He founded Green & Free with two passions. First, it was simply his passion for stuff. As an avid yard sale, thrift store, and flea market shopper, he developed a love for finding treasures. He is also a trash picker and dumpster diver. One man's trash is another man's treasure, as the old saying goes. However, Green & Free started as a result of taking items from one non-profit thrift store dumpster and donating those items to another. What he found was that the receiving non-profit loved most of the items and were able to sell them. Thus, the journey began of developing a process on how to sell and/or distribute items in an environmentally and community friendly way. Eric's love for stuff has given him the opportunity for fulfilling another passion: helping others. Through Green and Free Warehouse and Thrift Center, he has been committed to helping others. Now with Green & Free establishing community partnerships, he is excited to take this passion of helping others to the next level. Helping good people attempt great things is truly the reason Eric goes to work every day!
• Providing revenue for our community partners.
• Providing additional services/resources for our partners as we are able.
• Providing excellent customer service for all who support our Thrift Store(s).
Green and Free began in 2008 as a part time hobby and part time job for owner Eric Lewis. Through a series of events and Eric's love for stuff, eventually Green & Free Warehouse and Thrift Center was born. Opening a thrift store was never part of the initial plan, but as every entrepreneur can tell you, at some point the vision takes on a life of its own.
In early 2012, Green & Free Warehouse opened its doors for the first time. At first there was very little fanfare, but after some time people learned about Green & Free. With consistent customer service and perseverance, we have experienced gradual, consistent growth.
One of our main focuses is embodied in the statement, "what we sell matters, but what we do with what we cannot sell matters more." Our sorting process is focused on recycling and repurposing items that cannot be used for their original purpose. We continue to refine this process as we grow.
Our story is continuing to be written and we are excited about our next chapter: Community Partnerships. We are truly excited about "Helping Good People Attempt Great Things." As we write this chapter you'll get to experience it along with us. We're looking forward to what we can do together to help small community-based non-profits meet the needs of others in our communities.