NATURAL WEIGH DEFIES THE SNOW TO OPEN ON TIME
Wales’ first zero waste shop, Natural Weigh, started trading from Unit 1 of The Corn Exchange this week – with customers braving snow storms and freezing temperatures to give them a warm welcome. Robin and Chloe Masefield said they were thrilled that so many people made the effort to visit them and sample their range of organic and additive-free foods sold without plastic packaging. Chloe said: “We were really busy with lots of local people turning out and local traders welcoming us. We are looking forward to meeting more people over the coming weeks. People are really interested to find out about zero waste and reducing their use of plastics.” Robin said: “We were impressed at the level of interest. We believe that many people making small steps to reduce their reliance on plastic can make a big difference.”
Among the first people to visit the shop was Brecon and Radnorshire Assembly Member, Kirsty Williams. She was involved in the original campaign to stop a supermarket coming to The Corn Exchange which started three years ago. After visiting Natural Weigh, she said:” This is absolutely fantastic on two fronts. Natural Weigh offers a really innovative approach to selling produce in response to the growing public concern about plastic waste and it’s great to see The Corn Exchange being let out. This whole campaign to keep this building was to encourage small independent traders to complement Crickhowell’s independent High Street so, it’s fantastic on both fronts.”
Kirsty Williams was joined on the visit by the Plaid Cymru Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales, Simon Thomas AM, who is a member of the Welsh Assembly’s Environment and Sustainability Committee. He said:” This shop is unique in being completely Zero Waste – definitely the first in Wales. It is a pioneer and pioneers set the trend for what comes later. I think supermarkets will soon cotton on to this trend because the big weekly shop is dying out, people are shopping more locally and shopping more throughout the week, so I think this is a really important sign of something happening in Crickhowell, building up on the local economy, keeping the pounds circulating locally and I think some of the other shops will adopt some of the practices of this shop.”
Corn Exchange Crickhowell’s Communications Director, Tim Jones, said: “Robin and Chloe have done a fantastic job of creating a really attractive, enticing customer experience. They are incredibly knowledgeable and willing to offer advice on reducing plastic waste to anyone who wants to listen. It was fantastic to have Simon Thomas come to visit so he can reflect back Robin and Chloe’s achievement to the National Assembly of Wales. And it was great to welcome Kirsty Williams back to The Corn Exchange. She was involved at the very beginning, helping to apply pressure on Punch Taverns to drop their plans for a supermarket and sell to us. It was a very important part of the original protest and she has been supportive since then. It is great she could come to see the end result.”