While promoting our book, The Eco-nomical Baby Guide, I have been on the phone with eco-friendly baby shops around the country.  Inevitably, this leads to an impassioned discussion about cloth diapering, but it’s even more exciting when I find an institution like The Frog Shop. Corinne and Heidi Britt have developed a thriving green business by selling secondhand clothes, cloth diapers, natural toys, and much more.  If you’ve ever thought about opening your own consignment shop or you’re a happy secondhand shopper, read on for inspiration!

What was your vision when you started The Frog Shop?

My partner Corinne and I have six kids between us. When our older kids were young, we used to buy and sell at consignment stores to save money, to recycle the items our children outgrew, and because it was fun – like treasure hunting.

In 2009, there were no children’s consignment stores in our current hometown, so it seemed like the right time to open one ourselves, but we wanted The Frog Shop to be more than just a store. We wanted it to be community hub for families.

How do you incorporate community service into your business plan?

The very nature of The Frog Shop is community service. All of the unsold consignment items that aren’t picked up by the seller are donated to one of about half a dozen local charities in town. These include clothing closets and organizations for teen moms.

Our biggest community service effort, of course, was our creation of the Parent Resource Association of Merced (PRAM). Through PRAM we refer families to various resources in the community, and we hold events for kids from low-income families (like our annual free pictures with Santa event in December, and free face painting during any downtown events).

Even though I’ve never been there, I love imagining what the atmosphere must be in The Frog Shop.  Some women breastfeeding, families searching for recycled garments, others discussing the details of cloth diapering.  Do you have such a place in your city?  Stay tuned for our second post on The Frog Shop later this week.