Eco Friendly House And Garden

Some simple tricks can stop your heating bill spiralling out of control and wasting all that energy!

Remember visiting you grandparents house and there were a few things that you didn’t have at home that you thought were funny.  Well some of them were totally eco friendly and we never took them on board.

Nans had these funny things as there wasn’t such a thing as central heating, so all of these were used simply to keep warm and stop cold draughts blowing aroundthe house.

Now of course, they can save energy, money and the environment too - so maybe I can take you on a walk around my nans house and see what you can do today.

Plastic Sheets: 18% of heat is lost through your windows.
In the colder rooms that weren’t used so often had tight plastic sheets taped over them on the inside.  Double glazing was unheard of so putting in your own secondary ‘glazing’ was the way to go.

If you didn’t want to open the windows through the winter, then why not seal them up for the colder months.  These days of course you can buy actual double glazing, retro-fit secondary glazing - or even buy an eco friendly equivalent of the old plastic sheeting called Eco Glaze which is acrylic sheets that are attached to your window with magnetic strips so you can put them on or take them off when you want!

Maybe even consider triple glazing in bad areas or just the leakiest window!

Giant Velvet Curtain: 15% of heat is lost through doors.
My nan had the most amazing thick red curtain on the back of the front door.  It was on a great big rail and it was more than twice as wide as the door and at least a foot too long - great for hiding behind!

By making sure that there was more than enough curtain to block any breezes made it all the more worth having.  I mean if you are fitting a curtain in the first place, it’s a bit pointless if it is too short or too thin.  Spend the extra pennies and get it right first time.

Maybe consider fitting a simple porch to buffer the outside and inside spaces.

Long Tube Of Socks:
Along the bottom of the lounge door when we were all sitting inside was a handmade tube of old socks and rags.  I suppose it could be made into a comedy sausage dog if you sewed ears on!

It was the perfect way to stop draughts coming under the door when you were heating just the one room.  Just like today - when you have the log burner on the go in the one room, keep all the heat in there too.  Modern equivalents can be plates you screw on to the bottom of you door with a furry edge - but I quite like the idea of making my own sausage dog!

Over-Patterned Rugs:  8% of heat is lost through floors.
Now, you don’t have to go an buy a bright swirly rug or a heavily-pattered dark red rug to stop cold air coming through your floorboards!

These days you can fill the gaps on old floorboards with man-made natural fillers, buy nice plain rugs in all sizes, or fit carpets with thick underlay to make sure that your home stays warm!

Maybe consider fitting underfloor heating if you are having other work done in your home.  This is a much more efficient way to heat your home than traditional central heating and means you can put your furniture where you want it rather than having to fit it around huge radiators…….. 

So, go round to your great aunts house or your friends nans and check out their energy and money saving tips!

In the UK you can buy meat products that are from a known source.

So you can rest assured that the animals were treated with the basic standards we would expect, received medication when necessary and were not cooped up alone for weeks on end.

So what does the Freedom Food label actually tell you?  It’s not organic, it’s not fair trade - so what is it for?  It has been in place since 1994 so it is obviously here to stay and is taken seriously.

Below I have summarised the 5 main points from their own leaflet, so that you can be sure of these things when choosing this type of meat product over the other similar products on the shelf that don’t have the RSPCA Freedom Foods logo, (or those that are certified organic as this has a similar set of criteria).

Labelling in all countries allows for certain words and images to be used on meat products that are not a true representation of how the animals were treated or where they were kept. 

For example the words ‘natural’ and ‘fresh’ mean absolutely nothing with regards to how the animals were reared or lived, and ‘produced in the UK’ doesn’t mean the animals ever saw the UK while alive - they could have been factory farmed in any other country in the world and shipped here after slaughter.

In addition, this RSPCA label (among others) is not connected to any food brands or food manufacturers, so you know it is only the animals they have in mind rather than profits!

So, here are the summarised points that mean that you could be making a difference to how your food is farmed:

1) Freedom From Hunger & Thirst:
These animals will have had access to fresh water and a suitable diet that maintains health and vigour.

2) Freedom From Discomfort:
These animals will be provided with an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area.

3) Freedom From Pain, Injury Or Disease:
These animals will be living in an environment that helps prevent accidents and illnesses and offers rapid diagnosis and treatment if any of these are found.

4) Freedom To Express Normal Behaviour:
These animals are provided with sufficient space, proper facilities and the company of other animals of their own kind.

5) Freedom From Fear And Distress:
These animals will live in conditions that avoid mental suffering and offer a certain level of respect and care.

And due to this continuity of checks, Freedom Foods can be traced from their farm, through to their haulier, the abattoir and even right to the store!  So you know that the animal you are about to eat has been cared for through it whole life.

The meats included in this scheme cover everything you could imagine, from eggs to beef, pork to duck and salmon to cheese!  All meats and animal products are covered by this, so you can rest assured when buying any of them.

Just look for the label!

Here are some quite simple steps to help you keep on the green road…….

If you are having trouble starting your year as green as you had hoped, then take a quick peep at the things listed below and get back into the swing of it!

1) Find Your Nearest Store:
Don’t drive miles to a store to get the cheapest prices on a few main things - visit a store you can walk to and just grab your essentials.

If you do a little shop every so often in your closest store, not only will it be there when you need it, but you will get to talk to your neighbours and maybe find some new products you never see in a larger store.

2) Find Your Nearest Products:
Apples are apples at the end of the day - but were they brought from down the road or from the other side of the world? 

If they were from a local farm, then in buying them you are helping to keep parts of your local area free from urban development and new roads - keeping wildlife close to your own homes.

3) Take A Little Less:
Always buy a bit less than you normally would of the fresh items, as we never eat everything we buy before it goes rotten!  So the less you buy in the first place, the more chance you have of eating it all when it is still nice and fresh!

It may be cheaper to buy bulk and save on packaging when ordering the larger pack sizes, but the cost of transporting and throwing away our food is just as costly!

4) Expect A Bit More:
Make sure you choose the products that are wrapped in compostable packaging.  There is no reason why vegetables these days are not packaged in compostable tray and wrapping.

If one vegetable can be presented and stored effectively using compostable wrapping, then so can nearly all others!  Make your choice right in the aisles.

If you tell the store what products you want to take home by buying them over others, then you don’t have to write in or attend meetings to get your point across.

5) Be Nosy:
Make sure you go up every aisle at least every month or so - allowing you too see new products and make new choices.  Don’t be put off by everything else in that area as you may find some tasty treasures and some eco friendly ideas.

There is more than 1 way to create the same meal - so check out frozen vegetables and canned fruit, pizza base mix and organic alternatives!  You never know what you can find hidden amongst the huge number of products in your local stores.

Going, going green…..

I recently read the book The World Without Us - and it wasn’t all as happy and nature-friendly as it seems!

Yes, it covered how all our impact in most areas would cease for the better immediately - zero carbon emissions, no more deforestation or over fishing etc, but it also highlighted what would happen to the things that we need to manage - like nuclear power plants, dams, exotic species, farm animals and pets!

If we don’t keep working with these - they will go astray, and can’t work or survive on their own!

I was gripped throughout the book (although it’s not a read cover to cover in one go type of book), not just by it’s attention to detail regarding individual people and actions - but by the wealth of natural forests and habitats that I never knew existed and now want to learn more about!

First Shock Of The Book:
We have created so many things that are durable that they won’t be going anywhere fast!  And infact some could threaten the very planet after we are gone!

The book assumes that humans literally vanish in a second and leave the world right as it is in that instant., so factories still running, shops still open, communities still farming - then we go.

The author - Alan Weisman doesn’t even entertain for a minute that there will be any surviving humans, and even if there were - it wouldn’t be anything like the BBC drama Survivors.

There are things out there that just can’t be controlled without the skilled people who work with them now.  Yes, the electricity and water stopped and the stores closed - but what about that nuclear reactor still burning away?  What about oil pumps sucking out millions of gallons or flammable and toxic oil above the surface?

And all the plastic we have ever made is still out there - it never goes away - it’s just getting smaller and smaller. So if it’s a bag for example floating in the sea, it get eaten by a turtle (aling with other plastics and so the turtle dies; however when the turtle has decomposed or been eaten, the bag becomes released again. Then the bag is in smaller bits floating on the sea so it gets eaten by and kills an albatros, who then dies - and then when they get eaten, the bag bits come out again, and gets smaller. Then it gets eaten again and again and again through the food chain - forever it would seem!

Secondly:
He told me that there are patches of woodland dotted around the world that are so old that they defies everything we now know about woodland management. 

One on the Polish-Belarus border hasn’t been affected by humans since the dawn of time - literally.  It is called the Bialowieza Puszcza and means ‘forest primeval’.  There are a whole host of ancient - and giant - species of trees a whole host of rare and unusual native European mammals including the lynx, wolf, bear and even the wisent - a European bison!

There is also an ancient forest right in the heart of the Bronx, New York.  There is a patch of historic woodland that was there when the first Europeans came over to the state - and there is stays!  The rest of New York has been deforested and flattened while this pocket of history goes on!

And Finally:
It’s a really good place to start if you are trying to think of a reason to reduce your waste (big section on plastics), change your habits (farming and food waste) and cut your energy uses (power sources).

Basically, it can make you think hard and fast about what we are doing to the very planet we depend on, whether we are here or not!

After reading this book, you need to look at the trail of every item you hold in your hand that day, whether it’s food, an electrical item or clothing and ask yourself the following questions:

• Where was it from, and what did it take to make it and get it here?
• What does it actually do to improve your life (if at all) and why do I need this exact thing over the alternatives?
• And, where does it go after it leaves my hand?  And is that a good place????????

So, go out to the book store or library at read this book!

Has your spring clean left you with quite a lot of things you don’t want?

Well, someone else might find a good use for them - so why not take yourself out to a car boot sale and see what you can make for things you don’t even want!

There are many car boots held every week across the UK although they may not be as widespread elsewhere, and they are great fun to do.

However, there are a few tricks of the trade that will make your car boot experience a lot better than just plunging feet first into it on that early Sunday morning!

1) Check Out Some Sites As A Buyer.
Make sure that you have visited a few local sites before you pitch your spot.  Some car boots aren’t as organised as others and can have stalls spread out over a large area of land but with stalls quite some distance apart - not good for sales!

Other sites can be a field of mud, others too small, and yet more with terrible access (or exit afterwards).  Some have a set start and finish time, but others just let people come and go throughout the day - which can leave you alone in the field if all your neighbours go home early!

And find out the price of a pitch - if the car boot costs more than £10 for your car - then make sure you have enough stuff to make the difference.  You will have to get up early, drive to the site, sit there all day hopefully selling at least that amount in goods and then probably queue up for ages to get out afterwards - so is it worth it?

2) Contact The Person In Charge First.
Make sure you have spoken to the person who is in charge before you get up early one day - as there are protocols to follow!

One car boot I went to where the entrance of which was on a main road had an unknown secret: you had to join a queue about 1/2 a mile away in a main back street half an hour before it opened to get a spot.  If you queued up outside the site when it was due to open - you were told to drive around the block and join the others - at the very back!

3) Find Out What You Can Sell.
This might sound strange, but some car boots will only allow old things to be sold - so if they see you there with plants, bulk goods and maybe even certain electrical items, you may get told off or outed!

Other places might be really strict on the amount of space you get, so having a clothes rail would be virtually impossible if you have a long table too!

Other sites have so much space that you can park your car sideways, therefore getting metres of space to display your things, and allowing you to have everything within touching distance of the customers, rahte than them having to rummage around in boxes under the table or having to ask you to pass stuff across to them!

4) Bring The Right Equipment.
Make sure that you can display most of your goods around hand-height so that everyone can see what you are selling and can have a good look - so this means a table of sorts like a decorating fold-up table (as you need to fit it in your car with all your stuff as well) and if you are selling clothes a rail would really make a huge difference.

Boxes on the floor for books is perfect - but preferably pack them together in prices if you have enough, so a box for 10p and box for 50p books etc. Same goes for tiny toys or other little things, so, ‘Anything in the Box = 50p’ type of thing.

You will need a fair amount of small change if you are going to be serious about this, so at least £10 worth of 50p’s and less and £10 of £1’s should be a minimum - depending on the price of your goods. There is nothing worse than giving a price for something and then have to refuse the sale as you have no change left! Most customers bring small change - but it’s best to be prepared!

And along those lines - bring plenty of carrier bags from your re-using stash to give to customers - they are more likely to buy more stuff if you offer them a decent bag!

And a plastic sheet to cover everything if it rains wouldn’t be a bad idea!

5) Set Your Prices For The Good Stuff.
If you are selling some large or really nice items, then make sure you set a minimum price before you set out as otherwise you could come away with less than you deserve.

There are also the ‘early scavengers’ as I like to call them, who go to car boots for a living. They know what stuff is worth money and what things they can sell on their own stall round the back of yours for twice what you were charging!

How they do this is to start rumaging through your things while you are still getting them out of your car. They pester you with seemingly reasonable prices, or offer for bulk goods - which you think is great!

You are making money before you are even finished unloading - but remember, they are only buying it from you as you are a ‘newbie’ and they want to buy yours cheap and sell it on for more! So it’s something to think about - make less money straight away, or hold on to your higher prices and sell them for yourself through the day.

In fact, why don’t you do a spring clean with the car boot in mind - as it could help you be a bit more ruthless - especially if you are not sure if you want to sell a certain item. By setting a high price you definately won’t go below you can come away with a result either way - making a decent amount for it - or keeping it yourself anyway!

6) Enjoy Yourself!
Make sure you plan to make a day of it. Take decent clothes incase it is cold, and convince someone to come with you if you can (or at least pop in to see you half way through) otherwise you won’t be able to go to the loo or to buy yourself a hot drink if it’s cold!

Take a packed lunch if you can as some can start as early as 6am in the summer and finish after 3pm. Do you want to have to go hungry - or end up spending your takings on a car boot burger?

I’ve done them before and I would do them again - but I have made all my mistakes, so hopefully your won’t have to…..

Did you find that you got better at identifying any birds because of it?

I can now tell the difference between a house sparrow and a tree sparrow, and my little niece can now identify a magpie!  I know about the different stripes on the greater and lesser spotted woodpeckers and the different ’spots’ on the breast of the song thrush and mistle thrush.

And I found out how much easier it was with binoculars and a small guide book!

I had great fun doing the bird counts with my family.  I helped my mum in her tiny urban garden (12 species), my niece in her huge suburban garden (7 species) - and helped myself in my woodland garden! (9 species).

We saw great spotted woodpeckers, pied wagtails, wrens, song thrushes and bullfinches - as well as the more common blackbirds, robins, magpies, crows and starlings. 

However, to my suprise, the tiny urban garden had the most different species of all 3 sites, with the huge garden not having any unique species - they shared half of their 7 species with both the other sites!

And it didn’t even have the largest number of 1 type either - mum’s got 26+ starlings in hers!

I was glad to see the wrens and the house sparrows at my mum’s as well as they are not common where I live at the moment.  And the starlings chirping away in their ‘alien’ fashion took me back to my childhood!

However, I’m not too bothered about them being ‘missing’ as I get all sorts of other amazing species like red kites, buzzards, jays and woodpeckers here - and I even saw a woodcock the other day!

How did your counts go - and have you entered your results on the RSPB website yet?

Planning to lose weight and give up smoking - 2 perfect eco friendly resolutions!

Every New Year there are thousands of people vowing to give up smoking and lose weight for the new year - so why not do it for real this time rather than just putting in a little bit of effort in front of the friends!

We know the reason we manage to eat a bit healthier in January is because we have eaten so much junk over the winter that we would rather not face another strawberry trifle or fried leftovers! 

And the symbolic start of the new year makes us decide that it’s a good time to be a bit healthier - but when you go back to work and the month end bills start to come through after the longest month of the year - it virtually always has 5 Fridays - you are stressed enough to just keep on smoking!

So why not make these 2 count seriously towards your new eco friendly lifestyle for 2010.

Losing Weight:
This has 2 sides to it’s eco benefit; eating less and exercising more, so lets look at these in detail.

Eating Less - we all know that we buy, cook and eat much more food than we need - and much of the food isn’t nutritious enough to make a difference.  So by restricting your meal size and number of meals, you can reduce the pressure on farmers and local stores to grow so much in the first place.

The food has to be grown and transported to the stores too which uses valuable energy and petrol or gas as well.  In a larger scale example the advantages become clear: if the average person buys 20 sprouts from the store, and a lorry from the farm can only fit in 1000 sprouts in it’s hopper - that means one journey feeds 50 families. 

But what if each of your 3 dinner guests only really eats 5 sprouts each and you throw the leftover 5 away?  That means that that lorry carried 250 sprouts for nothing.  And if people only brought what they actually ate - that original lorry could have fed nearly 67 families (17 more than before).

And who says we should be eating until we are stuffed anyway?  Buy less, eat less, waste less.

Exercising More- Clearly, if you are exercising more then you may well be walking or cycling a lot more than before - both of which have massive eco benefits.

By spending more time out of your car, you are saving on fuel and emissions - but you are also making your local area richer.  If you visit local parks and other amenities you are making them worth keeping and maintaining - and you could become involved in local projects.

And by taking a bit longer to get somewhere or exploring somewhere in closer detail you could become a bit more knowledgeable of local species and habitats - and even see places, buildings or wildlife that you haven’t seen before (as you fly at 50 mph down the link road!).

Also, more exercise will make you a healthier person, delaying the signs of aging and reducing your need for routine medications and treatments - all saving you and the community money and energy.  Which leads us on to the other resolution….

Stop Smoking:
Not only is smoking bad for your health on it’s own, it is also bad for your health in terms of the reduction in exercise your may well be having due to being so out of breath.  It has been scientifically proved that smoking causes lung damage - and your lungs are what helps you to be active and exercise more.

However, buying you cigarettes is a never-ending job.  Unless you are a very light smoker or stretch out your roll-ups beyond the meanest student - you will be having to visit a store several times a week.  Smokers never seem to buy them in bulk, they go back and forth all the time, just buying another 20. and I bet the don’t always walk there?

The packaging, the transport, the ingredients - all bad for the environment and your body.  So make an appointment with a hypnotist and get over it!

There are many other ways to help improve your eco friendly lifestyle - so maybe instead of New Year resolutions - have New Month resolutions where you can improve your lifestyle throughout the year!

How can a plant seeds when I can’t even see my garden!

Like many people, I am hoping to start planting some seeds in my garden shortly - but the ground is frozen, and under about 3 inches of snow!

I also have some plants that I want to tend to as well, but they are still covered in the white stuff!

It has been several weeks now since I have been able to even think about getting back out into the garden to check on things already out there and getting ready for the new seasons crops and plants.

Just before the ‘big freeze’ there was a period of wet weather, and primroses, daisies and buttercups were all flowering in my garden at the end of November - I dread to think what they will look like when this snow all melts - and whether they will have the energy to flower again by March!

Problems In The Garden:
Well, I should be out there pruning back some of last years branches and shoots as well as clearing old leaves but that is going to have to wait - as is turning the compost!  I tried to do this before the new year, but it was too heavy with all the snow, and then clearing it a bit actually melted the snow turning it into a huge pile of slush - washing away some of the nutrients I had packed inside!

The thought of digging out the beds for the early potatoes is not sounding too appealing either - and I have been putting off adding the manure as I can’t face driving all the way to the stable yard in this terrible weather.  My driveway is still snowed in - so I am sure the access to a private yard won’t be faring much better!

The weight of the snow on my greenhouse has moved some of the panes downwards into the gutters leaving gaps in the roof - and I noticed a new crack in one.  I can’t attempt to slide them back into place when the temperatures are so low as I may well end up cracking another!  And my footing isn’t going to be the best!

My ceramic water butt has all but frozen over, so I am relying on my plastic one on the other side of the garden to keep things going.  I have had to completely rearrange my porch and spare room window sill to take on all of my early seeds and delicate plants.

Cold Weather Gardening Tips:
There are however, a few things you can do to take the edge off the worst of the weather for your seedlings and garden plants, and they include making things warmer (or not as cold as usual), changing varieties and changing locations.

Use a mulch to keep the ground from freezing.  If you have built up a nice layer of mulch (possibly using the leaves that you are only just starting to clear up), the actual earth your plants are going to be sown in will be just that little bit warmer than the ‘new’ surface, which should help them start out.

Use heat lamps or heat pads if the temperature is too low for your plants to get started.  I have just begun to use a low level low-energy heat pad in my porch where I can have many plants resting part on it and therefore giving them that extra warmth they are not yet getting from the sun!

Sow less seeds at a time to increase your chances of germination.  By only sowing a few seeds every few days, you are staggering your growth needs and therefore giving each seed more of a chance to do well. 

If you sow 50 seeds at the same time they will all need care and attention - and heating - at the same time almost guaranteeing a heavy loss if conditions don’t improve.  Whereas sowing only 5 every 3rd day or so will mean that each batch will get 100% of your attention as it grows.  The first 5 will be nice a warm and germinating before you move them aside to start the next batch.  This also means that your flowers or vegetables won’t all flower and fruit at the same time - perfect for a longer season!

Change varieties to make the most of the cold.  There are many varieties of flowers and vegetables that will do better in these cold and wet conditions (when the snow melts there is going to be a lot of water in the ground).  Make sure that you use these instead of particularly fussy varieties that are going to take up a lot of your time and energy growing - if they don’t fail you.

The Next Few Months:
The weather isn’t looking like it’s going to get much warmer over the next few weeks - so be prepared for a hard time through to February.

And, if your garden plants aren’t doing so well, then why not consider planting some wildflower seed this year.  By selecting native and local wild flowers for your garden - you will be giving them the best start in life.  They are hardy little things and will no doubt look great in the spring - just as they will carpet your local woods and parks in the wild.

Nature has a way of getting things moving - and plants that have evolved for years to live in your area will be no exception.  They need little help to grow, will suit your garden perfectly and will attract plenty of birds and insects for the summer!

With the recent bad weather across most of the northern hemisphere - should we stay home?

I haven’t left my place apart from to go for a great walk through the woods and a walk to the local store - so what did you do - and could it have caused problems for others?

There is an argument for both sides really, but which is more eco friendly?

The Case For Staying Home:
For a start, you will be one less car on the road in the way of other important people or vehicles that need to use the roads.  Many people like doctors, vets, firemen, police, grit lorry drivers, petrol tankers, grocery vans and ambulances that need to use the roads all day and at any time. 

So what would you do if you had got stuck on ice on a slip road and were now holding up one or more of the above people?  Stopping valuable staff from doing their job when you were only off out to do a bit of shopping or to visit a friend?

You would also be one more person that local services would have to worry about.  For example on 1 road in the UK earlier this week, there was a reported 25 mile tailback in the snow.  All those people were stranded in the freezing cold and the emergency services, local hotels and recovery drivers were now having to work overtime and through the night to help them all - and I bet all 25 miles wasn’t filled with doctors and food supplies?

And talking of medical care - if you went out and injured yourself on ice or through a car accident - you are adding to the pressures that emergency services are already facing.  If you can’t get to town in the bad conditions - what makes you think that nurses can either?  So more injuries and less nurses is really only going to mean longer waits and over-worked staff. 

The same goes for any other business as well.  Just because you managed to get yourself to a store, it doesn’t mean they will be able to offer you their best service, as they may also be short-staffed or have deliveries that cannot make it to the store due to accidents etc.

The Case For Going Out:
If you are one of the services that keep everyone else going then yes, you should try to get to work.  Hopefully all the non-essential journeys have ceased and so the roads should be clearer and safer for people like yourself to get through.

Also, many small businesses couldn’t function without their staff, and so struggling in to work could be the only option for some people. 

Imagine if everyone stopped going to work on the same day - countries would come to a standstill as no energy would be available, no need food would arrive in stores - and if it did, there would be noone there to sell it.  No gas, no gritters, no ambulances……….

People need to go to work in these terrible conditions - but think about who you are before deciding, as it’s not about how important you think your journey is, it’s about how important you know your job is.

Many eco friendly people will live near to where they work anyway - so a walk to work in the cold is going to be a million times better than a drive anywhere - and less of a drain on society during these hard times!

The Answer:
Stretched resources or reduced services? Neither is better than the other if you have to get to work - but there is a clear winner if you are not needed anywhere.

People not working, on a day off or who can work from home are the ones that can make a real difference in this whole thing.  By limiting their impact on the outside world during this stressful and very cold time, they can make all the difference to those who don’t have a choice.

So wrap up warm and go visit your elderly neighbours today - or snuggle up in front of the TV and watch a good movie instead.

Seriously, just taking your kids to a toy store could make presents more expensive next year!

I don’t mean the normal cost of demand or an increase in the cost of material - I mean that prices have to go up to account for the behaviour or your kids - or more importantly - You.

How A Toy Store Works:
Like all businesses it runs on a balance or 3 main things: the cost of buying in the toys in the first place, the cost of staff and the cost of the rent and bills on the shop.  These 3 must be less than the total money that goes into the till - leaving a profit (hopefully).

If any of these 3 things costs too much - the store isn’t worth opening every day so something has to give - and it’s normally the price you pay.

So, based on the short time I worked in a toy store, here are the 2 ways you can help to keep these costs down - and therefore, the cost of your toys!

The Products Themselves:
When you buy a toy, the store make a profit on the difference between what they paid for it in the first place and what you paid for it to take it home.  So, if they buy a wooden toy for £1 and you buy it for £3, they make £2, right?

Well, not always.  You see, they may well buy 100 wooden toys (costing them £100) to sell for a total of £300 - but if 10 of those are accidently broken by children playing with them roughly - the store has lost £20 profit plus the £10 to buy them, so each remaining toy will only be worth £2.70 each.

Imagine this multiplied up by all their products on display (my store had over 1000 different products) and on the more expensive items.  That’s a lot of money being lost by the store because your child accidentally tore the packaging of something, or burst something else when you weren’t looking.

So, the answer is only let your children play with the display models (those that the store has singled out for everyone to play with) - therefore limiting the number of manhandled products to one of each.

Don’t let your children eat food while visiting a toy store as a chocolaty finger on a furry puppet is not what the store were hoping for - as you aren’t going to buy it and neither will anyone else!

And also - don’t leave your kids in a toy store while you stay outside talking to friends or are on your cell - as they can do a lot of damage in just a few short minutes alone!!!!

Too Many Staff:
As a result of the number of people who do leave their kids alone in toy stores - the store manager needs to employ a larger number of staff to keep an eye on them all to limit the damage they cause!

Most toys in our store were for 3+ but of course children under 3 can’t read that so they pick them up and snap bits off - off more commonly lick or bite them.  And quite a lot of ours were filled with liquid!

If the store is having to employ more staff than say a shoe store would need, then their overheads become higher, and higher overheads means less profit.

And stores want more profit, but they can’t have less staff - so they raise their prices!

Less Rent:
The only real way to lower your rent is going to be bad for business.  It is either going to be moving to a smaller store (so they will have less products), moving to a less busy street or smaller mall (so less customers will visit) or going totally online (so you have to advertise your site).

None of these are good for you as a customer either.  If they have a smaller store - you have less choice for your children’s toys and gifts; if they move to a less popular street or mall - you have further to walk to find them, if at all; and if they move online - your kids won’t be able to play with the toys at all until you buy them!

Less Waste:
Don’t forget that all the toys that can’t be sold - whether they are broken or not - will be thrown away.  What a total waste! 

Even if it is just the packaging that’s torn - the product can’t be sold on the shelf.  Some stores would use it as display model, but not all of them.

And, the more that get broken before making it to a home - the more that need to be made in the first place!

So, next time you visit a toy store - hold on to your kids and save money - and you will also be saving those resources!