Grand Opening: Ray's Reusables Brings Eco-Store, Refill Station and Gift Shop to Northern Liberties

Northern Liberties Business Improvement District announces the grand opening of Ray's Reusables at 935 N. 2nd Street. This female and queer owned eco-store and refill station is the first brick and mortar retail store from Ray Daly (she/her), who became well-known and popular over the pandemic for her eco pop-up and mobile store that launched during the pandemic. Ray's will continue to pop-up and now has this new brick and mortar that is bustling with products to help customers focus on reducing their carbon footprint. All products focus on the three R's of Ray's - reuse, refill and replace. Categories include body care, cleaning and laundry, plus home goods and gifts. Opening hours are Monday, Wednesday and Friday, from 11:00am to 7:00pm, Saturday, from 3:00pm to 6:00pm, and Sunday, from 10:00am to 4:00pm.

"We are thrilled to welcome Ray's to our retail mix," said NLBID Executive Director Kris Kennedy. "Northern Liberties and our surrounding community really values sustainable products. Being able to refill all our soaps and detergents right here in the neighborhood is the wave of the future. We can reduce our waste while supporting a local shop."

Ray’s Reusables is a sustainable general store where neighbors and customers can bring their own containers from home and fill up on household essentials including laundry detergent, hand soap, and dish soap (and way more!). Along with the 40+ refill options the shop offers sustainable swaps for single use and disposable items for anyone trying to reduce their waste. Customers will find low waste alternatives for your kitchen, bathroom, laundry, and even for when they are on the go!

Daly said, "Whether you’re just starting to think about ditching plastic or you’re a refill pro, we are stoked to talk to you about whatever stage of your low waste journey you find yourself in. We are a judgment free resource for our low waste community, so no question is too small (or big! I’ll do the research). If you can’t make it to the shop, be sure to catch us out and about at one of our pop up events! Check out the events tab at www.raysreusables.com to keep up to date with where to find us out and about."

THE HISTORY OF RAY'S

Ray's Reusables started at the end of 2019 as a passion project. Daly explained, "I had long looked for a way to repurpose the (growing) pile of worn out jeans that I had into something beautiful, useful, and that would mesh well with the low waste lifestyle that I was trying to cultivate. Thus the back pocket cutlery roll was born."

Daly continued, "I still sew and I love what I create, but as I watched the pandemic unfold and saw the waste that was being created as a result I realized I wanted to do even more to support the sustainable community of Philadelphia. That's why I decided to fast track some long term goals of mine, and open up Philadelphia's first mobile refill shop. Making plastic-free options accessible and affordable to people regardless of where they live in the city has always my mission. With 70% of people in the city relying on public transportation, I knew the best way to provide more equal access would be to take an eco-store to them! With the flexibility and mobility of the van I'm able to go into different neighborhoods around the city, making sustainable shopping easier for eco-conscious Philadelphians."

After running and achieving success as a pop-up since 2019, Daly wanted to go back to her initial goal of opening and having a storefront. Daly said, "I wanted not just a shop, but a place to host events, workshops and bring the community together."

PRODUCTS

Ray's carries products that focus on three main areas, including:

Body Care:
Body Lotion
Body Wash
Conditioner
Hand Sanitizer
Hand Soap
Shampoo
Tooth Tabs

Cleaning:
All Purpose Cleaner
Organic Castile Soap
Countertop Spray
Liquid Dish Soap
Gentle Cleaning Scrub
20% Vinegar

Laundry:
Liquid Laundry Detergent
Powdered Laundry Detergent
Oxygen Brightening Powder

Plus a variety of other home goods, gifts, greeting cards and other eco-friendly products great for home, office or gift giving.

Favorite products and brands in the shop include:

Bee Our Guest Wraps: They’re made in Kennett Square PA using local beeswax and deadstock fabric (read: fabric’s last chance before the landfill).

HiBar: These shampoo and conditioner bars changed Daly's opinion of solid shampoo and conditioner completely! They are one of the things that she brought in by popular demand and she was really wowed by them. They’ve just released a line of facial cleanser bars that should be arriving in the shop soon as well.

THE THREE R'S OF RAY'S

Reuse - Finding reusable solutions to single-use products keeps unnecessary waste out of landfills. By reusing something over and over, you'll be saving on resources and, in the long run, you'll often save on money too.

Shop reusables:
https://raysreusables.com/collections

Refill - Kick that single use plastic bottle to the curb (or wash it and bring it to fill up with something new)! Bring your clean and dry bottles or jars and fill up on my selection of carefully chosen all natural body care and cleaning essentials.

Shop refills:
https://raysreusables.com/pages/refill-menu

Replace - Plastic has gotten into so many areas of our lives. As your household plastics come to the end of theirs, check out my selection of biodegradable and recyclable alternatives.

Shop replacements:
https://raysreusables.com/collections

THE SHOP AND VIBE

For Daly's first brick and mortar, she said, "I wanted to create a space that felt really welcoming and inviting. I really like the minimalist aesthetic that many sustainable stores go for, but I also find it intimidating sometimes. I love color! I love patterns! I love silly cute things! So seeing a lot of white and kraft paper, while very visually appealing to me, never felt like it reflected what my actual life looks like. I don’t think I’m the only one who feels that way, so I hope that by injecting some color and liveliness into the shop I can make sustainability feel more approachable for people who might be just starting to dip their toes in."

Daly added, "I was involved in a business cohort called Power Up Your Business through the Community College of Philadelphia last year, and through that program I met a merchandising professor who very generously gave me her time. Talking with her I was able to get feedback about the ideas I had for the space and it gave me a lot of confidence to go for what I wanted to do."

WHY NORTHERN LIBERTIES?

Daly said, "I wanted to open in the Northern Liberties for a few reasons. There weren’t too many markets where I was able to pop up on this side of the city, and I knew that I had a lot of people who wanted to see me find a way to make it over here. I figured that if I was able to regularly and easily pop up in places like East Falls, Manayunk, and West Philly then the best way to make myself more accessible would be to set up shop in an area where I couldn’t pop up. I also like all that the Northern Liberties has to offer to people who are coming to visit me. I like the idea that refilling could be something that fits seamlessly into your errand running rather than the special trip that you have to make."

RAY'S REUSABLES - POP-UP SHOP

Ray's Reusables was originally operating as a pop-up only and the company was founded with a simple idea in mind: make eco-friendly shopping easier for the 70% of Philadelphians who rely on public transportation. That is why founder Ray Daly created a sustainable shop that can go to any neighborhood in Philadelphia. Ray said, "I want to make supporting local makers, making eco-friendly choices, and sending less waste to landfill as easy as stepping out your front door."

For pop-up hours and events, visit:
https://raysreusables.com/pages/events

ABOUT RAY DALY

But who is Ray herself, you might ask?

* a language learning enthusiast
* someone who loves a hike
* a little cat momma
* vegetarian aspiring to eat more plant based
* a former high school English teacher
* someone who would answer "raccoon" if you asked what animal I would be

She said, "I'm what I like to call the 'triple ram'. Aries, year of the Ram, and my legal name means ewe. As you might imagine, I charge head first into things."

SEVEN GRAND OPENINGS THIS SPRING

Northern Liberties Business Improvement District welcomes at least six brand new businesses in six weeks (NOW UPDATED TO SEVEN) - with a total of at LEAST fifteen new businesses about to open and/or be announced this spring and summer. This list has now been updated to include a seventh opening as well - with Bikes by Design being added to the mix!

Pera led the charge with their grand opening weekend April 1st to 3rd, Ray's Reusables in time for Earth Day Weekend on Earth Day Friday, April 22 and Saturday, April 23rd, 70SIX Boutique on Saturday, April 30th and 1040 Creative Art Center and Gallery with a soft opening on Friday, April 29 and grand opening on Friday, May 6th, and Wag Watch, Bikes by Design and The Shake Seafood with their exact date to be announced in the coming days. Northern Liberties Business Improvement District in partnership with Northern Liberties-based PR firm Aversa PR will have more details on grand openings each week as they happen and are confirmed.

Grand Opening April to May:
* Pera Turkish Cuicine
* 70SIX
* Bikes by Design
* Ray's Reusables
* Wag Watch
* The Shake Seafood
* 1040 Creative Art Center and Gallery

Other businesses about to open and be announced include seven new eateries, cafes and restaurants, with even more to still come by this summer. In modern history, this will be the single largest number of new restaurants, retail and small businesses to open in the city's young business improvement district.

Many of the new openings are a result of several years of work by NLBID to recruit and also ready small businesses as they look for a new place to open and/or as they look to expand from festivals and virtual sales to actual brick-and-mortar locations. Programs that worked to recruit these businesses included extensive new business recruitment outreach, the Northern Liberties Pop-up Shops which matched small businesses with vacant retail spaces, and Retail Ready Bootcamp in partnership with the Community College of Philadelphia.

Northern Liberties also saw over a dozen new businesses open during the pandemic already, with a list that included:

* Anejo
* Bagels and Co.
* Figo Ristorante
* Figo Pizzeria
* Set No Libs
* The Learning Experience
* Suya Suya
* Parmigiana
* 7 Boys Collective
* Nirvana Wellness Med Spa
* Ghost Collective
* Ken Loves BYOB

NORTHERN LIBERTIES GROWING AT RECORD RATE

Ray's Reusables is opening in one of Philadelphia's fastest growing neighborhoods - one that will see a population literally double in size within two years. It is also one of the region's hottest food neighborhoods and top restaurant rows.

The population in the popular Philadelphia neighborhood is expected to nearly double in two short years, with 5,000+ new residential units and 184,655 square feet of commercial on deck or under construction. Northern Liberties continues to be one of Philadelphia’s hottest and fastest growing neighborhoods. Currently, there are 5,000+ new residential units and 184,655 square feet of commercial on deck or under construction. There are also other new nearby and adjacent projects announced in recent weeks that will be added to these totals. It is estimated that 5,000 to 10,000 new residents would move into the neighborhood in the next two years, essentially doubling the population in Northern Liberties (Callowhill to Girard, 6th St to the river). An additional 5,000 to 10,000 people are expected to move into adjacent and nearby projects as well.

A running and evolving project list includes:
5th and Spring Garden - 382 units, 6,000 sq ft commercial
Piazza Terminal - 861 units, 35,000 sq ft commercial
6th and Fairmount - 350 units, 18,000 sq ft commercial
418 Spring Garden - 330 units, TBD sq ft commercial
501 Columbus Blvd - 481 units, 37,000 sq ft commercial
310 Girard - 185 units, 6,400 sq ft commercial
342 Girard - 45 units, TBD sq ft commercial
700 N Delaware - 482 units, 10,000 sq ft commercial
918 N Delaware 452 units, 16,855 sq ft commercial
200 Spring Garden - 355 units, 18,000 sq ft commercial
412 N 2nd - 387 units, 20,400 sq ft commercial
417 Callowhill - 220 units, no commercial
814-26 N 2nd St - 52 units, 8,000 sq ft commercial
1102-48 N 2nd - 25 units, 9,000 sq ft

The above growth also will come to include the The Piazza/Liberties Walk, which will be replacing 500 units and 150,000 sq ft commercial over the next several years.

Despite the pandemic, new businesses and the city’s most acclaimed new restaurants have continued to open in Northern Liberties at a record pace. Recent openings have included Bagels and Co., Anejo, SET NoLibs, Ken Love's BYOB, Suya Suya, Pelicana, Stickman Brews, 7 Boys Collective, Studio N Med Spa, Pancho's Cafe, and soon-to-open Figo. Leases have also been signed and secured for at least five yet-to-be-announced new businesses moving into well-known restaurant and retail spaces.

ABOUT NORTHERN LIBERTIES BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT

Northern Liberties Business Improvement District was formed in 2018 to provide supplements to the municipal services of the City of Philadelphia; maintain a safe, clean and vibrant commercial district for the benefit of the residents, users, and owners within the district, and to citizens of Philadelphia and the region; to create opportunities for the business and residential communities to come together to make improvements to the district; and develop and implement programs and services that ensure that Northern Liberties continues to be a desirable place to live, work, shop, invest and visit. For more information, see explorenorthernliberties.org.