Unique 'Zero-Waste' East Austin Grocer Launches Crowdfunding Campaign To Stay Afloat

EAST AUSTIN, TX — Soaring property rates in East Austin could claim another victim in the retail landscape, as offcials of the In.gredients, a grocery store on Manor Road, launches a crowdfunding campaign to avert its closure.

The store's owners told CultureMapAustin rising costs are attributable to its current financial woes.

"Though 2016 was their strongest year to date, property taxes at their Manor Road location also doubled in the same period," a company statement reads. "Combined with a number of other economic factors at year end, they were met with a choice: cash in the last of their savings to shut down, or risk staying open long enough to turn the corner. They chose the latter — to go all in — and now they need the help of the community and zero waste advocates around the world."

The crowdfunding campaign, hosted through IndieGogo, will run from February 3 through March 5, with a goal of raising $30,000 will help in.gredients, according to the website. The store distinguishes itself as one of the few zero-waste grocery stores in the world, according to the site.

A trend most popular in Europe, the so-called zero-waste or no-waste concept centers on the idea of encouraging customers to bring their own reusable containers — glass jars, cloth bags and the like — to measure out the precise amount of food items and other products their household requires. Such stores don't offer plastic bags as is the custom at their bigger counterparts.

In July 2016, Huffington Post wrote glowingly about a retailer seeking to open a zero-waste grocery store in Brooklyn, New York,called The Fillery while suggesting it would be the first of its kind in the U.S. "If you only need one cup of sugar for a cake, why buy an entire 4-pound bag?" the Huffington Post wrote in explaining the zero-waste concept that encourages measured shopping among patrons.

To raise awareness of the store's presence, in.gredients is staging a campaign launch party on Friday, Feb. 3, with musicians and vendors on hand to help cast a spotlight on the retailer.

CultureMap Austin noted in its report that in.gredients plea for financial help via crowdfuning isn't the first time a local business beset with escalating property taxes has reached out to the public for help. Last month, Black Star Co-op Pub & Brewery also asked residents for more patronage to stay afloat, according to the website.

>>> Read the full story at Culture Map Austin

Photo credit: Solblomma5 via WikiMedia Commons