Thirty -something well determined to advance the world in the right direction, Johanna Le Mau created a few years ago the very first zero waste Nantes grocery store: Ô Bocal. Since then, she has distilled good products and good advice there, often in short circuit and always with enthusiasm.
Tell us about your journey ...
I just was 30 years old and I created O Bocal following the succession of lots of small clicks that are both personal and professional. 6 years ago, I realized that I did not flourish in my work, that I was no longer a phase with my personal aspirations. I tried to make sense in my life by engaging in different associations, including Disco Soup which fights against food waste.
Little by little, I got closer to the zero waste lifestyle and I discovered the principle of 5 R: refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle, rot (refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle and compost in French) created by Béa Johnson. It answered a constant annoyance in my house: I was tired of throwing the trash cans. After starting to compost my peelings, I realized that the bulk of my waste was packaging.
How was the idea of Ô Bocal born?
It’s crazy to tell yourself that you sometimes spend more time unpacking and throwing plastics - that don't necessarily contain good things - than to eat and have fun. While for me, food is essential! I grew up next to Saint-Brieuc, we had a vegetable garden, we picked up the beans to make preserves, my father went to fishing ... So there was a real conscience of taste and products, but these habits completely disappeared when I moved to Nantes. I believe that this experience speaks to many people and explains why there are so many of us today wanting to regain control of our consumption. With a friend, also a member of Disco Soup, we were convinced that the bulk was one of the answers to this problem. Except that at the time, stores without packaging were rare: there were two in France, including one in Bordeaux. We decided to go and see how it went there, then continued our research in Germany.
When did you launch the project?
In 2014, the idea of creating a zero waste grocery store in downtown Nantes was born. At the start, we also wanted to create a tea room which would serve as a place of exchange to highlight all the values that revolve around this movement, as do it yourself for example. But obviously in 2014, it was still a niche sector, so we encountered several constraints. It was not easy to find funds, nor a place large enough to accommodate both the grocery store and the living room. When we finally found a space, we therefore favored grocery store.
We opened in 2016 and built our network little by little. The grocery store is certified organic and we work with 130 producers, more than 80 of which are locally and most often live. In four years we have grown up a lot and this year we have moved! The grocery store has expanded with a selling surface twice as large and we transformed the old address into drugstore. If we already offered utensils such as straws, jars, gourds, toothbrushes etc. In our first shop, the democratization of zero waste lifestyle allows us today to reach more people. Bulk is increasingly convinced consumers and manufacturers; We will be able to highlight more ranges and products!
Was it easy to set up such a project?
We had to fight a little! But anyway, entrepreneurship is like that: it is an emotional elevator. You have to focus on successes and solidarity. We, for example, to find new producers, we rely on our network. They tell us about neighbors, friends who do a good job, they exchange methods etc. In fact, we optimize everything, together. For me, these food curls that rely on local organic and seasonal players, it is the future of food!
We can also see it in the growing number of professional conversions in this sector. We all want more and more to make sense of what we do, to find a link between men and products.
How was the initiative received locally?
When we started, we especially saw convinced of zero waste crossing our door. But little by little, we saw the people in the neighborhood arriving, because we were the only alternative to the downtown food chains & shops. And then, our approach and the simplicity of the gestures of the Anti Gaspi attracted new curious people. We also have the advantage of offering lots of products that can go in addition to producer markets. We find everything here, basic products for all areas of the house: food or not. We simplify the races a lot and we adapt to the needs of our customers! We are a real local business, and carry a lot of values. For example we are also at the initiative of a neighborhood composter!
You also organize workshops, for what purpose?
I am a slow food member, so good, clean and just, it is close to my heart! I find it essential to bring everyone around the table to think of the food of tomorrow, together. Suddenly every other month, we organize meetings between producers and customers, we do tastings, we discuss. We also try to go out on the farm two or three times a year. And other months, we offer practical workshops around zero waste to learn and share techniques, tips & tricks!
What surprises you the most?
More and more people are adopting this lifestyle and make it known on social networks; It’s a powerful gesture. We say Waouh I am not alone in my approach and then it conveys a vision of zero waste which is not a step back, but just common sense, with its solutions and its recipes.
And your greatest pride?
To see that the way of life, for which we were sometimes regarded a little strangely, is now understood, adopted and advocated by people from the whole world.
Even foreign tourists know ô jar and come to shop during their vacation in Nantes. I am also very proud to have received the Talent Entrepreneur Prize youth category & the Ecovisional Prize Category Entrepreneur.
References to recommend for those who would like to get started?
The Bible for me is Béa Johnson's book: Zero Waste Home. Another big crush is the works of the zero waste family: they offer content for parents and children. And I also recommend that I follow two bloggers: @Luizzati, who has taken a ride of the zero waste world and @lilyfairly Zero Waste feminist blogger!
And a souvenir in a jar?
Buckwheat flour. For three reasons: this is a nod to my Breton origins, it is one of the products that I found really cool to buy in my jar. And then I still remember the first sale of flour here. This is my nostalgic combo of the jar!