Next time you need your succulent re-potted or have to re-stock your laundry detergent, then consider stopping by Boston’s first and only zero waste store that recently returned to the neighborhood where it originated.
After hopping around the Boston area over the past three years, Uvida Shop opened its doors 189 North St. on Feb. 1, thanks to a SPACE Grant from the City of Boston.
This marks a sort of homecoming for the eco-friendly store because it first opened in the North End in December 2020 before relocating to Brookline for the past year and a half.
Uvida Shop adopted the title of Boston’s first and only zero-waste store after receiving multiple awards from the city, CEO and Founder Maria Vasco explained to MassLive. After about about two years, Vasco decided to claim the title.
“There’s a lot of small businesses,” she explained. “I was like, maybe someone else is out there and we just don’t know about them, but it’s been a good amount of time to find it out.”
“Vida” translates to “life” in Spanish, so Vasco named the store Uvida to mean “U life” to encourage consumers to live a little more eco consciously.
The eco-friendly shop sells non-toxic home essentials made without plastics or wrapped in plastic packaging. All products are made with bamboo, glass, cardboard, or recycled/compostable materials.
Popular products include bamboo toothbrushes, reusable wool dryer balls, reusable shopping bags, and silicone wine glasses. The store also has a station where customers can refill their own containers with hand soap, dish soap, laundry detergent, shampoo and conditioner.
All refills — which are free of parabens, sulfates and dyes — are made from hypoallergenic formulas and good for sensitive skin. The refills are available in unscented and scented options as well.
People are welcome to bring in their own bottles or use the free ones at the store. Vasco added that the Uvida’s soap vendor reuses its bottles when shipping products, creating “a closed loop system.”
On top of this practice being more environmentally friendly, the refill station is more cost-efficient because it eliminates the need for people to buy new bottles of soap and detergent. The products are even more concentrated, so they last longer as well.
“It absolutely is a money-saver. It’s really a win-win situation,” Vasco added. “It’s just great quality product and it’s better for [people] and the planet.”
Did you know that there’s a zero-waste store in Boston that will re-pot your plants and let you refill your soaps? @UVIDA SHOP #masslive #boston #bostontiktok
The shop will even re-pot people’s plants for those who are nervous about giving their succulent a new home. Uvida also sells kitchen, bathroom and personal care products. With all these offerings, Vasco said the store has something for everyone.
“Some people just come for our refills to refill their shampoo, hand soap, dish soap, laundry. And some people just come for the products,” Vasco explained. “They also love that we have a free gift-wrapping service.”
The overall mission of Uvida Shop is to introduce people to more sustainable ways of living. Vasco said this has been challenging given the fact that sustainable living practices are not the most common.
“That is one of our biggest battles because this business is very innovative in the sense that it’s not something that is mainstream,” she said. “So not only do we have to try to get people to come in and refill, we have to also educate people.”
Vasco founded Uvida Shop while majoring in Environmental Studies and Sustainability at UMass Boston.
She learned about zero-waste stores while studying abroad in Spain and visiting California. This combined with her studies inspired Vasco to first open Uvida Shop at 28 Atlantic Ave. in Boston in 2020.
The store stayed there for about three years before moving to 395 Washington St. in Brookline. Vasco said the reason behind the move to Brookline was “to test it out.” But Vasco ultimately “wanted to be in Boston again.”
So she decided to move the business back to the North End. As a result, Vasco said customers new and familiar have been excited about Uvida’s return to the neighborhood where they first opened.
“It’s been really great and positive and then for our customers who we have already had and don’t live in the North End, they’re just being really positive because they’re like this is more accessible to them,” she said.
In honor of Uvida’s return, the store will host a grand opening on Saturday, April 27 to coincide with Earth Day. The theme will be “Planet vs. Plastics” and the event will feature a ribbon-cutting, free food and giveaways.
Customers can visit Uvida’s new storefront or go online to browse products and learn more about the zero-waste business and its other events like its seasonal clothing swaps.
People can also follow the Uvida Shop on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and X.
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