New eco-focused pop-up store opens in South Norwalk

(Sanchali Singh/NewsBreak)

By Sanchali Singh

(NORWALK, Conn.) At the corner of Washington Street by the water in South Norwalk sits a new eco-friendly pop-up store filled with products that offer sustainable replacements for everything in life.

Eco Evolution, the brainchild of founder Brad Kerner, or The Eco Dude, hosts a number of plastic-free items to help steer people toward a more sustainable lifestyle with bamboo straws, toothpaste tablets, laundry detergent sheets, reusable produce bags and more.

Brad Kerner stands in front of his signature sign that advertises his Instagram account while holding a curated coffee blend.(Sanchali Singh/NewsBreak)

Kerner started his environmental journey at a young age, a dedication that continually grew during the COVID-19 pandemic and led to the start of a farmers market table in October 2020 under the same name. What started out as one table with just shampoo bars quickly grew to three, and ultimately led to the opening of Eco Evolution on Saturday.

Kerner landed the spot in the heart of SoNo through a competition run by AGW SONO Partners, the majority local real estate collective that manages properties on the downtown area’s main strip. The Hour reported that Eco Evolution was one of two businesses to win storefronts in SoNo after being selected from over 30 applicants.

Now, the store is officially open and will stay in SoNo until the end of July.

Even though the store is a pop-up, Eco Evolution feels like an established store. Kerner said he furnished the space only using second-hand furniture, and is even selling antiques from his parents' house like an old typewriter and handle-only suitcases.

Because a big part of the environmental movement focuses on reducing consumption overall, Kerner said he wants the store to provide substitutes for people, not to be a place where people shop absentmindedly, and to expose people to consuming consciously.

“It’s more than a retail space for me,” Kerner said. “It’s more of a platform to help people make behavior changes, to become more low waste, to advocate for lower-waste living, more of a minimalist lifestyle and local shopping.”

Kerner added that as more people make changes, no matter how big or small, it will help reduce overall waste.

“I’m all about progress over perfection,” he said while holding a candle with the same motto. “I think if everyone makes a couple different changes in their lives, it will add up and it’ll make a big difference.”

Eco Evolution, which is also an online store started in January with home deliveries made personally by Kerner, has sustainable replacements for every facet of life — pets, gifts, dental and regular hygiene, laundry, eco-friendly bedding, crayons and more.

Some package-free bath products, including refillable bottles.(Sanchali Singh/NewsBreak)

Kerner said everything in the store is within an eight-hour drive of Fairfield County, a decision he made to cut down on his and the store’s carbon footprint. He said finding products nearby can be difficult, since they are more readily available on the West Coast where more people live waste-free, but Kerner is working tirelessly to replicate that lifestyle here.

The biggest change people might notice in the store is the lack of plastic, a material abhorred by environmentalists. Each product stands alone either without packaging or with a cardboard label, which can be recycled.

Kerner highlighted how many people dedicated to living a lower-waste lifestyle have to go out of their way to get such products, which was why he wanted to start a local retail space.

“The only people buying eco-friendly stuff online are people who really want it and already saw an ad, but other people have never heard of it,” Kerner said. “People need to interact with the product, they need to understand it and see if it’s a change they’d be willing to make.”

Eco Evolution is somewhat of a permanent farmers market, drawing from Kerner’s experience opening his own table around Fairfield County, that creates a circular economy concept. Through the pop-up, Kerner gives space to 36 Connecticut-based artisans to showcase their local products.

Kerner said the idea to include local products at Eco Evolution came to him as a solution to avoid supporting big-name brand companies.

“Besides just stuff for your house, body, kitchen, everyone is just running to Amazon, all the time when we have amazing people,” Kerner said. “How do we meet them? Farmers markets!”

A sign just inside the front door of Eco Evolution explaining the store's mission and dedication to Connecticut-based artisans.(Sanchali Singh/NewsBreak)

Eco Evolution carries jewelry from Bridgeport-based DVHANDSONDESIGNS, tie-dye sweatsuits from Shop Our Dyes in Fairfield, artwork painted in Westport and pain-relieving salves made in Norwalk by sanastaWellness, among others.

“I want to inspire people to see that when you shop locally, you’re actually finding more unique, really cool things, supporting our local economy and the carbon footprint is much better,” Kerner said.

Eco Evolution isn’t just a retail store — it also serves as a mini recycling station for abnormal materials, like plastic cards and razor blades. Kerner invested in TerraCycle’s Zero Waste Box Program, which promotes the recycling of all materials through box collection.

(Sanchali Singh/NewsBreak)

With boxes that advertise the collection of small audio equipment, plastic straws, credit cards, e-cigarettes, glue sticks, potato chip bags and plastic sandwich bags, Kerner said he wouldn’t require people to buy from the store before depositing, even furthering recycling accessibility.

“I’m not going to refuse people,” Kerner said. “I’m just trying to inspire people to make changes.”

Kerner envisions Eco Evolution staying open past July. His overall business plan also includes a coffee shop in the back of the store, which the current retail space can accommodate.

Kerner said the coffee shop would be zero waste by using reusable kitchenware and potentially composting the coffee grounds through Action Waste Solutions in Fairfield. Or, if local residents are interested, Kerner would also give away coffee grounds for personal use.

If the coffee shop comes into fruition, Kerner already has a coffee roaster in mind — Buena Vista Coffee Roasters in Fairfield. The solar-powered roasting company already supplies coffee blends to Eco Evolution, which features a Kerner-curated blend called The Eco Dude Blend that draws on Kerner’s love for Africa after his time there as a Peace Corps volunteer.

Brad Kerner holds the coffee blend created just for him.(Sanchali Singh/NewsBreak)

For now, Eco Evolution will be in SoNo until the end of July and is open Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 3 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

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