eStore Frequently Asked Questions
General
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Products and Purchasing
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Eco-Cycle eStore Philosophy
Your purchasing dollars are one of the most powerful ways you can "vote" for change, but navigating the complex web of available eco-friendly products can take a lot of time and effort. That’s why we’re here to help. When you purchase through our site, you can rest easy knowing Eco-Cycle staff has chosen products that will help you and our community reduce waste, prevent pollution, conserve resources and reach our Zero Waste goals.
Eco-Cycle receives a small percentage of each sale and redirects these funds into enhancing our product selection and staying abreast on the latest advancements in sustainable products. Purchasing through the Eco-Cycle eStore helps you work toward Zero Waste while supporting our efforts to build a Zero Waste community.
General Questions
Why should I use the Eco-Cycle eStore?
Your purchasing dollars are one of the most powerful ways you can "vote" for change, but navigating the complex web of available eco-friendly products to know you’re making the best choices can take a lot of time and effort. That’s why we’re here to help. When you purchase through our site, you can know Eco-Cycle staff has chosen products that will help you and our community reduce waste, prevent pollution, conserve resources and reach our Zero Waste goals.
Eco-Cycle receives a small percentage of each sale and redirects these funds into our research efforts to stay abreast of the latest advancements in sustainable products. Purchasing through the Eco-Cycle eStore helps you work toward Zero Waste while supporting our efforts to build a Zero Waste community.
Who should use the eStore?
Eco-Cycle is initially creating two eStores. Our Business eStore supports the Zero Waste efforts of our Zero Waste Services customers. Our Lifestyle eStore supports Zero Waste purchasing at home, on the go and wherever an environmental choice can make a difference for your community and the planet.
How does Eco-Cycle select products for the eStore?
Eco-Cycle has a more than 30-year history in recycling. Along the way, we’ve learned a lot about how product design and manufacture can have an incredible impact, for good or bad, upon the local and global environment. We’ve been fielding calls from community members and businesses for years on what we buy and what we recommend, and the eStore is a formal extension of this service.
Some products are designed with reuse, recycling and composting in mind and with attention to sustainable production practices. These are the products we’ve chosen for the store. By contrast, the products we’re helping you avoid are designed to be used once and then landfilled, may include toxic materials or produce toxic releases to air and water during manufacture, and depend upon cheap, destructive and perpetual natural resource extraction.
Eco-Cycle staff chooses products in the eStore based upon our own experience and the advice of other environmental stewardship and certification programs including the Green Purchasing Institute, Biodegradable Products Institute, Green Seal, and the Forest Stewardship Council.
Do I have to live in Boulder or Broomfield County to purchase from the store?
The Eco-Cycle eStore was developed to support the Zero Waste efforts of our business customers and our volunteer base in Boulder and Broomfield Counties. This is and will remain our top priority. However, as a web-based tool, we have chosen to allow other businesses and individuals to access the site. In doing so, we hope to boost market demand for these products, which in turn will drive down their prices and increase their availability.
How can I promote my business for using this service and purchasing for Zero Waste?
A key component of Eco-Cycle’s Zero Waste Services program is to help our partner businesses share with their customers and employees all the efforts they’re making toward Zero Waste, including purchasing for Zero Waste. We provide our partners with a window cling for their entryways that identify them as a Zero Waste Community Partner as well as accompanying “stripes” that identify each effort that company is making—recycling, composting, purchasing for Zero Waste. If you are using this eStore, please let your customers know you are making environmental purchasing decisions by proudly posting your window cling and stripe. If you do not yet have a cling or stripe, please contact…. include cling graphics.
Products and Purchasing Questions
Why am I redirected to an Amazon.com site for payment? If we buy something from the Eco-Cycle eStore, are we buying it from Eco-Cycle or from Amazon?
All products sold on the eStore are sold through third-party vendors in cooperation with Amazon.com. Eco-Cycle uses Amazon’s aStore platform to run the eStore. Eco-Cycle chose the platform for its low cost and ease of use, enabling us to quickly create an online store to meet the Zero Waste purchasing needs of our business customers.
Does Eco-Cycle make any money from the sale of products on the eStore?
Yes. On the sale of most products, Amazon pays Eco-Cycle a "revenue share" of 4%. This does not affect your price; your price is determined by an agreement between Amazon.com and the third-party vendor. Your purchase on the eStore does not affect the revenue of the vendor, either. The percentage paid to Eco-Cycle comes from Amazon’s share of the sale. Eco-Cycle is essentially acting as the marketer of the product and receives a small cut for increasing the sale of the product.
What if I want to return a product, or have a problem with it?
Guarantees, returns, shipping requirements, customer complaints, and other customer service inquiries are handled by Amazon.com and the company who sells and distributes the product. Refer to your order confirmation email for more instructions on how to return a product or report a complaint.
Eco-Cycle is not responsible for any financial and product transactions that take place between the consumer and a third-party vendor. All transactions are conducted through the Amazon website and are subject to the terms and conditions set by Amazon.com.
Why are some categories empty?
Part of Eco-Cycle’s mission in creating the eStore is to increase the market demand for the most environmentally-friendly products. In some cases, these products are not regularly available or we are struggling to source the product. We may also be working with vendors of the products we think are the best to make their products available on Amazon.com. We welcome your feedback on categories and products.
How do we suggest products that we would like to see in your store?
Please use our contact form to make a product or vendor suggestion. Because we are selling products through the Amazon.com platform, we are limited to listing products on their site. We are happy to work with vendors interested in getting their products posted on Amazon.com. Contact us for more information.
What can we do if we see a product that we think should NOT be in your store?
Eco-Cycle welcomes feedback, good and bad, on the products and companies listed on the Eco-Cycle eStore. While we do our best to thoroughly research the products available on the eStore, we do not guarantee these products to be the absolute best in environmental or social terms.
What if we want to suggest a company or product that is not yet represented in your store?
For any company’s products to be made available through Eco-Cycle's eStore, the company’s products must first be available on Amazon.com. We are happy to work with vendors interested in getting their products posted on Amazon.com and in understanding more about Eco-Cycle’s eStore and its foundation, the Amazon aStore platform. Contact us for more information.
Legal Disclaimer
Eco-Cycle is not responsible for any financial and product transactions that take place between the consumer and a third-party vendor. All transactions are conducted through the Amazon website and are subject to the terms and conditions set by Amazon.
While we do our best to thoroughly research the products available on the eStore, we do not guarantee these products to be the absolute best in environmental terms. Please let us know if you feel a product should not be listed or if better alternatives exist.
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