etitiue ligence Green - The fashion statement of the future

By Carla Waldemar

months they already felt the need for a larger location and moved into quarters affording them 4,300 sq. ft.: I ,000 for a warehouse, 800 for offices. and the rest, the showroom. During that research period (well, and ever after), they evaluated potential products. Turns out, the hardest part was-still is-beating vendors off . "They want us," Mick reports. "We're approached with three to five new products a week. But it's our responsibility to make sure the product is actually green. There's a lot of green-washing around, and it's growing," he notes of the pseudo-labeling that's on the rise. "We have to be pretty vigilant."

IIJHAT did these guys know

Y Y about buildine centers? Not enough to fill your u-u..ug" toolbox. But they did know something about supply and demand.

When two partners opened a.k.a.Green Scottsdale-the Arizona area's first environmentally friendly building supply store-it was born not from industry expertise, but from trend watching and personal passion.

And frustration. Jeff Frost, as an architect with a strong environmentalldesign focus, couldn't find a showroom to get clients up-close and personal with the products he espoused. And Mick Dalrymple, who worked in the film industry, in his free time served on the Arizona chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council he'd set up. It was his job to make presentations on going green with such items as LEED products. His audience would invariably respond, "Fine. But where can I find them?"

"I brought more of a homeowner's perspective-rather than that of commercial building," he says. "I saw it as a great marketing opportunity-to fill the gap existing on green building."

In order to devote full time to the endeavor, he started looking for a partner. That's when Jeff Frost, the architect, entered the picture. As Mick recalls, "When I started asking around at the Council for someone like-minded, they'd mention his name; they'd tell me, 'He was just in here...."'

One phone call was all it took. "We started research in 2004, launched our business in April 2005, and opened the doors that June," Mick reports. "Our purpose was to fill the gap."

After scouring the town to secure a rental building "that was not too embarrassing." after just seven

So, early on, the partners developed key selection criteria. "We started with the most basic premise," Mick explains. "The product must represent the least toxic alternative. We also choose items made from recycled materials and/or items that are recyclable, themselves. On top of that, they have to be desirable and stylish. We don't carry stuff just for the sake of'green'. It has to have real design appeal-which, these days, is not a problem," he underscores.

Other criteria dictate that products carry the least embedded energy; that they're made locally, if possibleboth to support the local economy and to cut down on use of transportation fuel. Products that save energy or water also are high on the list. And finally-what's turned out to be a make-or-break factor-the ability of a manufacturer to deliver.

Products that Green stocks range from FSC-certified lumber, purchased by the carload, to flooring in materials such as bamboo and cork; insulation, including that fabricated from recycled denim; countertops like IceStone; flooring of recycled glass and concrete, and windows, doors, and fixtures. The company doesn't handle appliances, but exhibits some Bausch products in its showroom and refers customers directly to the manufacturer.

Recruiting staff for the start-up outfit presented even less of a challenge. Employees found them. "We didn't even have to advertise to accumulate a stack of resumes." Mick reports. "We're blessed with people who are pretty fanatical about green products. Plus, we have a good relationship with the local college's interior design department; they send us interns and graduates who have a real passion for sustainability."

Customers come armed with passion, too-once the word gets out.

"I haven't a natural background in this field, so there was a huge learning curve," Mick allows. "The first thing I learned was, there wasn't an actual sales channel. I learned that there's not one, it's all over the map."

To reach the kind of educated, committed homeowner who fits Green's demographic, Mick finds that PR works better than paid advertising. "We donate things to nonprofits' silent auctions and underwrite the local public radio-causes we believe in that also pay offfor us."

While Green's clientele is largely retail-based, the company also works directly with builders. Says Mick, "The Phoenix area is the fastest-growing metro in the U.S., so it's real chaotic here. So, what I do is not just selling to the big production builders, but consulting with them, too; they're willing to pay to be educated in how this works. (The problem with big builders is, they're in pretty dire straits right now, so they haven't the money to try anything new. "But," he emphasizes, "they do know they need to do something different."

"We find that the smaller, privately held companies have more patience to wait it out. They're in this for the long run. They see the green market growing and want to be out in front of it."

Yet today, the market is "pretty erratic, very unpredictable." While Green has enjoyed a period of handsome 307o increases in month-tomonth sales, "sales can swing 4OVo," Mick reports-"putting us at risk. So, three months ago, we turned to consulting as well, beefed up that side," to enable the young company to ride out the troughs between the crests.

Because those crests are the wave of the future. The green movement will grow, and Green is preparing to grow right along with it. "We've already had over a dozen requests from outside the state for franchising; we don't know yet how to feel about that-it's an extremely complex matter. Green building depends on local relationships and factoring in distinct regional climates." he points out.

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