New refill shop opens in Sidmouth town centre offering eco-shopping

A new shop has opened in Sidmouth town centre devoted to helping the community reduce plastic waste, limit pollution and prevent another fatberg incident.

Fillfull, which opened on Monday (December 2), offers shoppers a plastic free alternative to supermarkets when buying food, cleaning products and ethically sourced goods.

The shop, in The Courtyard in Sidmouth town centre, is the brainchild of Daniel Prince, 42, who opened a similar shop in Ottery St Mary in August 2018.

Daniel explained the idea behind the new venture to Nub News, he said: "So far we've had a fair few people in, it's a case of people coming along and seeing what we do and then coordinating their needs around what we offer.

"We started the process in Sidmouth about two months ago. When we opened in Ottery St Mary it took about three months to get the shop up and running but here in Sidmouth the shop was already in a good state.

"The whole point is to help our community reduce its plastic waste, everything we sell comes completely plastic free. After the fatberg it has become clear we need more awareness in the area on pollution and the damage our waste can do."

The shop offers a variety of food items, such as, dried foods like pasta and rice, dried fruits, nuts and seeds. It also offers a range of cleaning liquids, including, laundry liquid, washing up liquid and hand soap.

You can also choose from a wide range of ethically sourced goods, such as, bamboo toothbrushes, wax wraps and shampoo bars.

Almost all of the items can be bought as refills so you can reuse boxes and bags you already have at home, helping to reduce plastic waste and encourage reuse of the plastics we already have.

Before Daniel started his eco-shopping and refills venture in Ottery he ran a business renting out classic camper vans.

Daniel explained his decision to try something new, he said: "It was getting to be more of a chore than enjoyable and I've always wanted work to be fun.

"At the time my family was living organically, when we finished with the vans we wondered what to do next and the eco-shopping and refill business felt like a great fit.

"I know Sidmouth and I wanted to give the town another way to reduce its plastic use. We have quite a few people coming in for small amounts of herbs and spices to experiment in the kitchen and quite a few older people looking to buy food and cleaning liquids in smaller quantities to reduce waste."

"We really hope we can raise awareness around reducing pollution and food waste. It's more about people being better in themselves and doing what they can to help the planet."

If you would like to find out more about the food, cleaning products and ethically sourced goods on offer, click the red button below.