Daniel is sharing tips for making your Black Friday shopping trip a little “greener”.
Almost prepared with your plan for Black Friday shopping, but wonder what you can do to green your experience this year? These tips will help you lessen your carbon impact on the environment while allowing you to come home with the best deals on holiday gifts and personal items.
1. Look for green labeling when purchasing products. You’ve made your list of who to buy for, now you want to find the greener version of potential gifts you’ve brainstormed. Instead of choosing plastic, opt for gifts that are made of at least 40-80 percent recycled and upcycled materials. Another enviro-friendly label to look for is the forest stewardship symbol to ensure your non-plastic, wooden gifts are produced by companies that plant trees and care for the environment through donations. Treehugger offers a unique green gift list every year that includes creative gifts for people of all ages.
2. Choose to shop with retailers that make green efforts in the community. Retailers such as JCPenney and Whole Foods have all made sustainable efforts to go green and help protect the environment. In the neighborhoods in which they reside, they’re using LEED certified buildings which consume less energy than other comparable buildings. As an appreciation of support, you can look forward to using a JCPenney Coupon this Black Friday. Look to Grist.org as a resource to explore other retailers you may want to target for your eco-friendly shopping experience on Black Friday.
3. Let an app be your green shopping guide. To maximize your time and make the mission stealth on Black Friday, prepare by perusing The “Good Guide” shopping app. This mobile app which boasts over 50,000 products will allow you to choose which ones can offer the most ethical options. With a streamlined list, you’ll be able to cut your drive time and fuel usage down too. The Good Guide makes a great on the spot resource for products you may not have been able to research ahead of time as well. For other mobile apps that can help enhance a green shopping experience, check out what the EPA suggests.
4. Buy gifts of food. Instead of buying more “stuff” consider making purchases that are sure to be used such as edible ones. You can choose foods made by local artisans to support the community’s economy twice-fold. First by putting money directly back into the community, secondly by choosing goods that did not need to be shipped from far away.
5. Take advantage of deals by buying big and reusable. To reduce fuel costs and take advantage of the countless sales, buy as much as you can afford in bulk. For items that could produce large quantities of waste, think about purchasing a reusable version. Reusable items to look for include cloth diapers, cloth napkins and rechargeable batteries. For more inspiration on selecting reusable products that are right for you, check out The Environmental Working Group’s (4) list of resources.
6. Buy products that help you save energy at home. Ready for new appliances or gadgets that help save energy? With massive savings ready for buyers, you can turn Black Friday green by shopping for “Energy Star” appliances, power strips and solar powered lights.
Daniel Sanchez is an online shopping expert with experience building apps for online retailers.
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