Norfolk's Green Alternatives is back in business

NORFOLK

Amelia Baker is a hard-core recycler.

She recycles bottles, bags and jeans, among other things, reusing them or converting them into something new.

So when the Green Alternatives store in Ghent closed last month, she decided to recycle that too.

She bought the store's signs, logos and leftover inventory and opened a new Green Alternatives store on Boush Street at Olney Road last week. Like its predecessor, the store caters to eco-friendly shoppers with organic clothing, paper products made from recycled materials, earth-friendly cleaners and a variety of other household goods, gifts and artwork.

Baker and her husband opened the shop Saturday.

"It's something that's a passion of ours," Baker said. "It's something that Norfolk needs, and it's a great addition to the small-business landscape."

Despite the economy being in a slump, business has been pretty steady so far, she said. But she won't know until after the holidays whether she'll need to make some adjustments to keep the store going, she added.

Baker is expanding her inventory and preparing to launch an online-ordering service on the store's Web site, www.greenalternativesstore.com.

She also is working hard to make products affordable.

"I think awareness is a big challenge, as well as overcoming any price differential between eco-friendly and traditional products," Baker said. "A lot of the products, I think, are pretty comparable."

A bottle of eco-friendly laundry detergent, enough to wash 64 loads, costs about $14.49, while a 1-inch binder made from recycled paper is $4.99. Necklaces crafted by artists in Uganda are priced at $17.99 each, while a blouse made from an old pair of jeans costs $7.99.

For shoppers such as 31-year-old Samantha Vincent-Alexander of Norfolk, "going green" is worth the cost. She bought a reusable, stainless-steel water bottle Thursday while shopping with her parents.

"It's the best for the environment and for people," she said. "I'm trying to be more conscious of the environment."

Kathy Adams, (757) 446-2583, kathy.adams@pilotonline.com