Blogmento

Dry Cleaner of the Week: Arya Cleaners in San Diego!

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 00:12:29 +0000

We are proud to have Arya Cleaners in the great San Diego area as our dry cleaner of the week! They do many things to help the environment, including using sustainable and reusable garment bags such as The Green Garmento :)

They have been family owned since 1986. With free pick up and delivery and 24/7 automated kiosks, they are considered one of the top quality dry cleaners of San Diego county. They also use environmentally safe cleaning products called Sanitone which are recommended by famous designers such as Evan Picone and Eddie Bauer.

Check out their website HERE or stop by any of their 6 convenient locations!

Thank you Arya Cleaners for all that you do to help this great planet we live in!

Green Funny = Green Money!

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 20:35:15 +0000

So if there is one thing we love here at The Green Garmento (besides helping the planet) it's photos of our awesome customers enjoying their reusable bags! So we have brainstormed a way to combine the two AND give out rewards to the most creative ones. That's why we have come up with a new and fun contest for you called "Green Funny = Green Money"

This is what we want you to do:

1. Take a photo with you and your Green Garmento in a creative or funny way (please be tasteful)

2. Post it on your Twitter Feed or on our Facebook timeline.

3. Tag us and put your local dry cleaners info (name, location etc) in the discription.

4. Your done....now relax!

Our staff will look over all the submitions and every month we will pick the best one. That lucky person will recieve $20 towards their dry cleaning! That's right! We will contact the local dry cleaner you provided and give them $20 towards your tab. Pretty awesome right?

Here is a great photo example from our friends at Eco Clean in Austin TX

Be creative, tag us and above all...HAVE FUN! :)

Dry Cleaner of the Week: EcoClean in Austin TX!

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 00:07:09 +0000

Eco Clean has served the Austin area with non-toxic professional garment cleaning and wash and fold laundry service since 1966! Their wet cleaning process is gentler than hand washing and effective on a full range of garments, without the use of dangerous dry cleaning chemicals like "perc" that have harmful effects on human health and the environment. And according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, wet cleaning is the safest professional method of garment cleaning available!

They use biodegradable detergents that protect fabrics and leave clothes soft and clean with no chemical odors or residue. Once cleaned, clothes are professionally hand-finished by a team of master pressers. These guys know what's up! We are proud to have them as our dry cleaner of the week!

Check their website out HERE :)

Or contact them on any of these social media platforms:

twitter.com/ecocleanaustin

facebook.com/ecocleanaustin

Do Something ... Anything

Sun, 18 Mar 2012 21:05:49 +0000

LOS ANGELES — The editorial director forAmerican Drycleaner asked if I’d write this month’s column to match up with one of the edition’s themes: energy efficiency.

“Sure,” I said, “I devote my life to being energy-efficient—although my wife more often refers to it as lazy.” I will admit to keeping the remotes when we get new cable TV boxes so I don’t need to expend the energy just looking for a single remote when there are two in the room. In the summer, we continually feed our dog treats so we can use his tail as a fan.

And I do save the need to fly to Florida by having my wife’s mom live with us. There’s a downside to it: no matter how cold we keep the house in the winter, she doesn’t talk about moving out. Her stride’s a little slower; could be age, may be frostbite.

And, yes, I drive a Prius. No, not to drag race or because ugly is the new black, but because the thing drives OK and once you start saving a couple hundred dollars a month on gas, you get addicted. It’s like a gateway drug to going solar—just how much can I save. I start to look at my bills each month, looking to get this month’s costs lower than last month’s costs lower than the month before that. Seeing a light on when no one’s in the room does make me twitch a little.

Each month I get more and more invoices electronically, pay more bills by check without actually writing one, have conferences with potential partners and buyers without leaving my computer. I am a walking, talking energy-efficiency specialist, though my wife would rather see me walk more and talk less, and burn some more calories, and she’s right on that one.

Can I put together an article about how people can be more energy-efficient? How about I offer just a single piece of advice. This week, get something off your plate. If you’re like me, you keep a mental or written list about all the projects you want to do, all the different things you are hell-bent on accomplishing.

Pick one. Whether it’s calling the painter to refresh your exterior, buying the new dryers, updating your company website or seeking out a new accountant, choose a to-do item and do it.

I talk to people all the time who describe being completely overwhelmed with the litany of tasks they need to accomplish. They spend so much time—and so much energy—talking about their mountain of responsibilities, the mountain only gets bigger and bigger. Procrastination may, on its surface, look like the act of doing nothing, but it requires a great deal of thought: thinking about the things you want to do or need to get done but you’re not doing.

If you look at my Facebook profile, it tells you my college major was procrastination. I don’t think I picked my major until after I graduated. But as I’ve aged, I realize procrastination is, shockingly, the biggest internal energy-waster there is. Most of us spend more time agonizing about how we have to put our tax materials together than actually putting our tax materials together.

So yes, I can write a column about being more energy-efficient. You can change your light bulbs, you can put timers on your electronics, you can be more fuel-efficient… but if efficiency is also about getting things done faster, easier and with less stress, it’s not all about electricity and reducing waste, it’s also about making your life more efficient.

Now you’ll have to excuse me, there’s some Halloween candy I have to throw out.

Originally posted on American Drycleaner.

San Francisco Mayor Steps To The Plate

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 21:06:10 +0000

"The intent was never to nickel or dime anybody," mayor Ed Lee said. "But if it takes 10 cents to remind somebody that their habits are in their control, I think that's something we're willing to consider doing."

This is was the mayors response to the press when asked about reasons behind the stricter ban of plastic bags in San Francisco. The proposal calls for extending the city's 2007 ban on plastic bags beyond large grocery stores and chain pharmacies to gift shops, hardware stores, boutiques and all other retailers in October. Also this would effect all restaurants next year in the bay area. Additionally the ban would require businesses to charge a 10 cents for all other bags such as recyclable paper bags, compostable bags etc.

Ultimately the goal is to get shoppers to stop using single-use plastic bags, which pollute the bay and ocean, clog sewers and recycling machines, harm wildlife, and add waste to the landfill. This is the same goal for most city bans in the US. The intent is to help the environment and not to make extra money, although the stores will be able to pocket the dimes if customers cannot break their bad habits.

Although some might think this ban is for every item purchased at these stores, it not. The proposed law includes exemptions from the surcharge and from the ban on plastic for bags used to hold such goods as loose nails, dry cleaning, bulk candy and nuts, fresh flowers, meat and fish. These are items which are understandably need to be contained and separated, and this is not easy without disposable plastic. In addition, there will be a closer look at items too large to necessarily fit in reusable bags such as pillows and large pieces of artwork etc.

This is a huge step in the right direction for San Francisco which was the first city to impose a plastic bag ban in the nation! Something tells us the initial ban was not being taken seriously. Maybe now it will be.

Even the plastic bags agree.

Read full article HERE

Plastic bag bans haven't caught on

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:58:51 +0000

We stumbled upon this article about "The Great Plastic Bag Ban" debate. Feel free to respond to us and tell us your thoughts!

INSERT:

The old-fashioned tumbleweeds that long exemplified empty, desolate places have been replaced by a new symbol of blight: urban tumbleweeds -- lightweight plastic bags that get snagged in trees and bushes, pile up in streets, clog drainage systems and endanger wildlife.

A growing number of world leaders consider the bags an environmental hazard and are taking action to eliminate them.

Seattle, Portland, Ore., and several California cities are among the latest cities to ban the bags, following more than two dozen others that paved the way since 2007.

Austin is poised to vote to become the biggest Texas city with a ban. Brownsville enacted the state's first last year.

"We got along without plastic bags for a very long time," Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell has said, adding that he realizes that many people like the bags and properly use them. "I can actually remember a time in my lifetime when we didn't have plastic bags at all.

"It can be done."

Read full article HERE

Hilltop Cleaners Great Green Food Truck Event & Toy/Clothing Drive

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 23:13:13 +0000

We will be holding a large gourmet food truck/charity event this Friday the 16th at Hilltop Cleaners in Encino CA from 11:30am-2:30pm. The following food trucks will be there : The Grilled Cheese truck, India Jones Chow truck and Lake St Creamery. We are also accepting any toys or clothes for donations to a variety of charities. There will be coupon and prize give aways as well! Don't miss this awesome event!

Event: Hilltop Cleaners (Next to Gelson's)

16422 Ventura Blvd

Encino CA 91436

1(818) 501-2266

The Situation on Jay Leno/GTL Blooper Sale! (VIDEO)

Sat, 10 Dec 2011 22:18:23 +0000

This week The Situation was on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and made a couple bloopers when they brought our his GTL Green Garmento. To celebrate, we're giving you the rare chance to get TWO GTL bags for only $19.99! Just click here to buy, but check out our "pop-up"-style video first... it puts things in perspective!

Bugging Out!

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 22:05:36 +0000

Who wouldn't want to sit down at their favorite restaurant, order a nice bottle of aged Pinot Noir, an appetizer of fine cheeses, and a large steaming entree of water beetles? YUM!?? As much as that sounds disgusting to most people, some insects can actually be quite good for you. They are sustainable and packed with protein and nutrients. This article brings up good points about how insects could be a common cuisine of the future instead of just a delicacy in certain parts of the world. I'm gonna go eat some shrimp now...(the bug of the sea)

One of Chicago's leading Eco Cleaner's, Drive Cleaning show's how they use The Green Garmento™

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 20:10:41 +0000

Drive Cleaning of Chicago offers 100% Eco-Friendly Dry Cleaning with FREE Pick-up and Delivery! Plus they use Green Garmento! Check out this video explaining what they are all about!

You made the Delorean electric? DOCK!!!!!

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 19:57:11 +0000

We all (hopefully) remember the great "Back To The Future" franchise. I remember staying up countless nights wearing blue jeans, a puffy vest, flannel shirt, and ray bans while trying to get my skateboard to hover. And that was just last week! Now that Halloween is upon us, there is nothing I would rather do than play dress up "McFly" style and roll up to the party in my brand new electric Delorean! Because time travel doesn't need to leave a carbon footprint! The only downside is losing the flaming tire tracks. Although I shouldn't be going that fast in a residential area with all the trick or treating around...so I'm ok with it for now. I'll be satisfied knowing that my sweet DMC isn't harming the earth. In fact, it's changing it. And it's not changing it in a "let's get a sports almanac, travel back in time, and bet on the winning teams to become filthy rich!" kind of way. No this way is much cooler because without our planet, time and money wouldn't matter. Now if I could only get a big enough charger for my flux capacitor...hmmmm. Read the article HERE.

Plastic Bag Ban in Palm Desert?

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 21:07:14 +0000

Imagine this. You are driving on your way home or perhaps on vacation on a desert highway. The sunset colors soak the wildlife with contrast and beauty. Your favorite music is playing on your ipod, providing the soundtrack to compliment this stunning scenery. A cool breeze brushes through your hair and your fingertips tap the steering wheel to the beat of the song . This is the perfect drive...or is it? You take a closer look. Wait a minute...are all these bushes sponsored by supermarkets???

Palm Desert Councilman Bill Kroonen knows this scenario well. He asked the city staff to look into plastic bag bans elsewhere and to see if one could be enacted there in Palm Desert.

“I threw that idea out there, hoping it would catch on, and I'm delighted it has with the sustainability commission,” he said. He said the idea came to him when he saw plastic bags caught in the brush and rocks of undeveloped desert in the northern part of the city, near Walmart. If the council decides to move forward with a ban, it will go back to the sustainability committee so it can hash out the details of the ordinance.

Cheers to you Bill! We hope Palm Desert will make the change and preserve itself!

Read the article here.

International Drycleaning Franchise Giant Martinizing Announces Plan To Reduce Single-Use Plastic Waste With Reusable Garment Bags From The Green Garmento™

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 20:07:34 +0000

America’s largest drycleaning franchise with over 240 stores, Martinizing Dry Cleaners, has a new ‘green’ initiative: reducing their single-use plastic through a partnership with reusable drycleaning bag company, The Green Garmento™.

Martinizing Marketing Manager Tom Moehringer explains, “We view reusable bags to be the next step forward from single-use plastic packaging. Now our franchisees have access to The Green Garmento™, which is incredibly user friendly, has such strong customer satisfaction, while improving our franchisees’ bottom lines. We’re proud to include the Garmento bags in our growing roster of sustainable products and services.”

Every year, 1.4 billion pieces of clothing are drycleaned and over 300 million pounds of single-use plastic garment covers clog US waterways and landfills, threatening marine and wildlife. This significant move from Martinizing will significantly lessen their carbon footprint.

“It’s been a great collaboration,” says Green Garmento president Jennie Nigrosh. “Martinizing is clearly leading the way with their operational solutions and our four-in-one bag fits right in with their ‘green’ business model.”

About Martinizing Dry Cleaners:

Martinizing Dry Cleaners has long been synonymous with innovation: in 1949, the company revolutionized the industry with its introduction of on-premise drycleaning made possible with Henry Martin’s better and safer cleaning solvent. Today the company continues to lead with its commitment to bettering the environment.

About The Green Garmento™:

The Green Garmento was introduced to drycleaners and consumers in 2008 as an eco-organizational solution. With two hamper functions, it serves as a laundry bag for drycleaning, transforms into a duffel bag to be carried to the drycleaner, and morphs into a hanging garment bag for cleaned clothes. The bags help drycleaners reduce packaging waste and save money, while they help consumers reduce closet clutter and battles with twist-ties, shoulder covers and single-use garment plastic.

30 Million Plastic Bags Collected To Save Endangered Species

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 21:38:13 +0000

School children in Columbia have taken part in a program run by the Wildlife Conservation Network called Proyecto Tití, in which they are helping to clean the environment of Cotton-Top Tamarins by picking up paper and plastic trash. The children have thus far collected over 30 million plastic bags!

From the Proyecto Tití website:

“About the size of a squirrel, the cotton-top tamarin is a New World primate that is noted for its shock of white hair. The large shock of white fur on its head gives the cotton-top tamarin its most appropriate name. The face of the cotton-top tamarin is black, temples and sides of head are covered with short adpressed silvery hairs. The face is adorned with grayish or whitish supraorbital band, with a grayish fringe across the muzzle to each corner of the mouth.”

Proyecto Tití has realized that along with helping to save the environment, they were able to help the impoverished people living in the area by donating the plastic bags found to be made into sellable merchandise. The bags are woven into purses, or eco-mochilas, by local women and made available for purchase.

"To make conservation economically feasible for many local communities, we have developed some innovative strategies to empower local people to get involved and benefit from conservation activities," the group notes.

The Green Garmento salutes all of the people involved in this great effort to save the environment, the endangered Tamarins and to help the people living there! Thanks for protecting our environment and helping to stay fantastic and use less plastic! To donate to the program, visit their website, and don’t forget to use your Green Garmento to save plastic bags here at home!

Resources:

Proyecto Tití

Wildlife Conservation Network

[VIA Treehugger]

Free Valet Dry Cleaning and FREE Green Garmento bag!

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 00:51:42 +0000

Our good friends at Emerald Cleaners are offering $100 of free valet dry cleaning to all new customers right now. New customers will also receive a FREE Green Garmento bag! If you live in the Boston area, be sure to sign up right away!

Eco-friendly dry cleaning in the Boston area, Emerald Cleaners are a leader in the green dry cleaning community. Emerald Cleaners uses upscale concierge valet service Lux Preferred to deliver and pick up laundry from any of their customers who sign up.

“In our first two years with The Green Garmento we have saved close to 2,000 pounds of plastic, 50,000 paper shoulder covers and heaps of twist-ties,” says Joe Galante president of Lux Preferred an upscale concierge valet service by Emerald Cleaners. By adding the Green Garmento 4-in-1 garment bag to their environmentally friendly cleaning process, Emerald Cleaners is officially one of the greenest drycleaners in Boston.

You can sign up for your $100 worth of valet dry cleaning and your FREE Green Garmento bag at http://luxpreferred.com/Request.html

Read the rest of the article here!

Support Your Dry Cleaner - Get A FREE Bag

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 20:18:45 +0000

Wanna get a FREE Green Garmento bag AND help your local dry cleaner go green?

If your local dry cleaner doesn’t carry the Green Garmento, we’ll give you a FREE bag if you forward us their address and phone number! Just “like” The Official GG Page on Facebook and leave a wall post with your local dry cleaner's address and phone number and we'll send you a FREE bag*.

With your help we could spread the Green Garmento to more and more dry cleaners, eliminating the use of plastic bags across our country!

REMEMBER: BE FANTASTIC AND USE LESS PLASTIC!

* Shipping not included. Not applicable to GTL bag.

Bicycling To Save $ (and the planet)

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 01:13:25 +0000

We’ve seen recently how popular bicycling has become. Multiple cities across Europe have started community biking projects and New York City and D.C. may soon join them. The environmental impact alone is worth biking to work everyday, but have you seen how much money you can save as well?

According to The Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average cost of owning a car is approximately $7,310 per year, based on a study in 2006 on the household cost of owning a vehicle per quintiles of income. The article also mentions:

“According to the AAA, the average person spends $9,641 per year for the privilege of driving. Keep in mind that these estimated costs are based on an average gasoline cost of $2.256 per gallon. The numbers also don't include the cost of parking.”

$9,641 per year?! That’s outrageous! And think of how much you’re adding to your carbon footprint. By bicycling to work everyday, you not only save money, you get to feel like you’re helping the planet AND getting a workout. Also, don’t forget: IT’S FUN!

Know what else you can do to help the environment? Use the Green Garmento! Cut back on your carbon footprint by getting rid of plastic at your local dry cleaners!

Have a suggestion for our next Blogmento? Email us at socialgarmento@gmail.com with your suggestions.

VIA kenkifer.com

VIA afrugallife.com

VIA tbd.com

VIA investopedia.com

Recycling (From Weird To DIY)

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 01:30:24 +0000

We’ve come across some pretty cool ideas recently about things that you can recycle that you wouldn’t normally think of. There are a lot of things that can be re-used in a different capacity or turned into something useful after their life is used up as the original item. Here are some of the ones that stood out as really inventive and also just plain cool!

Dentures

Every year there are roughly 3.6 million sets of dentures manufactured in the world, and each set contains about $25 worth of precious metals, including gold and silver. Most unwanted dentures are thrown away, but a nonprofit organization was recently created in Japan to recycle the metals found in dentures and donate the proceeds to UNICEF. To date, it has raised more than $250,000 for UNICEF and other organizations.

Coffins

Recycled coffins are becoming more and more popular. Consider renting a casket from the funeral home rather than purchasing one if you’re planning on being cremated. For cremation or regular burial, often times it’s even less expensive and more eco-friendly to buy a cardboard coffin, many of which are made from 100% recycled materials.

Clothes into Furniture

Not every piece of old clothing is fit for the Salvation Army. Some things are too full of holes or in pieces. There is a simple and material-light clothing container you can simply stuff your old clothes (ideally after one last wash of course) into a new shape and use as plush and padded furniture.

Reuse Trash Ideas

This site has TONS of great ideas to reuse “trash” items. Our personal favorite is turning an old inflatable kiddie pool into a garden by poking holes in the bottom and filling them with potting soil to plant a garden in.

Use the Green Garmento

And of course the Green Garmento is made from a recyclable, breathable, water-resistant material, making it an eco-friendly, stylish, practical and affordable alternative to single-use plastic garment bags. By switching to The Green Garmento, you will help to drastically reduce the negative impact of single-use plastic bags - that's pretty GREEN.

If you have your own brilliant recycling idea, leave it in the comments below!

VIA MSN

VIA DesignBoom.com

VIA Recycling-Revolution.com

Back To School Green Guide

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 00:50:42 +0000

With schools going back into session soon (if it hasn’t already happened), you’re probably wondering how to stay as green as possible while still buying the supplies that you’ll need to get you, or your kids through the school year. Here’s a compilation of helpful tips to staying green while buying school supplies!

Top Green Back to School Tips

[http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/02/how-to-go-green-back-to-school.php]

10 great tips on how to save money and stay green!

4 Things Parents Can Do to Stop School Bus Pollution

[http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/school-bus-pollution-0721]

Great article on air quality inside school buses and their emissions.

How to Pack a Zero Waste Lunch

[http://planetgreen.discovery.com/food-health/pack-zerowaste-lunch.html]

Packing your lunch for work or school can be tons better for the planet because you have more control over what you eat. In addition, you don't have to throw away all the packaging that often accompanies carry out food.

How To Go Green: Dorm Rooms

[http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/09/how-to-go-green-dorm-rooms.php]

10 tips on dorm living without so much trash.

National Geographics’s Green Tips: Back to School

[http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/stories/spacescience/green-tips-back-to-school]

Great tips for kids including riding your bike, buying recycled paper and making your own bookmarks.

And finally, the Green Garmento has a Back-To-School special (limited time offer) that will save lots of plastic from being used throughout the school year. 3 OFFICIAL SITUATION GTL BAGS PLUS 1 bonus FREE two-sided over-the-door hook ($8.99 VALUE). YOU SAVE $15.00!

Check it out here: http://thegreengarmento.com/shop/gtl-situaiton-back-to-school-laundry-bag-door-hook-special

Remember: BE FANTASTIC … USE LESS PLASTIC!

Earthquake Preparedness and Staying Green

Wed, 24 Aug 2011 23:58:20 +0000

Yesterday’s earthquake on the East Coast has many people wondering how they can prepare for the next one that comes out of nowhere. Well Huffington Post Green has put together a helpful guide to putting together an earthquake kit that is eco-friendly too! Here are our favorite parts from the article.

- Have safe drinking water available in recyclable bottles

- Canned food and other vegetarian non-perishables are essential

- Put together a on the go bag with a solar flashlight/radio/cell phone charer, a solar oven, and a hang crank UV Water Purifier

Another great blog lists more helpful hints and ideas to get ready. His ideas include keeping extra blankets and camping mats, along with only having canned food with pop-top lids (no opener required). He also cleverly doubles his camping gear as a ready to go earthquake kit. Here’s his essentials list:

- WATER

- Bleach (for water

- Shelter (outdoors)

- Plastic Bags (he also mentions that “plastic bags are evil in every respect apart from a few key situations in which they are indispensable”)

- Toilet paper, toothbrush & toothpaste, soap and toiletries.

- Medications, enough for a week or more and a First Aid Kit

- Canned PREPARED food (pop-tops!), jars of applesauce, dried mangoes or other fruit, Gatorade / energy drink powder, etc.

- Flashlight (crank-powered is great!), extra batteries, battery-operated (or crank) radio.

- Shoes (with good soles) and warm clothing.

- Containers

- Family photographs and emergency contact numbers

- Cash. And some quarters

- Tea

- Candles and lighters

There’s lots of ways to prepare for an earthquake. Check out the American Red Cross’ suggestions as well for other great tips for being prepared!

http://redcrossla.org/news/april-is-earthquake-preparedness-month

Stay safe and as always Be Fantastic … Use Less Plastic!

VIA [Huffington Post Green]

VIA [Green, Broke & Living in Kits]

Green More Than Just A Marketing Tool

Fri, 19 Aug 2011 20:41:00 +0000

Written By Rick Siegel.

LOS ANGELES — There’s a drycleaner in my neighborhood that brags that, “The only greener way to care for your clothes is to use a rock and a stream.”

That drycleaner has no solar panels, uses fluorescent lighting (which remains lit 24 hours a day, though the business is closed for 10 of those hours), has no reusable or even bio-degradable packaging, and is in fact a perc cleaner. Why does the business advertise itself as green? “Because consumers like green.”

And why don’t they don’t incorporate any green initiatives into their operations? “We’ve run our business the same way for 50 years, we see no reason to change.”

What, I asked, would they think if other industries operated that way: no computers, no fax machines, no remote-controlled televisions. “That’s different, that’s innovation. This green technology is only a different way of doing the same thing.”

What if, I asked, the government didn’t put limitations on the waste that factories used to send into our waterways, the level of emissions put into our gasoline? Wouldn’t our skies be blacker, our water browner if someone didn’t get them to find a different way to control their waste?

I grew up in Middlesex County, N.J. In the 1980s, when my mom died at 60, it had the second-highest cancer rate of any county in the U.S. without coal mining, all because of the water we drank. So I think changing the way we do things, if it’s for the better, is important.

“Sure, we need to limit pollution when it hurts people,” was the answer. “But my customers like the way we do things.”

“Really?” I said, turning the conversation more specifically about The Green Garmento. “Do you think your customers like reaching for one shirt and getting six, then spending 45 seconds fighting with a twist-tie? Do you think they like having a closet filled with poly and garment covers; all that waste? And do you think your customers that don’t have a VIP bag like worrying about what they dropped between their closet and your front door?

“I don’t think they care enough to where they’d want me spending more money and having to charge them more to clean their clothes.”

What makes you think that doing green things costs you more? If you used more eco-friendly lighting, over time the company would save thousands of dollars. Imagine how much you would save if you didn’t have to make continual purchases of single-use poly bags and garment covers.

Some distributors are like those guys around the turn of the last century trying to sell horseshoes instead of tires because they make more money on horseshoes. Their biggest revenue items are poly and garment covers. The more drycleaners save money on reusable items, the less money they spend. But as drycleaners realize that these distributors are looking out for their own welfare, they will find a new distributor.

“But we’re different than most drycleaners,” I was told, ”we make most of our money on our pickup/delivery business.” That only means, I said in reply, that you have to give everyone delivery bags. Why not pay only $1.50 or $2 per bag more than what you’re already paying and eliminating the waste—monetary as well as ecological—of your poly and garment covers. And polypropylene protects better against rain, show, hail or sun. And you can even sell them the bags or take a deposit—all the grocery chains have paved that road for you.

That, I rant, is why I’m so frustrated with the route consultants who refuse to recommend reusable bags over single-use packaging. Those consultants’ whole business concept is showing how, if you follow their plan, a delivery business can be more profitable than having a storefront. Why won’t they explain how best to economize—and ‘ecologize’—that business?

But, I’m told, “We only change things when we have to change things, when I see something’s going wrong.”

Even single-store owners are responsible for putting more than a ton of waste into the ecosystem. I’ll leave it to others to decide whether that’s wrong. But isn’t spending money in ways you no longer need to spend it on a mistake? Do you really want to wait until your town/county/state taxes or prohibits single-use plastic bags?

The truth is, when I realized reusable drycleaning garment bags eliminated some of my frustrations with drycleaning packaging, I thought of it as a solution. When I realized we could make these bags—bags that protect the clothes better, are safer, are so much better for the environment and save drycleaners thousands—I knew there was a business.

Since then, I’ve started using LED lights and turn them off when I leave the room; we’ve changed our air-conditioning and heating habits. Last year, I saved almost $3,000 in energy costs. The savings will be even greater next year after treating our windows. We bought a Prius in April and have already saved more than $550 in gasoline costs—on just 4,000 miles. My water bill has gone down more than 30% in the last two years.

It’s not expensive to be green these days. It’s expensive not to be.

Original Post Can Be Found At American Drycleaner

Guide To Recycling (What You Can/Can't Put In Your Bin)

Wed, 17 Aug 2011 00:27:50 +0000

It can be really hard to know what you can put in the recycling bin at the front curb every week. There are so many types of materials used in everyday waste that it can confuse even the savviest recycling maniac. We put together this handy little guide to help you out!

There are plenty of things that are recyclable now, not just your paper/cardboard and aluminum cans! It depends on the city that you live in, but most cities will recycle the following list of items (check with you local authorities if you have any questions).

Most plastic bottles and containers, such as shampoo, detergent, bleach, milk, soda, water and asprin containers can be recycled as well as glass bottles/gars and even microwave food trays!

Newspaper

Paper board

Cardboard, corrugated boxes

Cardboard cereal & cracker boxes, etc.

6-pack cartons

Paper grocery bags

Magazines

Glossy paper

Junk mail

Stationery & envelopes

Any high grade/uncoated paper

Binder/notebook paper, any color

Telephone books

Aluminum cans, foil, trays

Tin cans & bi-metal cans

Glass bottles, jars (empty & rinsed)

Any color glass bottles or jars

All plastic food containers #1 & #2

Plastic bottles and containers (shampoo, detergent, bleach, milk, soda, water and aspirin containers, etc.)

Microwave food trays

Frozen food boil-in-bag pouches

And because we have a list of things that it is okay to recycle, here’s a list of things it’s not okay to recycle.

Aerosol cans

Ovenware

Ceramic pottery, cups, dishes

Windowpane glass or mirror

Plastic wrap

All wax laminated cartons/containers (e.g., milk & juice cartons, & soy milk boxes)

Plastic motor oil bottles

Plastic or wax coated paper and cartons

Frozen food boxes

Microwave food boxes

Wax cereal/cracker box liners

Books

Gummed or glued bindings

Paper towels, napkins, tissue paper

Paper plates, soiled paper

Adhesive backed or sticky notes

Carbon paper, thermal fax paper

Aluminum foil boxes

Fast food wrappers

Pet food bags

Scrap metal

Light bulbs

Styrofoam

Soiled clothing

Drinking glasses

Food waste

Disposable diapers

For even more things that you can recycle, check out these helpful sites and send us your own ideas for recycling and staying green!

Recycle Now - Can It Be Recycled

50 Things You Can Recycle

Remember, BE FANTASTIC AND USE LESS PLASTIC!

The Green School teaches Bali Children Environmentalism

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 21:48:31 +0000

In Bali, Indonesia, one man has made it his life's work to create a green school to give children "a holistic education", emphasizing the environment and living sustainably. John Hardy is a retired businessman who, after watching Al Gore's "An Inconvienient Truth" decided to close up shop on his jewelry business and instead start the Green School.

The Green School was built using mostly bamboo and aims to decrease their carbon footprint even more by growing organic vegetables and using livestock waste to make biogas for cooking. Hardy has even built a Green Village only 900 meters away from the school to allow the children and their families to avoid a commute.

The Green School is an international school and are expecting to have 300 students enroll for the next year, a 200 person increase from when it opened in 2008.

For more information, visit The Green School's webiste at www.greenschool.org/

The Green Garmento salutes you! Keep up the great work!

VIA cnn.com

Got an idea for a blog post? Email socialgarmento@gmail.com with your suggestions!

Taco Bell Goes Green

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 01:32:16 +0000

This last week Taco Bell announced that it would test out an environmentally friendly restaurant location against one that's not environmentally friendly in Middleown, OH. The environmentally friendly restaurant is planned to receive certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED for short.

The U.S. Green Building Council developed the LEED certification program in 2000. To get it, the council says buildings earn points in several categories of green building criteria: sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, and innovation in design and regional credits.

The Middletown Journal interviewed Taco Bell Corp. spokesman Rob Poetsch, quoting him as saying:

"We will continue to explore cost-effective new technologies and materials that will reduce our environmental impact, while allowing us to serve our customers delicious food.”

The Green Garmento salutes you, Taco Bell for taking steps in the right direction! We look forward to seeing your results.

Via [The Middletown Journal]

Hummers to Homes

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 01:16:33 +0000

L.A.-based architecture and design firm HplusF has thought up a brilliant idea to recycle old gas guzzling Hummers into an interesting form of housing. The "Hummer Home", as it's being called, is design for a house that is made of the sheet metal shells and various parts of decommissioned Hummers. The home is customizable (somewhat) and can have up to 8 activity areas, big enough for a small family!

To make matters even better, the home also comes with soy-based insulation, grey water recycling, rooftop solar panels, and geothermal heating and cooling. Talk about redemption for only getting 10.8 mpg!

It was designed for the Prefab 20*20: Visions for 400 SF Homes competition and we here at Green Garmento salute the HplusF architects for doing a fantastic job!

For more information on HplusF, visit http://www.hplusf.com/

For more information on the Prefab 20*20 competition, visit http://prefab2020.wordpress.com/

via [GOOD]

Our President, Jennie Nigrosh, Interviewed By JP Selects

Tue, 12 Jul 2011 00:42:56 +0000

Our prez, Jennie Nigrosh, was recently interviewed by JP Selects about Green Garmento, the GTL bag, and more!

Designed to be functional and attractive, The Green Garmento™ is a hamper for your soiled clothes, it’s a duffel with a shoulder strap for carrying your clothes to the dry-cleaner, and it’s a hanging garment bag for the trip home. In addition to their signature bag, Jennie Nigrosh and Rick Siegel are releasing the official “GTL” bag from Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino.

The Green Garmento entirely eliminates the need for the 300 million pounds of single-use dry cleaning bags used by Americans every year. Jennie and Rick also support homeless shelters and Dress For Success.

Fantastic Places - Locations Who Have Banned Plastic Bags

Thu, 07 Jul 2011 20:30:25 +0000

We at The Green Garmento love it when we get word that another state, county or city has made an effort to ban plastic bags. Usually when we read news about it we share it with you on Facebook and Twitter, but understanding the magnitude of each baby step may get lost. So in celebration of progressive legislation, we decided to post a list of every place in the USA that has or is cureently trying to get rid of that troublesome plastic! Without further ado, we bring you FANTASTIC PLACES!

Alaska

Bethel

City officials voted in July 2009 to ban plastic bags and takeout containers. The ban went into effect in September 2010.

Fairbanks

In September 2009, Fairbanks adopted a 5 cent price requirement on plastic bags. This was rescinded one month later.

Hooper Bay

The plastic bag ban in Hooper Bay went into effect in August 2010.

California

Calabasas

The Calabasas City Council unanimously adopted a plastic bag ban with a minimum ten cent price requirement on paper bags in February 2011.

Fairfax

Fairfax adopted its ban on plastic bags August 2007. After a legal challenge by the plastic industry, Fairfax voters overwhelmingly adopted a plastic bag ban by initiative in November 2008.

Long Beach

On May 17, 2011, the City of Long Beach passed a bag ordinance with a 5-0 vote. It banned single-use plastic bags and placed a 10 cent minimum price requirement on paper bags. The ordinance is effective in larger stores starting in August 2011, and will expand to others stores in 2012.

Los Angeles County

Los Angeles County banned plastic bags and placed a 10 cent minimum price requirement on recycled paper bags in November 2010. It is effective July 2011, and expands to other stores in January 2012.

Los Angeles City

The City of Los Angeles adopted a resolution in 2008 banning plastic bags 2010 if the State Legislature has not yet by that time put a fee on them.

Malibu

The Malibu City Council voted to ban plastic bags in May 2008.

Manhattan Beach

The Manhattan Beach City Council voted to ban plastic bags in July 2008. (Suspended by plastic industry lawsuit.)

Marin County

Marin County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously in favor of an ordinance restricting the free distribution of single-use bags in January 2011, effective January 2012.

Oakland

Oakland passed a ban on plastic bags in July 2007. (Suspended by plastic industry lawsuit.)

Palo Alto

The Palo Alto City Council voted March 2009 to ban plastic bags at large supermarkets and announced their intention to consider expanding the ban to cover all retail stores as well as enacting a fee on paper bags.

San Francisco

San Francisco became the first city in the nation to ban plastic shopping bags in March 2007.

San Jose

San Jose City Council passed a ban on plastic bags in December 2010. It is effective January 2012. For the first two years, paper bags will be sold under this ordinance at 10 cents each; after two years the minimum price per paper bag is 25 cents each.

Santa Clara County

On April 26, 2011, the County Board of Supervisors voted in favor of a single-use bag ordinance. The ordinance bans single-use plastic bags and places a 15 cent minimum price requirement on single-use paper bags throughout unincorporated county areas. It is effective January 1, 2012.

Santa Monica

The Santa Monica City Council unanimously voted for a ban on single-use plastic bags and a cost pass-through requirement per recyclable paper bag in January 2011.

Colorado

Telluride

The town of Telluride, CO banned plastic bags in October 2010. The ban went into effect March 2011, with a 10 cent price requirement on paper bags effective January 2011.

Connecticut

Westport

In September 2008, Westport became the first Connecticut city to ban plastic bags.

District of Columbia

Washington

The District of Columbia Council voted June 2009 to require retailers to charge a $0.05 fee on all carryout bags.

Hawaii

Kaui County

Kaui banned plastic bags in October 2009. The ordinance became effective on January 11, 2011.

Maui County

Maui banned plastic bags in August 2008. The ordinance became effective on January 11, 2011.

Maryland

Montgomery County

The County followed the example of the neighboring District of Columbia and passed a 5 cent minimum price requirement on single-use plastic and paper bags in May 2011. It is effective January 2012. Unlike the DC ordinance, this ordinance applies to all retailers.

New York

Southampton

In April 2011, the Southampton Village Board unanimously approved a ban on non-biodegradable bags for retailers, supermarkets and restaurants.

North Carolina

Hyde, Currituck and Dare Counties

The North Carolina Legislatures banned plastic in the Barrier Islands in June 2009. The ban was extended to all businesses in the three counties in 2010.

Texas

Brownsville

The City of Brownsville became the first in its state to ban plastic bags. The ban became effective January 2011.

Fort Stockton

In 2010, the City of Fort Stockton banned single-use plastic bags from stores, effective March 2011.

South Padre Island

In January 2011, South Padre Island passed a bag ordinance banning plastic single-use carryout bags that is effective 2012.

Washington

Edmonds

Edmonds banned plastic bags at all retail stores in July 2009.

Seattle

The Seattle City Council voted to require retailers to charge a $0.25 on all single-use carryout bags in July 2008. (Overturned by plastic industry-financed initiative.)

Special thanks to Campaign For Recyling for originally posting this list.

THE PERFECT… Save Your Clothes, Save Your Cash, Save Your Planet Friday Food Truck Event!

Wed, 22 Jun 2011 22:23:16 +0000

THE PERFECT… Save Your Clothes, Save Your Cash, Save Your Planet Friday Food Truck Event!

Sponsored by The Green Garmento™ and Perfect Cleaners

We're happy to have Food Truck Catering spread the news on our gourmet food truck event happening this Friday with Perfect Cleaners!

Stop by Perfect Cleaners and indulge in two of LA’s premiere gourmet food trucks, get a FREE Green Garmento™ reusable dry cleaning bag, PERFECT money saving coupons and enter to win $100 free environmentally friendly dry cleaning!

When: Friday, June 24th 11:30am – 2:30pm

Where: Perfect Cleaners 8550 W. Third L.A. CA 90048 310-271-1616 map/directions

Parking: In back – while spots last! Plenty ‘o meters on the street, too.

What’s Free?

Bring 2 or more items to be dry cleaned and get a FREE Green Garmento™ reusable dry cleaning bag!*
Present a participating food truck ticket for Perfect money-saving coupons!
Enter to win $100 free environmentally friendly dry cleaning (need not be present to win).
*While Supplies Last

What’s for lunch?

Frysmith: Comfort food with a conscience!
The Frysmith truck serves fries that eat as a meal and is dedicated to using sustainably farmed and humanely raised ingredients. On Frysmith, you'll find biodegradable forks, craft sodas in easy-to-recycle glass bottles and not a plastic straw in sight! They even reuse their fry oil to run the truck's engine!

Coolhaus: A Coolhaus is an architecturally inspired ice cream sandwich!
The Coolhaus consists of all-natural handmade ice creams of classic and seasonal varieties or custom-made to suit your needs, packed between two cookies of your choice.

News Register: Alpine Cleaners Introduces Reusable Garment Bag

Mon, 13 Jun 2011 23:46:31 +0000

Orginally Published on the News-Register: June 8, 2011

By GAIL OBERST

Of the News-Register

The owners of Alpine Cleaners in McMinnville are offering their customers a new way to be "green" - by eliminating the giant plastic bags that traditionally cover dry-cleaned clothes.

For a one-time fee, sister and brother owners Patti Jeanfaivre and Allan Wright will replace the single-use plastic bag with the "Green Garmento," which can be used both as a laundry duffel and garment cover. Customers who don't purchase the Green Garmento bag will get instead a biodegradable poly bag on their clean clothes, which is non-toxic and breaks down in the landfill within two years.

The reusable bag is made of durable, water-resistant and breathable material that can be turned in filled with your dirty clothes. It will be washed and returned covering your clean clothes.

If everyone used the bags, according to Green Garmento officials, more than 300 million pounds of plastic dry-cleaning bags could be eliminated from U.S. landfills.

Alpine Cleaners is located at 140 N.E. 19th St., near the junction of Baker and 19th streets. The Green Garmento bags are among several improvements aimed at greening-up the family business, established in 1992 by the siblings' parents, Jack and Darlene Wright.

To interested visitors, Allan Wright proudly shows off his company's eco-friendly GreenEarth cleaning process, one of only three dry-cleaning methods deemed environmentally safe and authentically organic by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The process leaves behind nothing but water and an odorless and nontoxic sandy material.

The USDA and the National Cleaners Associate warn consumers to be aware that some cleaners call petroleum solvent-based cleaners "organic," even though they are considered to be dangerous to human health and to the environment. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health estimates that 85 percent of dry cleaners in the U.S. continue to use such solvents, developed in the 1940s.

For more information about the Green Garmento bag, visit www.thegreengarmento.com. For more information about Alpine Cleaners, call 503-472-0818.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Recoup Revenue

Sat, 04 Jun 2011 05:30:02 +0000

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, and Recoup Revenue

Reusable dry cleaning bag innovator The Green Garmento™ introduces two new products to help the environment AND dry cleaning industry’s bottom line

Two and a half years ago The Green Garmento™ entered the market as the first non-woven polypropylene all-in-one reusable dry cleaning garment bag, with proprietary, user-friendly features like handles, a shoulder strap and a side zipper.

Today, with over 120,000 bags in distribution, The Green Garmento™ takes two steps forward to help dry cleaners “green” their operations and boost their bottom line. First is “The Box-Bag”, a reusable tote created as a hanger caddy and alternative to single-use cardboard shirt boxes. The stylish, breathable and water resistant bags share the same dimensions as a conventional “shirt box” allowing a full load of laundered shirts to be easily transported without single-use plastic and cumbersome cardboard. The added tote strap and handles, ticket pocket and snap closure allow for easy transport while the attractive design creates the perfect branded bag with room for logos and messaging.

And for the ultimate hanger caddy or weekend bag, the company introduces its Deluxe Pouch Bag, a signature 4-in-1 Green Garmento VIP-Delivery-Duffel-Garment bag with a roomy outer pouch perfect for recycling hangers, or for personals when the bag is being used for weekend excursions, business trips or the fitness club.

“Most dry cleaners sell or take a deposit on The Green Garmento, and now they can do the same with these great new reusable bags, and continue to save money on single-use packaging and hangers – it’s the perfect marketing tool, great for the environment and definitely a growing industry trend,” says The Green Garmento co-founder Jennie Nigrosh.

About The Green Garmento™

A growing staple with consumers, drycleaners and hoteliers across the US and world, The Green Garmento is single-handedly creating the reusable drycleaning bag category. The Green Garmento offsets the carbon emissions of all direct-to- consumer shipments with Green-e Climate Renewable Energy. All proceeds from the program are used to build new renewable energy resources in the US.

Learn more and purchase your Green Garmento at www.thegreengarmento.com

Greening the Cleaning: Alpine Cleaners Phasing Out Single-Use Plastic with The Green Garmento™ Reusable Bags

Mon, 09 May 2011 06:37:00 +0000

April 28, 2011 (McMinnville, OR) – Already transitioned into an environmentally friendly cleaning process with GreenEarth Cleaning solvents, Alpine Cleaners is expanding their earth-friendly practices by setting their sights on phasing out single-use drycleaning plastic.

Now, McMinnville’s forward-thinking drycleaner is offering the multi-use, breathable and water resistant Green Garmento. For Alpine’s customers The Green Garmento starts at home as a hamper bag for soiled clothes, transforms into a duffel bag to carry clothes to the drycleaner, and morphs into a hanging garment bag to protect cleaned clothes for the trip back home.

Using The Green Garmento and receiving your drycleaning ‘naked’ -- without the single-use plastic bags, shoulder covers and twist-ties -- is a simple and easy lifestyle change, not to mention helping cut down on the estimated 300,000,000 pounds of drycleaning plastic that ends up in US landfills and waterways, threatening marine and wildlife each year.

In just two short months and with over 200 Green Garmentos in circulation, Alpine Cleaners has already saved close to 1,500 single-use plastic garment covers and hopes to further reduce its footprint while offering customers an easy organizational solution.

“After making the move to GreenEarth Cleaning we were eager to take the next step. We got a sample Green Garmento and introduced it to our customers, and they really embraced this next move in greening the cleaning. It’s been an easy and rewarding program to implement,” says co-owner Patti Jeanfaivre. The drycleaner is offering The Green Garmento at the discounted price of $6 per bag.

About Alpine Cleaners
Now in its 31sth year, Alpine remains a family business with its priority on quality and service. Sister and Brother team Patti Jeanfaivre and Allan Wright began running their parent’s business in 1990.

About The Green Garmento™
The Green Garmento™, named one of the 100 Companies to Watch in 2010 by Entrepreneur Magazine, is single-handedly creating the reusable drycleaning bag category. A growing staple with consumers, drycleaners and hoteliers across the US and world, The Green Garmento offsets the carbon emissions of all US shipments with Green-e Climate Renewable Energy. All proceeds from the program are used to build new renewable energy resources in The United States.

An Earth Day Epiphany

Thu, 07 Apr 2011 20:04:06 +0000

Written By Rick Siegel
Originally Published in American Drycleaner

CHICAGO — I confess: I was once about as eco-unfriendly as you could get. I drove a gas-guzzling car, believed a light off was a light wasted, and even though the City of Los Angeles provided me with the appropriate bins, I couldn’t be bothered to separate my recyclables. What impact could one person have, anyway?

Even my initial interest in reusable drycleaning bags had nothing to do with being “green.” It was about eliminating the aggravation of the drycleaning experience.

You see, I’m 200-and-a-lot-of pounds; I should be able to rumble with a twist-tie. But every time I’d reach for one shirt and pull out six, I’d end up in a knock-down, drag-out fight with one of those little rascals—and lose every time. I had a floor full of garment covers, and a garbage can in my closet just for the plastic. And since I’d never heard of a VIP bag, every time I couldn’t find a shirt or tie I was sure I’d dropped it in my drycleaner’s parking lot.

A reusable drycleaning bag, I realized, could eliminate those hassles. And in researching the feasibility of making the manufacturing of reusable bags a business, I realized how important it is that I do something, however small, to make the world a little bit neater.

What helped me become the Green Garmenteer? Information such as that found on Indiana’s state website, which says that if every Indiana household cleaned 200 garments a year, 9,466 tons of single-use poly would find its way into landfills. And since Indiana has just over 2% of the country’s population, it equates to more than 450 million pounds of plastic in U.S. landfills and waterways annually. Working to lessen that figure seemed like a noble calling.

Creating The Green Garmento has made my wife, Jennie, and I try to be “greener” in every way. We’re now searching for a hybrid or very fuel-efficient car; we take shorter showers and avoid watering the lawn; we turn off lights and use “ecofriendly” cleaning products. We buy fewer and fewer single-use products every day.

I don’t mean to preach, but maybe you, like me, will find there’s nothing awful about putting your soda can in the recycling bin, lowering the thermostat a degree or two, or using a reusable water bottle—nothing earth-shattering, but something that might keep the earth from shattering if we all do it.

Sun Chips EcoPackaging: Take Two

Wed, 02 Mar 2011 01:22:17 +0000

Written by Spencer Kent

Remember our blog post a couple months back about Sun Chips canning their biodegradable bags because of noise complaints? We weren't too happy with their decision then, but it looks like they may have made right.

The Huffington Post is reporting that Frito-Lay has created a brand new version of the bag, this time using a different adhesive to attach the two layers of the bag, "one which protects the food on the inside and one which carries the logo and labels on the outside." This tactic creates sort of a "noise barrier," reducing the offensive 80-85 decibel bag to around 70 decibels, which is around average for chip bags. Additionally, the new bags are still made from plants instead of plastic, and can easily break down in compost.

The new bags are in a trial phase, though. For now, they will only be available for the plain Sun Chips, with the other flavors still being sold in their original non-eco bags. The company has stated that they want to see their customers reactions to this second go before they revamp their entire product packaging again.

I, for one, applaud their efforts at giving this a second try. Change is not a simple thing, especially when people are hesitant to it. It is an inspiration for other companies to get involved with bettering themselves and the world they operate in. If this round goes well for Frito-Lay, one can only hope that they apply environmental tactics to all of their products.

Photo Credit: AP

Our Second Food Truck Event Was A Hit!

Mon, 14 Feb 2011 04:29:50 +0000

Last Friday we set up shop at Flair Cleaners in Burbank for what would prove to be our second successful food truck event. This time around we were joined by food truck legends, Grill 'Em All, to serve our guests delicious and creative gut-busting hamburgers. For dessert, Coolhaus rolled out with their unique truck to serve gourmet cookie ice cream sandwiches.

For our patrons, lunch was full of many options. For example, you could chase your Behemoth burger (2 grilled cheese sandwiches instead of buns) with delicious vegan peanut butter ice creams sandwiched between two delectable red velvet cookies. With so many options available from both trucks, lunch was absolutely your call. Even the Naked Drycleaner was there to get his grub on!

After braving the lines of these mega-trucks, folks took their receipt into Flair and were greeted with awesome gift-bags, complete with just about the nicest stainless steel water bottles you've ever seen (people really raved about these)! If you came with laundry, you were also able to get two items dry cleaned by Flair ON THE HOUSE! This especially came in handy if you had any mishaps with your burger or ice cream sandwich. Hundreds of people came out to hang out with us for lunch, many walking away with new Green Garmentos, Flair's spectacular grab bags, and most importantly: a satisfied hunger. In fact, our second food truck event was such a smash hit that we are already in talks to bring our event to Santa Monica and even venture out to Orange County!

A big thanks are due to Grill 'Em All, Coolhaus, Flair, and most imporantly YOU for coming out and making our second event such a blast. Here's to many more!

And don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Facebook for free stuff and news on future events! :)

Jennie Nigrosh Interviewed on Blog Talk Radio!

Wed, 09 Feb 2011 17:51:37 +0000

Our very own Jennie Nigrosh was recently interviewd by GreenLivingGuy on Blog Talk Radio! Click play on the widget below to hear the whole thing!

Listen to internet radio with GreenLivingGuy on Blog Talk Radio

Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino helps Green The Laundry with the Official ‘Situation GTL Bag’ by The Green Garmento™

Mon, 17 Jan 2011 19:37:03 +0000

To maintain his signature six-pack and style, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino lives by the motto “GTL”: Gym, Tan, Laundry. Thanks to his new partnership with The Green Garmento™, the eco-friendly all-in-one reusable drycleaning and laundry bag, GTL now also means “Green The Laundry.”

Here’s how it works: The Green Garmento starts as a hamper bag for soiled clothes, turns into a duffel bag for carrying the clothes to the laundry or drycleaner, and for the trip back home transforms into a hanging garment bag to protect cleaned clothes – without a single plastic bag in sight!

The best part: the official Situation GTL Green Garmento has a custom logo designed, commissioned by and especially for ‘The Situation.’ “There’s nothing sexy about plastic bags,” says Sorrentino.

Using The Green Garmento and asking for your drycleaning ‘naked’ -- without the single-use plastic bags, shoulder covers and twist-ties -- is a simple and easy lifestyle change that helps cut down on the estimated 300,000,000 pounds of drycleaning plastic that ends up in US landfills and waterways each year. Now that deserves a fist pump.

The official Situation GTL Green Garmento, offered in black night or green grass for $11.99, is exclusively available at thegreengarmento.com and will soon be carried in select retailers, gyms and tanning salons across the country.

About Michael "The Situation" Sorrentino
Sorrentino is quickly becoming one of Hollywood’s top emerging talent and successful businessman. Born in Staten Island, New York and raised in Manalapan, New Jersey he is most known for starring on the hit MTV show THE JERSEY SHORE now in its 3rd season on MTV. The 3rd season will premiere on January 6th, 2011. He was nominated at the 2010 Teen Choice Awards for “Choice TV: Male Reality Star”

About The Green Garmento™
A growing staple with consumers, drycleaners and hoteliers across the US and world, The Green Garmento is single-handedly creating the reusable drycleaning bag category. The Green Garmento offsets the carbon emissions of all direct-to- consumer shipments with Green-e Climate Renewable Energy. All proceeds from the program are used to build new renewable energy resources in the US.

Check out Sitch talking about the GTL Green Garmento on the View!

The Situation brings his GTL Green Garmento to Wendy Williams:

Meet The Naked Drycleaner!

Tue, 14 Dec 2010 01:14:29 +0000

Happy Holidays from the Naked Dry Cleaner! You can follow Stan and his many naked adventures over on Twitter!

Food Truck Event Recap

Tue, 30 Nov 2010 20:21:32 +0000

Just before Thanksgiving on a chilly friday in Encino, The Green Garmento united two of Los Angeles' biggest scenes: food trucks and green living. With the help of some of the best trucks LA has to offer, hundreds of people came out to the grandiose Hilltop Cleaners on Ventura Boulevard to fight the cold with some warm comfort food and check out two businesses that have been working hard to make dry cleaning more eco-friendly.

We were joined by The Sweets Truck, a wonderful mobile dessert station that served up piping hot coffee and cocoa, as well as some of the biggest red velvet cupcakes you've ever seen!

Alongside them was The FrySmith, a popular food truck that not only turns french fries into extravagant gourmet meals, but keeps it green by reusing their fry oil to run the truck's engine! They also go they extra mile by using sustainably farmed and humanely raised ingredients.

Last, but definitely not least, was Barbie's-Q, a finger-licking barbeque truck that was such a hit with our attendees that it sold out of all it's food before the event was even over! Encino's hungry citizens came running down the street to follow the delicious barbeque scent traveling along Ventura Blvd.

After folks chowed down on their street food, they were not only able to check out The Green Garmento for themselves, but also see what kind of things Hilltop Cleaners are doing to make dry cleaning a more environmental and friendly affair. Throughout the event they gave out 50 Green Garmentos to people bringing in their laundry, 20 of which were brand new customers that day!

If you missed our first food truck event, don't fret! It was such a success that we are in the first stages of planning a second one for early 2011. Until then, you can find all of the trucks on Twitter. And as always, you can follow us over on Facebook. Just leave a comment on our wall and get a FREE bag! (shipping not included.)

And for our Christmas shoppers, check out our special Holiday 2-fer! This holiday season, you can HO HO HOld The Plastic with this lovely pre-packaged gift that includes festive Red & Green 48" bags tied with a fancy ribbon and reusable luggage tag!

Happy Holidays, everyone!

THE save your clothes, save your money, save your planet great food truck event!

Fri, 12 Nov 2010 20:05:56 +0000

THE save your clothes, save your money, save your planet great food truck event!

Sponsored by The Green Garmento™ and Hilltop Cleaners

Stop by Hilltop Cleaners and indulge in three of LA’s amazing gourmet food trucks, get a FREE Green Garmento™ reusable dry-cleaning bag, money saving coupons and other cool swag!

When:   Friday, November 19th 11:30am – 3:00pm

Where: Hilltop’s awesome party parking lot / 16422 Ventura Blvd., Encino, CA 91436

What’s Free?

•    Bring 2 or more items to be cleaned and Get a FREE Green Garmento™ reusable dry-cleaning bag!*
•    Present a participating food truck ticket for gift bag & money saving coupons from Hilltop Cleaners

*Available while supplies last, bring two items of clothing to be professionally dry-cleaned by Hilltop. $10.00 value, not redeemable for cash.

What’s for lunch?

Frysmith: Comfort food with a conscience
The Frysmith truck serves fries that eat as a meal and is dedicated to using sustainably farmed and humanely raised ingredients. On Frysmith, you'll find biodegradable forks, craft sodas in easy-to-recycle glass bottles and not a plastic straw in sight! We even reuse our fry oil to run the truck's engine!

Barbie’s Q: Venice’s Best BBQ is rolling your way!
Chow down on finger-licking baby backs and Louis ribs sold by the piece or go in on a half dozen with a hungry posse. Put out the fire in your belly with a hand-pulled, ten-hour-smoked pork sandwich. Wanna stay healthy? Go for the veggie BBQ or chicken sandwich. Barbie’s got something for everyone!

Sweets Truck: Taking sweets to the streets
This mobile bakeshop and gourmet coffeehouse, is taking sweets to the streets of Los Angeles. Loaded with the best-of-the-best from LA’s professional bakers, pastry chefs and coffee roasters, the Sweets Truck is a daily reminder that life is sweet and life is good.

Staying Green On Halloween!

Sun, 31 Oct 2010 20:12:17 +0000

Written By Spencer Kent

Halloween is finally here! The joyous fall holiday that allows us to escape reality for just a night by dressing up in fun outfits and feeding the child in all of us with mountains of candy (especially the parents!) On carefree nights like this, it's easy to overlook some of the really simple steps we can take to make this orange and black hued holiday just a little greener.

As you stroll down your neighborhood with your family going door-to-door, you'll pass countless Jack-o-lanterns: artfully carved pumpkins with a candle inside to make the patterns glow. However, did you know that if you use LED lights instead of candles, they will last nearly 133 times longer and cost 80% less to use? And because they don't get hot, they are 100% safer! If you just can't give up the timeless incandescent, opt for beeswax or soy candles, for they burn cleaner than petroleum based paraffin candles! Don't you want to keep Jack grinning as long as possible?

As you put together your costume, make sure to pass up the cheaply made (and not to mention un-eco friendly) costumes at Halloween stores that come in plastic bags. Instead, do it DIY-style by rummaging through your local thrift shop. Chances are, they will have more than what you need to create an outlandish and spectacular costume, and you'll be reusing and giving a new home to old, unwanted clothes! For an added bonus, you won't run into someone sporting the same $80 costume as you, because that is REALLY awkward.

Lastly, instead of just tossing those witch and pumpkin banners, make sure to save all your decorations for next year. As the Halloweens pile up, so will your collection of regalia. Not only will this save you tons of money as time goes on, but you will be using less and less materials every year to turn your home into a spooky wonderland. One of my fondest memories as a kid was when my dad would let me and my brother take down the Halloween box from the attic and rummage through all the seasonal items we had saved over the years.

Of course, there's so many other ways to make greener choices during Halloween time, but this is a pretty good start. The more you get in the habit of making simple changes to help your planet, the easier it will get! Remember to stay safe, and most importantly have fun! Happy Halloween everyone!

Special thanks to Your Daily Thread and Green Halloween for the tips!

Follow me on Twitter: @spencerkent

FritoLay Sacks EcoPackaging with SunChips, Starts Anew With Walkers

Fri, 22 Oct 2010 19:22:27 +0000

Written By Spencer Kent

As someone who has in some form or another worked in the 'green' business for a good three years now, I get excited when I see big-branded companies take the extra steps to become more environmentally conscious. When the news hit a while back that FritoLay's SunChips had switched all of their products over to 100% biodegradable bags, I was thrilled and proud. As an avid fan of the brand, I experienced a definite sense of pride that they were the first to make such a bold and meaningful move toward the health and future of this planet. In fact, I remember buying a bag of Harvest Cheddar (my personal favorite) that week to celebrate.

As I unpacked my groceries into their corresponding places amongst my pantry, I noticed that the packaging for my new eco-snack was... loud. Very loud. I took a quick glance at the gigantic label on the front of the bag explaining that the noise was caused by the new biodegradable material, and shrugged the issue off as a small (re: tiny) price to pay for something so important.

As I'm sure many of you know, SunChips has recently decided to stop using these eco-friendly bags in favor of their non-recyclable predecessors. The reason? The public declared that the bags were just "too loud." Needless to say, I was furious. Here was a name-brand making a stand, and something as insignificant as "bag noise" killed it dead-on-arrival. I was embarrassed by my fellow chip-lovers, and sad that they, as well as SunChips, didn't see the bigger picture here. I would gladly take a noisy bag over a polluted earth.

Fortunately, the idea is being replicated by FritoLay with some significant changes. I read this week that their UK potato chip brand, Walkers, is going to upgrade their packaging to new biodegradable material made out of, and isn't this perfect, potato peels. I can only imagine that, considering the SunChips situation, these new bags will have no noise-related issues. The company hopes to cut the carbon footprint of their bags by seven percent.

I'm glad that FritoLay has decided not to give up on going green, and sincerely hope that this experiment with Walkers goes well enough to help relaunch biodegradable SunChips packaging here in the US. In the meantime, I hope that consumers will gradually begin to understand the impact that small changes and sacrifices can have on our very fragile planet for years to come.

If you'd like to start making changes, The Green Garmento is simple, affordable, and a great place to start. For just under ten bucks you can eliminate the waste of drycleaning plastic, and look stylish all at once! But you don't have to take my word for it, check out the facts. Happy shopping, and have a great weekend!

Follow me on Twitter: @spencerkent

Join The Green GIVEmento! Help us find charities in need of our bags.

Tue, 28 Sep 2010 02:26:26 +0000

Earlier this week Team Green Garmento had a little pow-wow and we came to the realization that our warehouse is looking a little bit like the land of the misfit bags.Nothing’s wrong with them really, they just aren’t quite up to snuff to sell to our customers. Some bags may have printing that’s a little wonky, draw strings that are a little too long, stitching that doesn’t match – ya know, that kind of stuff. Some would call them seconds, we prefer to call them interesting.

Anyway, we’d like to find a home for these lovely reusable dry cleaning bags that time forgot. And we need your help.

Please email us or leave a comment with your favorite charity or school or temple, or church or hospital or shelter that may need some 4-in-1 reusable bags. We’ll contact the organization and if it’s a fit and they can help us deliver or pick up the bags, they are theirs to keep, sell, giveaway, whatever they prefer!

Make sure to "like" our new Facebook page and leave your suggestions there! - http://www.facebook.com/thegreengarmento

Thanks for caring and stay tuned for updates.

~Jennie

NYTimes Take them to the cleaners, again and again

Tue, 28 Sep 2010 02:16:38 +0000

The Green Garmento was featured in The Sunday New York Times Business Section!

TAKE THEM TO THE CLEANERS AGAIN AND AGAIN

By Amy Wallace

Man or woman, every one of us has experienced the frustration that drove Rick Siegel to become an inventor. He would be in his clothes closet, running late, wrestling with the plastic bags that encased — and the twist ties that entangled — his dry cleaning. Surely, he thought, those twist ties would drive him mad.

“He’d freak out,” said his wife, Jennie Nigrosh, recalling the typical harried morning. “Scream is a good word.”

Familiar, too, is the guilt that Ms. Nigrosh felt when she tried to intervene. Her husband is 6-foot-4, meaning that if the artist Christo did an installation using the plastic film around just six of Mr. Siegel’s suits, he could easily wrap your garage. Ms. Nigrosh’s father ran a cardboard recycling factory when she was growing up, so a trip to the closet made her stomach clench: Where did all this plastic go?

Suddenly Mr. Siegel, who was once a Hollywood talent manager, and his wife, a marketing copywriter in the music industry, had an idea: a reusable bag to transport your clothes to and from the dry cleaner. After an initial investment of about $200,000, the Green Garmento was born.

“June 2008, we got our first prototype,” Ms. Nigrosh recalls of the Christmas-morning-like feeling she had when they opened it. Then came disaster.

“It ripped,” Mr. Siegel said, grimacing.

“Gi-normous rippage,” agreed Ms. Nigrosh.

“We went from heaven to ‘Oh, no!’ in five seconds,” said Mr. Siegel.

Two years and several design improvements later, they say they’ve sold about 40,000 Green Garmentos — priced at about $5 wholesale, $9.99 retail — and expect to sell an additional 300,000 more by July 2011. And in March, they got their first outside financing, other than $100,000 that’s come from friends: $350,000 from a small cap investment fund put together by the Progressive Asset Management Group, a brokerage firm that specializes in what it sees as socially responsible investing.

The fund, which Mr. Siegel hopes will eventually raise $900,000 for the company, promises investors a 30 percent annual return on their money until it is repaid — via the first 9 percent of gross revenue.

Just as important, Mr. Siegel and Ms. Nigrosh say, they’ve begun to alter how a very set-in-its-ways industry thinks about doing business. For the Green Garmento to succeed requires not just a customer base, after all, but also a cultural shift within the dry-cleaning world. After all, a reusable bag, unlike disposable plastic, must be kept track of and returned to its owner.

The Green Garmento is not the first reusable cleaner bag. There’s a nylon rival out there, for example, called the Converta Bag that Mr. Siegel says he didn’t know about until they were already committed to their bag. (The Green Garmento is made of polypropylene, a recycled product derived from oil sludge.)

Mr. Siegel, 53, and Ms. Nigrosh, 44, say they’re glad for the competition. They’re trying to do more than make money. They’re trying to change the world.

“Single-use plastic at dry cleaners has gotten a pass,” Mr. Siegel said. “We’re not so much selling our bag as publicizing the concept of the bag.”

According to an analysis of 2005 census figures by the Drycleaning and Laundry Institute, 1.4 billion pieces of clothing and other items are professionally cleaned in the United States each year. If you figure that most cleaners wrap no more than two pieces in a bag, that’s at least 700 million bags a year, or 131 million pounds of plastic gathering dust in the back of our closets. At 5 to 8 cents a bag — plus twist ties and the like — that adds up, which is why even nonenvironmentally minded dry cleaners may be open to making the switch.

That means opportunity, said Mr. Siegel, who says hotels and cruise lines are Green Garmento’s other target customers. “If we can make it the Q-Tip, Kleenex or Xerox of the industry,” he said, “ours will be a $10 million-a-year company.”

Here’s how Jason Lafer introduced the Green Garmento to customers of his Linders French Cleaners in Bernardsville, N.J.: Last November, he informed his 730 pick-up-and-delivery clients that they’d be receiving no more plastic on their clothes. Instead, in a move he called “Greenvenient,” customers received two Green Garmento bags emblazoned with the Linders logo (for which he charged them $7 a bag).

Of those 730 customers, only 29 objected. Mr. Lafer, meanwhile, said he got double that number of phone calls of praise, which he found refreshing. “You usually only hear from people when they have a complaint,” he said.

In the months since, he’s decreased his plastic consumption by 69,020 bags, or more than 35 percent.

“Imagine if you multiply that by all the cleaners in the nation,” he said.

Mr. Siegel and Ms. Nigrosh are aware that as newcomers to the industry, they have much to learn. “We know we could be seen as Mr. and Mrs. Hollywood,” Ms. Nigrosh said, explaining why she spends so much time talking to established dry cleaners. “They’ve taught us a lot.”

But in this eco-image-conscious town, where the Prius is the car of choice for many an A-lister, they’d also be crazy not to reach out to entertainment industry players they know. Mr. Siegel spent 19 years as a manager, helping to develop the careers of talk show host Craig Ferguson, among others; Ms. Nigrosh has worked for Warner Brothers Records.

Recently, the couple got word that the Green Garmento may have landed its first product placement. Unless the scene is cut, it will be seen on a bus bench in a future episode of the Showtime series “Weeds.”

Talk about green.

READ THE ORIGINAL POST HERE

"Degradable" Plastic not so fantastic

Tue, 28 Sep 2010 02:06:40 +0000

The following article is from Edie Newsroom: http://www.edie.net/news/news_story.asp?id=17804

Plastic bags marked as degradable may not be as environmentally-friendly as consumers think, according to new research. Oxo-degradable plastics, which include additives to speed break down, may not break down fast enough and could have a negative effect on the environment a government funded study by Loughborough University says. The report says: "The overall conclusion of this review is that incorporation of additives into petroleum-based plastics that cause those plastics to undergo accelerated degradation does not improve their environmental impact and potentially gives rise to certain negative effects." It describes the term 'biodegradable' as 'virtually meaningless' as the rates of degradation in materials are so different. It suggests either more detail about the type of biodegradability is put on labels or the word is dropped and replaced with disposal instructions. The report says incineration is the best option for oxo-degradable plastics with landfill the next best option. Environment minister, Dan Norris, said: "As these plastics cannot be composted, the term 'biodegradable' can cause confusion. "Incorrect disposal of oxo-degradable plastics has the potential to negatively affect both recycling and composting facilities. "We hope this research will discourage manufacturers and retailers from claiming that these materials are better for the environment than conventional plastics." Supermarket chain the Co-operative has pledged to stop using the plastic. Co-op environment manager, Iain Ferguson, said: "We have already decided to stop purchasing carrier bags with the oxo-biodegradable additive and with the support of our customers and staff we have reduced carrier bag numbers by 60 per cent in the last three years." Products made from compostable plastic are tested and able to bio-degrade within six months. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs says updated guidance for businesses on making accurate claims about how green their products will be out for consultation this year. The report, Assessing the Environmental Impacts of Oxo-degradable Plastics Across their Life Cycle, was published last Thursday (March 11). To read it in full go to click here

By David Gibbs

Change is Hard: Seattle Voters Defeat Referendum on Plastic Bag Charge

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 08:00:00 +0000

On Wednesday, August 19, the voters of Seattle Washington had the unique opportunity to vote on a referendum to institute a $0.20 charge per plastic bag used at grocery and drug stores. Unfortunately, the referendum was defeated by 53%.

The group leading the charge against the referendum is The Progressive Bag Affiliates, a subsidiary of the American Chemistry Council. The ACC spent $1.4 million dollars to defeat the $0.20 charge. According to the Associated Press "this is the largest contribution to a local ballot measure in recent history. Supporters raised about $93,000." Reminds me a little of Phillip Morris and Prop 86 back in 2006.

Another responsible party for this pro-plastic bag movement is an organization called www.savetheplasticbag.com. This website has a grass roots appearance and is run mainly by Stephen Joseph, an attorney from San Francisco whose credentials include removing graffiti and banning trans fats. And after reading his resume, you almost want to like the guy. That is until he mentions that he was approached by the plastic manufacturing companies including Elkay Plastics Co. and Grand Packaging to spearhead this "cause." Joseph initially declined. But then after reading one article in the London Times, and "researching on the internet" he reconsidered. Sighting on his website that "He changed his mind and agreed to represent the industry and concerned citizens to get the truth out to the public. He is concerned that activists have become obsessed with plastic bags and are failing to disclose inconvenient environmental truths to the public and politicians. Spreading environmental misinformation is simply wrong."

Indeed. I am sure that he isn't taking a salary from the plastic manufacturing companies. No, he's being compensated by warm fuzzy feelings.

If you were to go to www.savetheplasticbag.com you would see their logo of a heart on plastic bag and find that their coalition... "was formed in June 2008. It is a group of businesses and citizens who are concerned about the environmental misinformation being spread in the anti-plastic bag campaign."

The site goes on to explain how plastic isn't really that bad for the environment and even tries to debunk the famous picture of a turtle with a plastic bag in its mouth sighting that "We don't know where the photograph came from. We can't tell if the turtle is eating a plastic bag or something else. We can't even tell whether the photograph is authentic." And that "Plastic grocery bags were introduced thirty years ago. If plastic bags are such a huge problem for marine mammals and seabirds as the anti-plastic bag activists maintain, then there would be thousands of photographs by now."

Well, plastic bags may be thirty years old but the pedestrian use of the internet is only about 12 years old. Furthermore, if one were to Google "plastic bag marine life" you would find thousands of sad pictures. Like this one.

The reason that I am writing this entry is not because I want to bash Save The Plastic Bag or Stephen Joseph. I am writing it to raise awareness about where you get your information when making your decision at the ballots. And that many times, (we have seen it all through history and are seeing it right now in Washington) groups that appear to have the interest of the tax payer are actually large companies that are bankrolling the charge of their own bottom line. Granted, I work for a reusable dry-cleaning bag company and referendums like the one in Seattle will help The Green Garmento's bottom line. However, TGG got into business because The President and the CEO are passionate about waste reduction. And rest assured, no one at TGG is flying in private jets or getting six figure bonuses. Okay well, we do have "Food Friday" when TGG buys lunch for all 3 of us at the office.

As stated in the title; change is hard. I watch my pennies like everyone else and I don't love the idea of paying for something that used to be free, But once you put a value on something, you treat it better and you reuse it. You are a lot less likely to throw it in the trash or "forget" your re-usable bags.

Change is hard when convenience justifies our actions and you feel as if "I'm just one person." It's easy to avoid doing what's right when we don't see the immediate gratification of our do-gooder deeds. I am with you, I understand. I am not super eco-green girl who lives off the grid. I am a modern American who is willing to make the sacrifice of $0.20 to help our environment.

Change is hard. But change is necessary.

Now for the plug: Get your FREE Green Garmento by going to: http://www.thegreengarmento.com/BASE/SS/get-free-bags/

Sources:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hZSdKkN-yEvs1cbmyblt2aCcvHGgD9A66V6G0

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/09/13/MNG7FL4KQO1.DTL

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff80/talkinitback/seallion-1.jpg

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article3508263.ece

http://www.savetheplasticbag.com/

Drycleaners Phase Out Plastic and Improve Profits With The Green Garmento Reusable Drycleaning Bag

Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:24:00 +0000

Drycleaners Phase Out Plastic and Improve Profits With The Green Garmento Reusable Drycleaning Bag Created to eliminate single-use plastic from drycleaning in the same way smaller totes do for groceries, The Green Garmento is having a second surprisingly positive impact: improving drycleaners' revenue. As a result, just six months from its introduction, the product is fast becoming a must-have for America's drycleaners. Green Apple Cleaners, New York City's acknowledged leader in eco-drycleaning, recently purchased 1,000 personalized Garmentos. As Green Apple president Chris Skelley explains, "These bags work for everyone. The hamper and duffel bag features are great for our customers, the side zipper makes it easy for our staff and the logo gives us an advertising presence. This is consistent with all of our other environmental initiatives, any economic gain is a welcome bonus." According to Victor Seyedin, owner of Lake City Cleaners, Chicago's pre-eminent green drycleaner, "In 2008 I spent over $35,000 protecting my clients' clothes. And each year these costs have increased. For $15,000, I can replace my single use bags, garment covers and route bags with Green Garmentos, then next year invest only $5,000 in replacement bags and for new customers." While the potential to save up to 40% in the first year and 80% every year thereafter is attractive, the program only works because of consumer enthusiasm. Bobby Sperling of Brentwood Royal Cleaners in Brentwood, California says, "Our customers love them. The Green Garmento complements our determination to be 'green' and having a stylish alternative gives us a major competitive advantage." Husband and wife team Rick Siegel and Jennie Nigrosh, The Green Garmento's creators, believe this is the beginning of a sea change. Siegel thinks reusable bags "will become the standard for transporting clothes. Currently, all legislation created to tax or prohibit single use plastic exempts drycleaning bags. As people learn there's a reusable alternative, that exception may disappear." The positive impact is undeniable: every drycleaner that transitions to The Green Garmento eliminates five to ten thousand pounds of plastic otherwise headed for our landfills. And this change is not just domestic, but global: Nigrosh reports distributor inquiries from around the world. "Already we have a distributor in Singapore and are speaking with potential distributors in Australia, Mexico, Uruguay, throughout Europe and even Botswana. We have a simple goal: to have a sustainable business that helps make a more sustainable world."

Hollywood Goes Green!

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:52:00 +0000

Hollywood Goes Green! At least two major Hollywood studios have hit on a cost-efficient way to cultivate good will among their environmentally conscious employees and the vocal and dedicated green actors who work on their lots. Both 20th Century Fox and Universal have turned over their tons of annual dry-cleaning to a local company committed to eliminating single use plastic dry-cleaning bags, 300 million pounds of which overflow land fills and clog waterways in the United States every year. For Earth Day this year, eco-friendly La Cienega Studio Cleaners Dmitry Tokar introduced to the studios The Green Garmento, the first affordable, reusable, multi-purpose garment bag that can efficiently replace the dreaded single-use plastic bags. In a pre-Earth Day event on the Fox lot, Tokar offered free samples of the Garmento, which is designed to hold multiple garments and is easily loaded and unloaded through a full-length zippered side opening. "The feedback was overwhelming," recalls Tokar. "By the end of the day, people from production companies to support staff to executives had all signed a waiting list for a Green Garmento." With Fox productions like "House" and "Bones," NBC/Universal's "Tonight Show," and dozens of other series at HBO, CBS, Sony, Warner Bros. and Paramount on his client list, Tokar becomes one of the most visible signs of the increasing greening of corporate Hollywood. Every La Cienega Studio Cleaners wardrobe delivery in a Green Garmento is a reminder that the entertainment industry is welcoming practical, inexpensive, effective solutions. About The Green Garmento: Introduced in October 2008 to the dry cleaning industry, THE GREEN GARMENTO first serves as a hamper, then transforms into a duffel to carry clothes to a dry cleaner, then morphs into a hanging garment bag to protect the clean clothes for the trip home. www.thegreengarmento.com About La Cienega Studio Cleaners: The West Hollywood-based business has been servicing the motion picture and television industries for over 30 years and provide service for most production companies filming in the greater Los Angeles area and services all Hollywood studio lots.

Jodi here for The Green Garmento

Fri, 27 Mar 2009 15:09:00 +0000

Jodi here for The Green Garmento Hi ya’ll! (Too much Texas? I’ll try to rein it in.) So here’s my story. I was born and raised in the great state of Texas, graduated from The University of Texas at Austin (Hook em’ Horns!) in May 2008, and promptly moved out west to Hollywood! I fell in love with the beach and proceeded to have one awesome summer. Then, this little Texas girl took on a big ole’ fashion show national tour- it was crazy! All my time in beautiful Cali got me thinkin’ green, and when the opportunity came up to handle the social networking for The Green Garmento I was instantly on board. I moved back home because I wanted to be near my family. I am so lucky because I get to rock out the Green Garmento all the way from Texas. I’m super stoked about the Blogmento- I love to write and I am excited to keep learning about what I can do to go green! Here’s where I call in reinforcements – what can YOU tell me about going green? Why is it important to you? What changes have you made in your life? Got any good tips for me? As for Kermit, I would never want to rumble with Ms. Piggy. Reminding you to Be Fantastic…Use Less Plastic! ~Jodi

Meet Team Green Garmento

Fri, 27 Mar 2009 13:45:00 +0000

Meet Team Green Garmento We'll be introducing you to the members of our Team Green Garmento one blog at a time. Today, meet Jodi. We heart Jodi. She runs our social networking sites and is super cool, smart and sassy. I can say sassy, it's quirky. Some fun Jodi facts: She's from Texas. So if you hear an accent in her blogs, that's why. She's great in front of crowds. She MC'd a huge fashion show we produced together and the crowd loved her more than they loved the guest celeb. Let's see, what else; Oh ya, she's part of Team Green Garmento because she very passionate about all things green. Except Kermit. That's between Jodi and the frog. OK Jodi, take it away!

Drycleaners are people too

Sun, 15 Mar 2009 00:43:00 +0000

Drycleaners are people too When Rick (my husband) and I started The Green Garmento, we realized it would be a big departure from our day-to-day life working in the entertainment industry. Not only would we have to stop swearing like sailors, we'd have to learn a new, complicated business and speak a whole new language. And we'd have to forge new relationships with a group of people we didn't know. It was a little scary. But from the day we introduced The Green Garmento at The Fabricare Drycleaners Convention in August, we knew we knew everything would be OK. We met hundreds and hundreds of drycleaning professionals. Mostly store and plant owners. They were families, married couples, grandparents and part-time teachers. They were third generation drycleaners from Las Vegas and brand new store owners in Downtown LA . And there was Rick and Jennie, the outspoken couple from Hollywood, introducing a prototype of an alien product. We were hoping to continue our market research and make the best bag we could, specifically designed with the cleaner's system and needs in mind - and what better place than a convention hall full 'o cleaners. Everyone was amazing. Not kidding. Truly the nicest, most welcoming group of folks we could have hoped for. Rick's theory for the overwhelming kindness we received is because drycleaners have to be nice to their customers all day so their brain is stuck on nice. I think there's more to it. Not the least of which is their enthusiasm for the eco-nature of our bags. The cleaners really wanted to learn how to stop plastic waste. They wanted to learn how to make The Green Garmento work with their customers, their systems and their budget. We got feedback about pockets, zippers, drawstrings, sizes and colors. We learned the difference between a counter bag and poly bag. We learned about Perc and H2O, new machines vs. old machines and so much more. Needless to say, we are thrilled to be on this journey. Hopefully, we'll help reduce plastic waste and make some good friends along the way.