Twenty years ago, “green” merchandise filled a small niche market. In the U.S. economy, environmentalists were comparatively minor players, a group that mainstream American shoppers associated with hyper-socially-responsible activists and nostalgic throwbacks from the hippie movement. The shift toward green becoming mainstream creates new opportunity, but also poses a new challenge, for the small-niche, eco friendly merchant.

The challenge arises from rapidly expanding competition from nationally recognized brands. Brand reputation has a significant impact on whether the mainstream green consumer trusts advertising. When going green is something new, trust is a concern. Consumers are wary of having to sacrifice quality for the environment. Will the eco friendly gift be a disappointment at Christmas because it is lower quality? Will the organic cotton bathrobe be as thick and soft? Will the recycled billboard purse be well made? Consumers are also rapidly becoming aware of "greenwashing" and the last thing they want is to be taken in by misleading claims. Faced with these uncertainties, many will turn to companies they trust. When viewing a column of Google ads for organic cotton bedding, most will gravitate to Pottery Barn over an anonymous pitch for “Eco Friendly Bedding.” When shopping for recycled drinking glasses, they are more likely to pick the familiar Crate and Barrel option over “Recycled Glassware.”

One resource that can help the smaller green merchant to compete in this market is wide selection. This is achieved when smaller green merchants band together to participate in virtual malls. Websites such as Pristine Planet gather together eco friendly merchandise from hundreds of small merchants, providing a breadth of selection that even large nationally known retailers cannot match. These virtual eco friendly shopping centers also save the consumer who is committed to going green from having to sift through products to find the environmentally friendly options. WeBuyItGreen offers a distinctive twist on the green shopping mall by including products from both nationally known brands and smaller green merchants alongside one another. This allows the smaller merchant to benefit from placement next to larger, trusted names, much the same way that smaller merchants benefit from anchor stores in brick and mortar malls.

Without the benefit of a recognized name brand, the smaller green merchant’s best resource for creating trust is information. When asked how they can compete with nationally recognized brands, many small-niche merchants emphasize the “customer service” they provide. Information is a major component of customer service in the eco friendly market. People often do not know which product is better for the environment and why. Small green merchants are often the people with expertise on this. They know how cotton vs. hemp vs. polyester fabric is created and the difference that makes to the environment. They know who provides earth friendly packaging at the best price and what difference that makes. They know what is required to obtain a USDA approved organic label. Small merchants who effectively share this kind of knowledge and develop a reputation for reliability are placing themselves in the best position to compete with the challenge posed by national name recognition.