Plastic-free and sustainable living in Szeged: Judit Rója-Gergely introducing the TEBE zero-waste shop

Plastic-free July is the most important month of the year for people interested in sustainability and looking for options to live a more eco-friendly life. Where to start in Szeged and what are our options? One of those is the TEBE zero-waste shop at József Attila Avenue, which opened less than a year ago. We sat down to talk with shop co-owner Judit Rója-Gergely about her experiences right before one of their workshops a few weeks ago.

Why and when did you decide to open a zero-waste shop in Szeged?

I was always a fan of green and zero-waste solutions. During the pandemic, I started working in home office, and without having to commute every day, all of a sudden I had some extra time and energy to get creative. That was the time when we started thinking about opening a zero-waste shop.

Did you have experience in retail before?

No. I have some business experience, but not in retail.

Was it easy to open TEBE Szeged?

I would say yes and no. We started brainstorming with Csilla, the founder and owner of TEBE Zero Waste. Back then, she had only one shop, the very first TEBE in the country, in Békéscsaba. We started talking about franchise possibilities and went through all the details. The hardest part was finding a suitable place in Szeged for the shop. Everything else went pretty smoothly. Nine months passed from the first idea to the actual opening of the shop.

You introduced yourself as the co-owner of TEBE Szeged. Do you share tasks with your business partner?

We opened TEBE Szeged with my husband, so it is a family business. We share tasks, this way we are much more productive. I am in charge of the shop and my husband, Levente, is in charge of the café. Of course, we share our ideas and help each other with brainstorming.

Can you tell us something about the product range?

Let’s start with food ingredients: we stock a wide range of spices, pasta, granola, dried fruits, nuts, flour, jams, honey, etc. TEBE Szeged also offers various natural cosmetics, from shampoo bars to soaps, face creams, deodorants, and so on. We stock mainly Hungarian products, but also have international partners.

At TEBE we consider it important to offer high-quality products and support small businesses, hence, most of our products come from small-scale producers and family farms. We monitor the demands of our guests and try to widen our product range accordingly.

What are your favorite zero-waste products from the shop?

Oh, I have many. I love the house cleaning product range we stock at TEBE Szeged. I use these at home for all types of cleaning tasks and I’m very satisfied with the results. We have a great range of zero-waste women’s hygiene items, and sustainable solutions for hair removal, for both men and women. For example, the men’s shaving brush has become my husband’s favorite. Another specialty that we stock is the dog shampoo bar with neem oil and the dog paw balm.

Anything you would like to highlight?

We have set up a new tester corner, where you can test products of the zero-waste cosmetic line Fleur de Lin. We take back empty chili sauce bottles and cosmetic jars bought in our shop.

I would also like to highlight the café, which is a signature feature of TEBE shops all over the country.

Tell us more about the café!

Our vision is to make grocery shopping a relaxing slow-life experience instead of sitting in traffic jams on the way to shopping malls and then rushing to the counters. So we’ve created an indoor café space with a kid’s corner - excellent for a chat with a friend or just to rest with a cup of coffee or tea between your daily tasks. This is where our workshops take place. We also have an outdoor terrace area.

Apart from coffee and tea, we offer handmade gluten, dairy, and sugar-free cookies, as well as vegan pies, ice cream, and other delicacies. Of course, these are also available for takeaway.

We offer specialty coffee that’s available both in dark and light roast, and you can even choose flavored, or caffeine-free versions.

Are the shop and the café pet-friendly?

Unfortunately, due to regulations concerning food items without packaging, we cannot allow pets inside the shop and the café, but they are welcome to join us on the terrace.

There will be a workshop right after our interview. What is today’s topic?

Today’s workshop will be about the first steps in zero-waste living. Csilla, the owner and founder of TEBE Hungary comes to talk about how to start a zero-waste lifestyle step by step.

Community building and mentoring have been basic elements of Csilla’s project from the very beginning, so workshops like this one are regularly available in all TEBE shops all over Hungary and online too.

Do you offer any other services at TEBE Szeged?

Apart from the workshops, we are regularly asked to give talks about zero-waste living. We can participate in events, visit schools or workplaces to advise about best practices during shopping, for example.

On Saturday mornings I offer a zero-waste shopping tour, where I guide participants to the market, show them where to buy grocery or meat products, take them to the TEBE shop and help them with advice if needed. Our services are available in English too.

How can someone contact you?

I think the easiest way to contact us is to message us on social media. We are very active on Instagram and this is the best place to read about our news, new products, promotions, and workshops. You can also find us on Facebook and TikTok.