\n
Anything\u2019s possible, so definitely dream big. But on the same note, be realistic and do your research. Make sure your idea is not just something you think is a good idea, but find out whether other people think so too.<\/p>\n
Also, do things yourself where you can. I\u2019ve done all of my branding and graphics myself, and if you haven\u2019t got thousands of dollars to start up, it can come in handy.<\/p>\n
Do you have a small-business story you want to share? Send your pitches to tom.raynel@nzme.co.nz.<\/p>\n
Tom Raynel is a multimedia business journalist for the Herald, covering small business, retail and tourism.<\/p>\n