Welcome back, earth lovers! 🌎

I know many of you have been following our journey here at Go For Zero since day one—and wow, has it been quite the journey! From my early days in my spare bedroom to now, our mission has always been to Do Good for you and our planet. So I wanted to take you back to memory lane about how we started and what we achieved. So whether you’re new here or you’ve been with us since the beginning, here’s a fresh look at what makes Go For Zero tick.

Where it all started...my personal struggle

It all began when my daughter Grace was born. She would break out in rashes and cry for hours after using everyday products, and I felt helpless. Determined to help her, I started looking into the ingredients, and I was shocked by what I found. I spent days researching everything in our home—cleaning products, toothpaste, shampoo—and I couldn’t believe the harsh chemicals allowed in our everyday products. 

It was a real eye-opener and I felt betrayed and angry. I grew up in a small family owned business where the customer is everything, so I couldn’t understand why companies would put our health at risk.

But that research gave me the knowledge and the fire to do something about it. I knew I needed to create a company that would do things differently—one that was honest, transparent, researched, and truly cared about who is using the products as well as the impact on our planet.

And that’s how Go For Zero was born.

From the most “ugly” pop-up store to Australia's leading zero-waste store.

I still laugh when I see the picture of my first pop-up store—hahaha! You can tell I started this from a place of deep passion, without much care for how things looked. My goal was to find out if I was the only one who needed products without single-use plastic and harsh ingredients.

No matter how “ugly” that shop was, it took off. I know—it’s hard to believe, but it did! That success gave me the confidence to invest my savings into setting up an online store.

While I have a background in International Retail Strategy, I had no idea about marketing or web design, nor had I ever seen a supplier contract. It was a very steep learning curve, filled with tears along the way and highs that reminded me why I started this journey in the first place. The fire in my belly kept me pushing forward, determined to create something aligned with all my values and make my business a force for good. 

It Feels Good to Do Good

My mission has always been do Do Good. Every product we offer is carefully researched and chosen to be 100% safe, toxin-free, packaged sustainably, and founded by passionate Australian and New Zealand families. We believe that every conscious choice, no matter how small, can make a huge difference.

Giving Back: The Impact of $1

Giving back to the community is a cause close to my heart. Once we were in a position to afford it, partnering with I=Change, a transparent donation program, was an easy decision. It lets you see exactly who we support and how much we contribute.

We turn every online order into a chance to make a real impact by donating $1 from each sale to an Aussie project of your choice with i=Change. Here’s a little peek into the projects we support: 

• Feeding Aussies in Crisis: Our donations have allowed us to donate 45,000 meals to Aussies in need through Food Bank.
• Cleaning up our oceans: Our donations to Seabin have allowed them to clean up 28,000 kg of plastic and debris from our oceans. 
• Restoring native land: By donating to Greening Australia, we have planted 19,000 trees so far too.

It makes me tear up to see these numbers as I never thought we would be able to make such a big impact through our donations. This is only because you believe in our mission so thank you so much for being on this journey with us!

Want to track our impact? Head to the i=Change tracker to see how we make waves together.

Aussie & NZ Owned Brands

During my zero-waste journey, I tried many eco-friendly products from around the world. However, it made me question whether shipping toothpaste tablets from the UK to Australia was truly sustainable. Why not support a smaller brand closer to home with the same mission to save the planet?

That’s why, when I launched Go For Zero, I made a commitment to prioritise local. We focus on supporting Australian and New Zealand-owned brands, reducing shipping emissions, and creating jobs for families ... like ours.

Toxin-Free Ingredients, Always

Because my daughter has such sensitive skin, the products we stock have always been carefully chosen with clean ingredients since day one. Every product we carry is thoroughly researched and certified toxin-free according to the strictest standards of the Environmental Working Group (EWG).

This means our products are safe for your skin, your family, and the planet. We've done the hard work for you, so you can shop with confidence and peace of mind.

Sustainable Packaging Matters

Saying “no” to single-use plastic packaging whenever we can is part of our promise. Our products come in reusable, home compostable, or easily recyclable materials like glass and aluminium, which can be recycled infinitely without losing quality. We're continually working with our suppliers to think greener, and our packaging reflects that commitment.

Proudly Certified B Corp

In December 2022, we officially became a Certified B Corporation (YAY!) — a proud moment for our team and community! Go For Zero holds the highest overall B Impact Score of any eco-store in Australia (98.3!), a score that shows our commitment to honesty, transparency, and positive impact.

Plastic-Free Shipping from Us to You

We pack and send every order with zero plastic: recycled boxes, compostable postage labels, plastic-free wrap, and water-activated paper tape are just a few of our zero-waste moves. This makes it as easy as possible for you to recycle, reuse, or compost everything that arrives at your door.

Going Carbon Positive with Trace

This might not be at the top of your mind, but online stores need to take responsibility for the emissions they create. At Go For Zero, we are carbon positive by partnering with Trace  by offsetting more carbon than we produce. Trace calculates our emissions, and together, we invest in projects that restore biodiversity and generate clean energy worldwide. Some of our offset projects include:

• Restoring bushland biodiversity in Australia
• Community wind farms in Taiwan
• Forest replanting efforts across Mozambique, Indonesia, Kenya, Haiti, and more

TerraCycle: Recycling Beyond the Basics

While you can find your daily essentials at Go For Zero without waste, not all companies are there yet, so we are happy to take certain hard-to-recycle waste for those items that seem impossible to recycle. We work with organisations such as TerraCycle and Aussie Breadtags for Wheelchairs to give them a new life! You can send or drop off hard-to-recycle items to our Kunda Park warehouse. We sort it, and when we have a huge amount, we send it off to be recycled correctly. Each shipment we send to TerraCycle earns us points that are converted into money that we donate to support planet-positive causes.

So far, we've donated to eight organisations (and counting!), including Clean Up Australia, Sea Shepherd Australia, and Ten Little Pieces.

Thank you!

If you’ve read this far, thanks for taking the time to re-learn about us and our mission! I wanted to keep this blog short but that did not work hahaha.

I'm so grateful to have a community that’s as passionate about the planet as we are. Here’s to more eco-journeys, conscious choices, and a zero-waste future — together. 

If you enjoyed this week's happy Earth news, we know you'll just love our full library of stories waiting to warm your eco heart,  you can find them here!

Until next week,

Much love! 
Ellie & GFZ family 💚