Home-Eco Introduces St. Louis to Mother Nature

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At a time when living green is as trendy as offering commentary on Jessica Simpson's weight fluctuation, one store stands out as the bellwether of the St. Louis green movement. Anchored along a quiet stretch of Macklind Avenue, Home-Eco has been pushing environmentally-friendly goods since before it was cool to push environmentally friendly goods. "We're a lead by example kind of store." says owner Phil Judd, "Home Depot and Lowe's have their little green sections, but the idea is if you come in here, you don't have to ask." One look around the shop proves Judd has indeed made Mother Nature his mistress. From tabletop composters to eco-conscious socks, shelves hold enough merch to save the globe a few times.

Though online commerce has proven to be the Wal-Mart to the Green Movement's mom and pop shops, buying locally has its advantages; namely the fact that shipping goods ordered online to each individual household creates a carbon footprint big enough to bring even the most grizzled of hippies to tears. "You have these horrendous online suppliers that give (consumers) free shipping and sometimes free return shipping, and that's just ridiculous." says Judd. Though the Net may be a St. Louis consumer's only option for certain harder-to-find items, Home-Eco's worth a shot for the remaining products in your Earth-saving arsenal. Check out the gallery for a few shots from ToastedRav's visit, drop in on Home-Eco at 4611 Macklind Avenue, and visit their site here.