Shop Ethical: How to Use the Bulk House Online Stores

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The Bulk House is China’s first social enterprise dedicated to the zero-waste lifestyle. Founded by Chinese-British couple Carrie Yu and Joseph Harvey in 2018, the store has rapidly become a fixture in the sustainability, zero-waste, and ecological communities in the city.

Although their physical store closed back in March of 2019, this did not mean the end of the line for the entrepreneurial couple, who immediately made the switch to an online-only business model. Speaking to our sister site the Beijinger at the time, Yu said: “Of course we are very sad about closing the store. But, we have thought carefully about what is the best thing to do to make the most positive impact on the environment. And it will come as no surprise that putting more energy into the online part of a business will reach a wider audience than offline.”

Japanese-style lunchbox wrappers are just one of the many chic offerings in the store

Now over a year later, it’s clear that their decision was a sound one, with their product offerings expanding to dozens of handy zero-waste items.

While it may sound contradictory to buy things in order to live a more minimalist lifestyle, the idea is to replace as many disposable items with permanent solutions as possible (think metal straws, water bottles, tote bags, handkerchiefs, beeswax wrap, plastic-free toothbrushes, metal safety razors, and even menstrual cups), or to offer consumables in a more ecologically-friendly packaging (like solid soap and haircare bars, natural loofah sponges, and biodegradable garbage bags.)

Do away with plastic bottles of cleaning products, and easily mix your own instead

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They also offer a growing range of ethically and ecologically-sourced household items, like organic cotton towels, bamboo combs, and even age-old Chinese beauty products like Jade rollers. It doesn’t hurt either that the products are all presented in a chic, minimalist palette.

You can shop The Bulk House via either their Weidian store, or Taobao. Either search THE BULK HOUSE within each app, or by first adding their official channel (ID: THE_BULK_HOUSE_1), and selecting 商店 shāngdiàn from the bottom menu, then either 微店 TB for Taobao or 淘宝 WD for Weidian.

The store’s items run the gamut of cooking, home, lifestyle, and beauty products

Both apps are in Chinese, but the store’s offerings are divided into categories like Kitchen, Beauty, Baby, Health, and labeled in English as well as Chinese, making it pretty easy to navigate. Oh, and The Bulk House also walk the talk, going to great lengths not to use any plastic in their packaging, and to deliver products in upcycled boxes so don’t be surprised when your dinky new metal lunchbox and reusable Swedish dishcloths arrive in a pre-loved shoebox!

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Photos: The Bulk House, giphy

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