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'I followed a dream to open a no-waste food shop'

Ellen Knightin Much Wenlock
News imageELLEN KNIGHT/BBC Sam is looking into the camera and smiling slightly. She has chin-length silver hair, and is wearing a pair of glasses. She's got a mustard yellow cable knit jumper on, with a teal blue woollen cardigan over the top. Sam is also wearing a blue denim apron, which has a small house logo embroidered on it in white thread. Behind her are six wooden shelves, all of which have rows of large glass jars on them. ELLEN KNIGHT/BBC
Sam Beech has run her shop in Much Wenlock since 2019, after she was made redundant

"I was made redundant in 2019 and had a pathway to choose - I decided to follow a dream."

Seven years ago Sam Beech, 48, decided it was time to take to the next level the pledge to "tread lightly on the earth" she made at the age of 12 as she became a vegetarian.

Having seen for decades since "the damage that plastic is doing to the environment," she took a leap of faith to align her environmental beliefs with how she makes a living.

And the result, five years ago, was the founding of The Simple Life Unwrapped, in Much Wenlock, Shropshire, a refill shop that encourages customers to take a "zero-waste" approach to shopping.

Zero-waste refill shops aim to encourage people to reuse existing plastic - instead of buying more - and reduce food wastage by only buying as much as they need

Beech said it is not about swearing off plastic altogether - it is "damage limitation" and "you don't have to be perfect."

But, she said microplastics "get absolutely everywhere", and "the sooner we can reduce it and use alternatives, the better."

Her shop has shelves of glass jars of herbs, spices, and other ingredients - "pantry staples" - that customers can weigh out and take home in their own containers.

News imageELLEN KNIGHT/BBC Six wooden shelves can be seen. Four of them have large glass jars on them, with black labels detailing what's inside. In the jars are things like various types of dried pasta and noodles, as well as varieties of flour and yeast. There are two more shelves which have large plastic 'bins', also containing dried pasta. ELLEN KNIGHT/BBC
Customers bring in their own containers to fill up with produce, like dried pasta

One customer has refilled "the same washing up liquid bottle for five years", Beech said.

"I've got a lady who comes in with a wine bottle for her washing up liquid, which is fabulous," she added.

Washing-up liquid is a very popular choice at the shop, and Beech believes it is a good "entry level" introduction to zero-waste shopping as "you've got the container already".

"It's a first step on the ladder to them dipping their toes into other items in the shop," she adds.

News imageELLEN KNIGHT/BBC The exterior of Sam's shop can be seen, from a side-on angle, looking down the pavement. In the foreground is a black chalkboard with 'Open Refill Shop' written on it in white letters. The outside of the shop is whitewashed, with a teal blue border at the bottom. There is a large bay window, and underneath it is a wooden sign that reads 'The Simple Life Unwrapped'.ELLEN KNIGHT/BBC
Beech recommended starting out with items like washing up liquid or laundry detergent

As well as reducing reliance on single-use plastics, zero-waste refill shops can also prevent food waste, Beech said.

"People can try a new recipe with an ingredient they've never used before," she said, adding that by buying a small quantity from a shop like hers, "they don't have a huge bag of product when they decide they don't like it.

"If you only bake at Christmas, you can just get the quantities you need - with no waste."

But it is not an all-or-nothing way of life, Beech believes.

"Just start with one or two things, and get into a habit," she said. "You don't have to be perfect.

"We're all busy. We've all got different things going on in our lives. So you can only do your best."

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