We are often asked questions about the origin of our products, and this is typical of your ethical and ecological concerns.
Our sourcing policy has clear guidelines, and for the sake of transparency, we've summarized them for you here.
Since its opening in 2017, Eco Loco has been selling a mix of Quebec creations, its own local creations and objects facilitating a zero waste lifestyle imported only when they are not available here.
The sourcing strategy is as follows: First we look at what's made here, then we evaluate the possibility of creating our own items to better complement our offering, and finally we look at what's being made elsewhere that would complement what we sell.
Eco Loco has over 50 partners who manufacture locally. This represents around 70% of our offer.
Eco Loco also means the creation of 20 entirely local products. For textile creations, this means everything from product development to marketing. In a world where it's easier and cheaper to source from Asia, this includes the fact that the various fabrics are entirely manufactured and processed locally.
Eco Loco is also a partnership with 4 local factories, one of which is a social economy enterprise involved in work integration. These are textile mills and a sewing center.
Eco Loco also works with a dozen local specialists in graphic design, marketing, web development, printing, packaging, etc.
The website is presented in a transparent way to help you make an informed choice. In the description of each product, the name of the manufacturer is clearly identified. Quebec manufacturers are therefore easily identifiable.
Next, we've set up a system of icons to make certain product attributes easily recognizable. One of these icons represents local manufacturing: Made in Quebec. Not only does this icon appear in the product description if this is the case, but you can also access (by clicking on the icon in question) all products made here with a single click.
For textile products, when this is the case, the product description specifies that it has been knitted in Quebec. Even so, this is a rarity that we want to highlight.
There are a number of reasons why we want to offer our products locally. Firstly, in keeping with our ecological and ethical values, it goes without saying that products made here require less transport (carbon impact) and that we are certain that working conditions are adequate (fairness). Secondly, by favoring local sourcing, design and expertise, Eco Loco increases its participatory role in the local economy. Finally, most of Eco Loco's partner companies are predominantly female, both in terms of entrepreneurs and employees. Still under-represented in the business world, this is of prime importance to us.
We'd love to offer 100% home-grown products! However, we're a small community to meet our needs. For example, we don't have biodegradable dental floss made here, silicone and textile fibers are almost 100% imported, ... However, every item we incorporate into our boutique is assessed for its ecological footprint, and we make sure, to the best of our knowledge, that we do business with ethical suppliers.
Ecologically yours
