What (people) want

What do customers, friends, the socially networked, users, neighbors, classmates, servers, administrators, employees... maybe even brands... want?

• notice me
• like me
• touch me
• do what I say
• miss me if I'm gone

Check us out at the EPIC show today!

We'll be hanging out today at the EPIC Vancouver Sustainable Living Expo! Come on by, say hi and check out the EcoYIKE!

"We didn't have the green thing back in my day"

Hope you all had a great Mothers Day on the weekend. My mom was part of a green movement long before we started. Have a read of this great story. 

Cheers

Calvin

It’s All About the Green Thing By Jim Knowles In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that plastic bags weren’t good for the environment. The woman apologized to her and explained, “We didn’t have the green thing  back in my day.” That’s right, they didn’t have the green thing in her day. Back then, they returned their milk bottles, Coke bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, using the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled. But they didn’t have the green thing back her day. In her day, they walked up stairs, because they didn’t have an escalator in every store and office building. They walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they had to go two blocks. But she’s right. They didn’t have the green thing in her day. Back then, they washed the baby’s diapers because they didn’t have the throw-away kind. They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts – wind and solar power really did dry the clothes. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that old lady is right, they didn’t have the green thing back in her day. Back then, they had one TV, or radio, in the house – not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a pizza dish, not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn’t have electric machines to do everything for you. When they packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, they used wadded up newspaper to cushion it, not styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, they didn’t fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. They used a push mower that ran on human power. They exercised by working so they didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she’s right, they didn’t have the green thing back then. They drank from a fountain when they were thirsty, instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time they had a drink of water. They refilled pens with ink, instead of buying a new pen, and they replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But they didn’t have the green thing back then. Back then, people took the streetcar and kids rode their bikes to school or rode the school bus, instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And they didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint. But that old lady is right. They didn’t have the green thing back in her day.

Photos from the Jeans Day 2011 BBQ!

Things were pretty quiet as we set up



Cal and Fin!

Hey, it's Cindy!



Canucks mascot Fin takes a ride on the EcoYike!

Support BC Children's Hospital this April!

This month is a big fundraising month for Costless Express and BC Children's Hospital.

As Chair of the Retail/Wholesale Council, our committee goal is to raise $5,000,000 this year ($4.6 last year) and April events go a long way towards the total.

This week is AuctionMart - the largest online auction in North America and is put on by the Vancouver Sun and Province newspapers. The great part is 10% of all net proceeds go to the BC Children's Hospital Foundation. This is the first year for the partnership between the papers and the hospital, and we are cautiously optimistic that we will raise in excess of $300,000. Have a look at Aaron Sanderson, the hardest working fellow in fundraising, on Breakfast Television today.

Also this Saturday April 16th is the very popular Sunglass Sale and Fundraiser by Suntech Optics & Bugaboos Eyewear at 758 Harbourside Drive North Vancouver.

Print off this exclusive Costless Express coupon (with a map) and receive a FREE pair of sunglasses with your sunglass purchase. Get there early for an incredible selection. It really gets quite exciting seeing some people buying 10-20 pairs - who can blame them when all sunglasses are $5-$25!

Finally, April 28th is Jeans Day. Order your buttons $5 and pins $20 from Costless Express and we will deliver with your order. Look for us on the 28th as we help host a huge BBQ in front of the Art Gallery downtown at lunch time. Last year we had over 2500 people stop by for a hot dog, drink and chips and to buy a button.

Help support the hospital, and get your buttons and pins early before they are all gone. The great news about buying a pin is the $20 is tax deductible and you get to wear your jeans to work for 4 weeks instead of just 1 with the button.

Thanks to all our great staff and customers for supporting such a wonderful organization like the BC Childrens Hospital Foundation.

Cheers,
Calvin

A bike powered band!

Now that we have the ecoYIKE making deliveries this spring, we are getting lots of fans from far and wide from the electric bike community.

Here is an article sent to me about a band that powers its instruments with human power!

Check it out, sustainable electric guitars! 

I wish they were in Vancouver so we could have them at our ecoYIKE launch party.

Cheers,

Calvin

Express Copy is back!

It's Baaaaack!

Our Express Copy Paper is back after a short hiatus. This is our 4th version of our popular house brand paper as we increase the brightness to 96 Brite.

Over the years, the brightness of our Express Copy has increased from 84 Brite - 88 Brite - 92 Brite and now 96 Brite.

Skids of Express Copy in the warehouse

Our Express Copy Paper is a premium everyday sheet for use in all machines. We are excited to offer Express Copy at $39.96 per case - (The comparable paper would be Staples Brand Red Box Paper at $46.96.)

Express Copy is a Smile project item!

We are also happy to announce that partial proceeds from the sale of Express Copy will be donated to BC Children's Hospital through our charity The Smile Project.

Cheers,

Calvin