What does sustainable living actually look like in the suburbs — in places designed around cars, convenience, and big box shopping?

Laura Newton is the founder of The Kind Matter Company, a Canadian eco-boutique and refill store focused on low waste living, eco friendly products, and non-toxic household essentials. What began as a personal search for safer products after her daughter developed severe allergies has grown into a retail business built around making sustainable living more accessible for everyday families.

Kind Matter now has multiple locations across Ontario, including a flagship store in Mississauga’s Heartland Town Centre — a typical suburban shopping plaza where refillable products, Canadian brands, and plastic-free options sit alongside everyday errands.

This conversation explores how refill stores and low waste shopping fit into suburban life, what customers are actually looking for, and how eco friendly products become part of real, everyday routines — without requiring a complete lifestyle overhaul.

Takeaways

• Why accessibility is one of the biggest barriers to sustainable living and low waste living
• What customers are most curious — and hesitant — about when they first encounter refill stores and refill systems
• Why cleaning products are often the gateway into refilling and eco friendly home swaps
• How placing refill shops inside suburban shopping plazas changes everyday shopping habits
• The role Canadian and women-owned brands play in Kind Matter’s product curation
• The importance of community-focused sustainability and local shopping in suburban areas

Connect With Laura

The Kind Matter Company

Terra Greenhouses

Products Mentioned

Birch Babe

Cheekbone Beauty

The Bare Home

Notice Hair Co. (see in store)

Routine Cream (see in store)

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Sustainable in the Suburbs is mixed and edited by Cardinal Studio

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