We were lucky to catch up with Sara Fagen recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Sara, thanks for joining us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?
“Eco” is short for ecology, which is the study of how organisms interact with each other and the environment. Eclectic describes deriving tastes and ideas from a broad range of sources. Eco Eclectic combines these two ideas into one, and endorses a view of sustainability that is diverse in practice and unique to one’s lifestyle, interests, and goals. It is not a one-size-fits all approach. Eco Eclectic aims to educate and provide resources to those looking to improve themselves and the world around them.
Sara, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Eco Eclectic, is a zero-waste shop and refillery located out of Neptune beach, FL. We provide eco-friendly alternatives to everyday products to help you reduce waste in the home, and more specifically, plastic waste. We also offer refills on household products such as hand soap, dish soap, shampoo etc., so you can come to us to refill these products instead of buying plastic bottle after plastic bottle at your traditional store.
I didn’t grow up at the beach, but ended up here after I moved back to Jacksonville from Texas because I missed the ocean and my family here. I graduated from UNF and started my career in neuroscience at the mayo clinic, and through a colleague there, I was able to find a place of my own at the beach. I was set, I had my big girl job and this beautiful place by the ocean. But, there wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t see some type of litter on the beach. I started asking myself, how do people claim they love the beach and then treat it like this? So I started attending beach cleanups and picking up trash in my neighborhood, and it felt like I was really making a difference and I felt personally fulfilled. At the same time I was attending these cleanups, I was also really embracing living on my own. I could decorate however I want, leave dishes in the sink, the possibilities were truly endless. But on a more serious note, I started to ask myself, with no one else around, how do I want to live? How do my lifestyle choices contribute to the pollution I see right in my backyard? Or on a bigger scale? So I started educating myself on proper recycling, I started composting, and I also started thinking about the products I was using and wondering if there were better, less-wasteful alternatives. So, I bought a bamboo toothbrush when my plastic one gave out, I started buying deodorant in glass jars instead of plastic tubes, and making other such changes. I was slowly but surely becoming a more conscious consumer.
Eco Eclectic exists because I did not see many options in my community that provided people with the tools and products necessary to practice conscious consumerism. I wanted to demonstrate that consumers, given the right resources, really do care about how their choices affect their health and the environment. It is possible for businesses to care about people, the planet, and policies that support the former, hence Eco Eclectic was born.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
Eco Eclectic has been bootstrapped since day one. When I knew I wanted to start the business, I started cutting back on personal expenses and started saving immediately. I started small with initial inventory, just stocking kitchen, bathroom, and beauty products. As I earned money, I introduced liquid and bulk refills to the shop. As I started to profit, I invested that money back into the business by further expanding our offerings and attending multiple markets to sell our products and grow the business.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
The book that gave me the initial push to start the business is called “The magic of thinking big” by David Schwartz. As a young female entrepreneur, I felt that I had to be my biggest fan and motivator, this book gave me the language I needed to trust myself and execute. Other books that have helped me include The four hour work week by Tim Ferris (his podcast is amazing too), business made simple by Donald Miller, I will teach you to be rich by Ramit Sethi, and works by Cal Newport and Steven Pressfield.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://eco-eclectic.com/
- Instagram: @ecoeclectic
- Facebook: @EcoEclecticJax
Image Credits
Cole LoCurto