TAMPA, Fla. — Most people start businesses out of their own homes, but taking that next step out into the community can often be a challenge. Sheila Haque is proving it can be done.
Haque started selling a few dozen zero-waste items out of her kitchen in 2020, and now she sells more than 2,000 items inside her store, Life Essentials Refillery.
“The cool thing about Life Essentials is that you bring in your own jar. You can buy as little or as much as you want,” said Haque. “You pay twice as much at a conventional grocery store because you are paying for the packaging. You use it, you throw it away, and then you do the same thing the next month, and here you don’t have to do that. You just bring your jar, fill it up and there is no waste created.”
Haque said what’s really special about her business's growth is that she has three daughters growing right along with it.
“They did all the labeling for me, they helped organize all the shelving, they helped build the shelves, they came in here, and they helped me stick up all the greenery,” said Haque.
From cosmetics to deodorants to dental products, everything Haque sells is environmentally friendly.
“So we don’t sell conventional toothpaste out of a tube; we have something called Huppy. It’s a toothpaste tablet and a lot of people have never heard of a toothpaste tablet,” said Haque.
Haque tries to stock her shelves with as many local brands as possible.
“We are trying our hardest. It’s not easy, but we’re trying. We’re trying to partner with as many businesses, highlight them on social media and work with as many female businesses as we possibly can,” said Haque.
Anne Hammer is one of those small business owners who has partnered with Haque. Her family owns HammerTime Hollow.
“We sell raw cow's milk. We’ve been doing it since October of 2019, and we are currently in about 24 different markets in the [Tampa] Bay area,” said Hammer. “It's so important that we support each other because, without each other, I would not be able to do what I’m doing.”
Haque even takes requests, always looking to add new food to the bins.
“So we want customers to come and tell us what they like, and then we fill the bins with it so it’s really their store. The store is about community,” said Haque.
She is proud of how far she’s come in a matter of a few years and hopes to be a voice in the community for other small business owners attempting to pursue their dreams.
“This is something that can help everyone. It's a way of living. If you love going out on the boat and see the trash, this helps minimize the trash that’s in our waterways. If we all do a small thing, it makes a huge difference,” said Haque.
