About Us

Walking Lightly, LLC (TM) offers convenient options to help community members live more sustainably by providing a storefront refillery and zero waste shop in Ferndale, MI. We offer local delivery using deposit jars, kind of like the milkman, just home and body goods instead. We want to make it easy to skip the single-use plastic packaging, because we believe in caring for our planet. We also believe that environmentalism is inextricably tied to environmental justice. As we grow this business we are committed to being a part of both micro and macro efforts to grow our communities in sustainability and equity. 

Walking Lightly’s founder, Tessa, is a social worker, yoga instructor, and mother of three who has lived in Royal Oak since 2007. As the impact of our consumerism on the environment and need to make change has become more evident, she committed to switching to low-waste options. When she couldn’t find them conveniently in her community, the idea for Walking Lightly was born. A poster in Tessa’s childhood bedroom with a quote from Barbara Ward has served as inspiration for the name. And indeed, “We have forgotten how to be good guests, how to walk lightly on the Earth as its other creatures do.”

In Walking Lightly, we hope you will find a partner in making the lower-waste choices that work best for you. We are committed to being a non-judgmental resource, and we think that any efforts to reduce waste are to be celebrated! So ask us questions, tell us what works for you, let us know how we can help, and if you see Tessa and Layla (loyal co-pilot) out in your neighborhood making deliveries, be sure to say hello!