A new department store that is the first of its kind in Wales has opened in Cardiff. Yellow: The Social Enterprise has launched in Cardiff's Morgan Arcade and provides a sustainable shopping experience that is totally free of paper and plastic.
The not-for-profit social enterprise is "centred around the planet and people" and aims to improve the world we live in by "doing retail better". While the store is zero-waste, paperless and plastic-free, it also provides a platform for local businesses to sell their products and pledges to give proportions of money made to local charities.
The store has opened on the site previously occupied by Rossiter's of Bath, with Yellow:TSE transforming a unit which has remained vacant for over two years. Get the latest news from around Cardiff by signing up to our newsletter.
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There is a wide range of products on sale, from store cupboard essentials to stunning pieces of locally-sourced art. Refillable food items such as pasta, nuts, spices and snacks, as well as cleaning products, occupy one half of the shop, while concessions for local businesses, including paintings, models and hand-crafted accessories greet customers when they walk in.
Customers will use state-of-the-art QR technology to scan items in the store, with a "self-checkout" app allowing you to scan, weigh, and pay for your shopping without using paper. There are also refillable bottles on sale for items such as washing up liquid and laundry detergent in a move to limit the amount of packaging being used in retail.
While founder Tamsin Ford says there are nearly 50 sustainable vendors waiting to sell their products at the store, the local businesses currently represented on the shop floor include Studio Muse, Eliza Eliza, Rhian Kate Jewellery, Kate Dumbleton Jewellery and Andy Morris. Sustainable fashion from Onesta is also on sale, as is art by Katherine Jones, which includes intricate paintings of local landmarks.
There is also a small cafe and collaborative workspace area in the store, meaning customers can get some work done while also enjoying local coffee and vegan cakes courtesy of Cardiff's own Hard Lines. Meanwhile the venue's stylish decor is complete with a life-size giraffe model which is sure to draw in passers-by wandering through the arcade.
As a not-for-profit business, the social enterprise also pledges to give equal proportions of profit to Mind Cymru, Cardiff Women’s Aid, and City Hospice. The money raised will go towards helping these charities with important initiatives.
Founder and CEO of Yellow: TSE Tamsin Ford said she was "really happy" to finally be launching the store in the arcade after years of planning. Already well-known for sustainable retail in Cardiff through her Pontcanna-based business Blossom and Nectar, the former Hewlett Packard employee said she is driven by a desire to do retail in a more sustainable and community-focused way.
"I've always thought that we can do retail better," she said. "It became really prevalent during Covid that not only are we killing the planet by shipping over mass-produced stuff, but also we need to support these quirky, independent businesses. I just thought, lets slow things down a little bit and appreciate paying people proper money for their products and a proper wage for their work."
"We're not for profit, so we will always support local charities. We're giving 10% of profits each to Women's Aid Cardiff, City Hospice and Mind Cymru. They do incredible work and it's very important to me that we support them. If there's any money left over after that then we will sit down with the board every quarter and see what local groups or initiatives need any help."
Tamsin added: "It's taken a lot of work to get to this point and during Covid I wasn't sure it was ever going to happen. But I'm really happy that we're finally launching and I think people in Cardiff will really like what we do. I wanted to be in one of the arcades, I think it's a great place to be and it means we've still got that independent feel to the store. It's very exciting."
