Female Entrepreneurs Go Green

Written by Corinne Garcia Sunday, November 01 2009

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Green, green is everywhere, it's in our soap and it's in our hair. Literally.

As any entrepreneur knows, launching a business is as exciting as it is nerve-racking. It's like watching your baby go off to college, unleashing her into the big, bad world, and seeing if people actually like her as much as you do. A green business is not so different than the average start-up. With both, owners seek to turn a profit. But when it comes to sustainable products, the business model may be laid out differently.

"We wanted to make a successful business model based on the triple bottom line that honors people, planet, and profits," says Paige Davis, one of three founders of BlueAvocado, which produces Gro-Pak collapsible, reusable, and stylish grocery bag kits. To date, use of BlueAvocado products has helped keep 11 million pounds of carbon from being released into the atmosphere, according to BeGreenNow. The carbon offset division of Green Mountain Energy, BeGreenNow led an initiative to verify BlueAvocado's carbon footprint.

Blue Avocado worked with more than 300 women in the development phase, and through this and other market research, the principals realized their product was clearly filling a niche. Because more cities are following in the footsteps of San Francisco, the first U.S. city to ban plastic bags altogether, it seems that using reusable grocery bags is one step toward sustainability that many are willing to, or may soon be forced to, accept. Other large manufacturers make reusable bags, but there are no other bagging systems, Davis says, that are compact, functional, and stylish.

The journey toward sustainability needs to be made up of attainable steps, she says. While filling a niche, green products need to be convenient and easily integrated into today's busy lifestyles. "Change is about being mindful, not militant," she says. "We want customers to feel empowered to make the change."