Green Store Promotes Sustainable Lifestyle

July 25, 2011 - PRLog -- Bonifacio Global City , Philippines  - The keynote speaker at the recent League of Corporate Foundation (LCF) Corporate Social Responsibility(CSR) Expo in Manila is the Greenest Man on the planet as confirmed by The Third Whale awards in 2008. He is Matthias Gelber, a German by birth, but who now lives in Malaysia and gives talks around the region on sustainability.


When asked how the world could eventually turn green and sustainable he mentioned four things: Live green, Buy green, Offer green and Invest green.  That should make green products more affordable as we get economies of scale of people wanting to buy green products and many people offering them for sale.


One revolutionary group that started the “Buy Green” movement is the trio behind ECHOstore sustainable lifestyle. ECHO means Environment, Community, Hope and Organization. And it is a store. Therefore, ECHOstore.


These founders were already living green and thought it best to have a business that offered green, even if Matthias Gelber had not spoken to corporates in Manila yet. “I was already teaching yoga for the last ten years, “ says Jeannie Javelosa “and have also cut some meat from my diet, so the rest came naturally” she continues.


A kidney transplantee for 20 years now,  Reena Francisco, always had to be healthy and avoided chemicals and toxic substances as a rule. “The hardest part was giving up meat or at least lessening my consumption of meat for ethical reasons” she says. But now, Reena takes yoga, uses only non-chemical body and home products, and all of it has her own health as a reason to change, to begin with.


The third leg of the trio is Chit Juan, ever the serial entrepreneur who already advocated “Live Green” as an advocacy back in 2007 in her “past life” as she candidly says. “I was into promotion of organic farming way back 2004, adopted Live Green in 2007 and here almost immediately, we founded ECHOstore because it filled a gap in the marketplace,” she says. Chit also chose to go into retail of specialty products as she saw the need for market access for many fair trade and artisanal products from communities around the country.


To enrich the fair trade store idea and make it encompass environment and a sustainable lifestyle , Juan tapped into the genius of museum curator Javelosa and merchandiser and operations specialist Francisco. The three of them started what was non-traditional and revolutionary in 2008, but now is quickly becoming mainstream.


Offer green, is what they did three years ago. They scouted for suppliers of eco bags, recycled jewelry, crafts made from what otherwise would be waste and the rest they say is history. Now, the three are  further enriching their business idea by incorporating CSR through ECHOteach and ECHOdesignlab and ECHOtalks. They share what they know with people who want to embrace that “elusive” sustainable habit.


Invest green may just be the next wave that will be embraced by the ECHOtrio. Already, there are investors who want to bankroll their social enterprise into something bigger and more far-reaching.


Now, what was it Gelber said? Live Green, Buy Green, Offer Green and Invest Green.  We think these ECHOstore founders may just have landed a green gold mine.



CONTACT INFORMATION:

Jeannie Javelosa
Communications Director
ECHOstore Sustainable Lifestyle
Mc Kinley Parkway, Serendra,Taguig City, Philippines 1634
Mobile:+639178194395
Email: jej@echostore.ph
Website: http://www.echostore.ph