The Soap Dispensary & Kitchen Staples
3718 Main Street V5V 3N7 Vancouver, BC, Canada

What an eloquent piece celebrating Black creators by Abram X Kendi, the author of How to be Antiracist. There is still so much for me and possibly many of you to learn and work towards being supportive allies and antiracist. And though there cannot be any comparison of our histories and struggles, his point about moving beyond the white gaze resonates deeply with me as a POC. Enjoy!

@acropolisorganics blonde olives are currently 40% off while supplies last! They are handpicked and cured in the traditional way, only using spring water, sea salt, and vinegar. These whole, organic olives are definitely a staff favourite! Best consumed by end of May! #acropolisorganics #thesoapdispensary #refillvancouver #lowwasteliving #organic

We have proudly refilled @domsdeodorant for many years and I use to enjoy my little catch up time with Dominica when she delivered to us (all the way from Salt Spring Island.) She was the embodiment of kindness and realness with a big splash of fun and good nature. And she was willing to make her deodorant bulk for us - at a time when no one made bulk deodorant! From my memory, there was no big fuss or ceremony- just filled into big mason jars and we got refilling! Two Christ...mas ago, Dominica sent me an email to say that she wanted to send me some money to put towards a Christmas meal for my staff because they worked hard and helped educate our customers about her products. Her generous gift bought my entire team lunch from a neighbouring restaurant! I was really touched. I am so grateful to have known Dominica and feel so glad that her company continues on in very capable hands that honours who she was.

Some beautiful new ceramic soap saver dishes have just arrived in store along with a restock of the silicone version! The draining spout allows for the natural runoff of excess water and the raised ridge in the middle of the dish allows air to flow around your bar extending its life and keeping it from going soft You can find these dishes in store or you can add them to your online order!... #thesoapdispensary #thesoapdispensaryandkitchenstaples #kitchenstaples #zerowastevancouver #lowwastelifestyle #shoplocal #supportlocal #explorebc #yvr #mainstreetvancouver #zerowastemovement #zerowastelifestyle #saynotoplastic #zerowastebulk #BYOC #lowimpact #bringyourown #goingzerowaste #refillvancouver

We have some great news! Our amazing staff have been working so hard and have caught up on online orders! This means we will be resuming regular lead times It also means that we have lots of orders ready to go, so if you’ve received an email from us, we would love for you to come pick up your order! Thank you all so much for your patience with us while we were backed up with orders! We hope to see you all soon ... #thesoapdispensary #thesoapdispensaryandkitchenstaples #kitchenstaples #lowwastelifestyle #sushiricerecipe #shoplocal #supportlocal #explorebc #yvr #mainstreetvancouver #zerowastemovement #zerowastelifestyle #saynotoplastic #zerowastebulk #BYOC #lowimpact #bringyourown #goingzerowaste #zerowastevancouver #refillvancouver

We will be closed this coming Wednesday, November 11th for Remembrance Day. We want to show our gratitude to all who served to protect our rights, but especially we want to take the time to acknowledge that yesterday was National Indigenous Veterans Day. This is a time for us to remember and commemorate the contributions of Indigenous Veterans in the First and Second World Wars, as well as the Korean War. We want to acknowledge and thank them for their service to Canada and for protecting the rights that were not extended to them at the time. #thesoapdispensary #remembranceday #nationalindigenousveteransday

Happy Friday everyone! Following the recommendations from our local health authorities, we will now be requiring all customers to wear a mask in our store! Thank you for keeping us all safe #thesoapdispensary #thesoapdispensaryandkitchenstaples #kitchenstaples #zerowastevancouver #lowwastelifestyle #sushiricerecipe #shoplocal #supportlocal #explorebc #yvr #mainstreetvancouver #zerowastemovement #zerowastelifestyle #saynotoplastic #zerowastebulk #BYOC #lowimpact #bringyourown #goingzerowaste #zerowastevancouver #refillvancouver #wearamask

Supplier Feature Friday! @lemeadowspantry is a small batch preserving company specializing in marmalade These beautiful artisan jams and marmalades use primarily local fruit, are cooked by hand and each 250ml jar contains at least half a pound of fruit They are so special because they make their small batch preserves in copper preserving or enameled cast iron pans, and truly are a labour of love! Each pan produces about a dozen jars, which is more work for them, bu...t this is how they achieve such delicious preserves! They also don’t use pectin as a filler, which is common practice in other companies. Certain fruits contain almost no pectin, so when needed they use pure apple pectin or make their own citrus pectin (this helps the jam to thicken)! They don’t use any added preservatives (just lemon juice!) or food colouring - their bright, shiny colour of their preserves comes from cooking them as quickly as possible in very small batches. While not certified organic, using local, sustainably farmed fruit is one of their top priorities We carry a number of different jams and marmalades and cannot wait for you to try them If any of you have gotten into sourdough baking like we have, these preserves are a must!

Who knows what we refill from our taps?! #thesoapdispensary #kitchenstaples #zerowastevancouver #refillrevolution #shoplocal #mainstreetvancouver #supportlocal #explorebc #yvr #refillnotlandfill

Our favourite Weck jars are restocked and ready to transform your pantry into #pantrygoals #thesoapdispensary #thesoapdispensaryandkitchenstaples #zerowastelifestyle #shoplocal #weckjars #mainstreetvancouver #lowwastevancouver

Congratulations Unbuilders and its founder, Adam Corneil! We love everything about what they do and are so happy they will have a strong backing to expand and recycle more homes! I had the pleasure to hear Adam speak last year and it really touched me when he described visiting Europe and seeing famous buildings that were 600 years old and reflecting that our buildings right here in Canada were made with trees that were 600 years old and older? Such a shame that we are demolishing and landfilling our old growth! And now we know it's value. Recycling at its true form!

Some great gardening and food scrap hacks! I still prefer sprouting with glass jars over plastic but it shows you can grow food without much equipment or cost. I have never successfully grown cilantro and excited to try with my colander! Banana fertilizer ... Also instead of paper towel, maybe try reusing the Kraft paper bags you may have accumulated from buying bulk.

P L A S T I C F R E E mascara! What an exciting time to be alive we are so happy to offer this option from our friends at @birchbabenaturals ! We also carry beautiful bamboo mascara wands from the lovely @elatecosmetics This is an all natural mascara that goes on creamy and lasts all day without smudging! Black is great for darker hair or a more dramatic look. How to use:... Step 1: wet wand under tap or in a cute bowl Step 2: Roll wand over mascara cake until covered Step 3: Wipe off excess mascara on tin edge Step 4: Apply mascara to lashes with wand (repeat depending on desired look) Step 5: Wash wand after each use with soap and water to keep clean between uses #thesoapdispensary #birchbabenaturals #elatecosmetics #lowwastelifestyle #shoplocal #supportlocal #zerowastebeauty #crueltyfree #crueltyfreebeauty #crueltyfreecosmetics #yvr #explorebc

We highly recommend watching @gatherfilm. It’s a beautiful uplifting doc about the (let’s be honest!) genocide of First Nations of America (and also Canada) and their absolute resilience and grace dealing with so much loss. This documentary is very relevant right now to what is happening across Canada from the Wet’suwet’en to the Mi’kmaq nations. We need to unlearn the lies we were taught in school and the media and movies (like old westerns!!!) Let’s uphold indigenous rights, sovereignty, enterprises and lives. #indigenousrising #foodsovereignty

Argan oil is an incredibly versatile oil that is great for both skin and hair. It is a favoured oil for face serums and moisturizers and can even be used as a stand-alone face oil. If you’re not in the DIY mood, you can also try the one made by our friends at @schmearnaturals Both our Deodorized and Virgin Argan Oil varieties and the @schmearnaturals Argan & Tamanu face oil are available in bulk ... . . . . #thesoapdispensary #carrieroils #zerowasteskincare #plasticfreevancouver #zerowastevancouver #lowwastevancouver #lowwastelifestyle #zerowasteliving #explorebc #shoplocal #supportlocal #vancouver #smallbusiness See more

For those of us on the sustainability team, how do we motivate everyone else without shaming, nagging, annoying and ultimately, turning them off?

It is estimated that a crazy 5 000 000 000 lbs (yes, that is billion!) of returned goods are thrown in the landfill by retailers each year in the US alone? Please check out the shocking investigation on free returns from Amazon on @cbcmarketplace recently? The episode is called Tracking Amazon Returns. Consider what you buy and if you really need to return a product. Have you intentionally bought 2 options (sizes, colours, material, etc) with the intention of returning th...e unwanted one? Did you find a better deal elsewhere and returned the first one? What about returning because of poor quality but you couldn’t see that online? If you can’t use a purchase, can it be gifted, repurposed, resold, traded, donated? Please consider supporting independent, local businesses, mom and pops, brick and mortars! We may have tougher return policies but it is because we are being responsible with our products and honour the work and resources that went into making them.

We will be closed Monday for the stat holiday! We hope you all are able to enjoy some quality time with your loved ones We are open Saturday and Sunday for all your soap and kitchen staples needs!! #thesoapdispensary

Royal Herbs Laugh Lines Lotion is 30% off until October 31st! We have 3 packages sizes as well as a refill option! This luxurious face cream is great for sensitive or dry skin and is very nourishing and soothing, with ingredients such as rose hip oil, jojoba oil, vitamin E, CoQ10, and aloe. CoQ10 is a fantastic antioxidant that fights free radicals, environmental toxins and sun damage. Your winter skin will thank you Royal Herbs offers organic, botanical-based products tha...t have been developed with a holistic philosophy. They are inspired by the healing power of herbs and the sustainability of locally grown and crafted natural, organic products. #thesoapdispensary #thesoapdispensaryandkitchenstaples #kitchenstaples #zerowastevancouver #lowwastelifestyle #shoplocal #supportlocal #explorebc #yvr #mainstreetvancouver #zerowastemovement #zerowastelifestyle #saynotoplastic #zerowastebulk #BYOC #lowimpact #bringyourown #goingzerowaste #zerowastevancouver #refillvancouver #zerowasteskincare #royalherbs #coq10 #lowwasteskincare

How are we not panicking? This pandemic showed us we can pull together and flatten the curve. It also showed us we couldn't sustain it long term for economic and social reasons. How do we take these wartime measures and make it a new reality?

October 1st was our birthday! This year was like no other we have ever experienced. We can only really focus on what we are grateful for and continue to help shape the world we want to live in post-pandemic. Thank you so much for your support this year. We appreciate you sticking by us as we went from refilling 20 000 containers monthly to 0 as mandated by our health authorities during this pandemic! We never imagined how quickly we could have pivoted but this is what being a...Continue reading

As we head into the colder months, it’s so important to take care of our skin! Luckily, we have some beautiful new products from our friends at @schmearnaturals that will help keep your skin feeling it’s best Along with their amazing superfood face masks, we are now carrying the Argan + Tamanu face oil, the Rosehip + Sea Buckthorn face oil, and the Matcha + Kelp cleansing powder (both bulk and packaged options are available) We love these products because they are handmad...e locally from real food and plant ingredients, they are 100% vegan and cruelty free and they are formulated with sensitive skin in mind #thesoapdispensary #thesoapdispensaryandkitchenstaples #kitchenstaples #zerowastevancouver #lowwastelifestyle #sushiricerecipe #shoplocal #supportlocal #explorebc #yvr #mainstreetvancouver #zerowastemovement #zerowastelifestyle #saynotoplastic #zerowastebulk #BYOC #lowimpact #bringyourown #goingzerowaste #zerowastevancouver #refillvancouver #cleanskincareproducts #crueltyfreebeauty

Sea Smart’s Ocean Match Cards are a fun way to teach kids of all ages about the ocean and it’s animals! With fun illustrations and different ways to play, you’ll be engaged for hours! Every game you buy helps support Sea Smart’s education programs. They are a Canadian charity whose mission is to inspire and empower people to love and protect our oceans. @seasmartschool #thesoapdispensary #seasmart #seasmartschool #oceanmatchgame #canadiancharity #educationprograms