By Logan C. Ritchie, contributor 

Greater Decatur, GA — A sustainable delivery experience is expanding in Greater Decatur when The Rounds opens a warehouse this month, servicing the 30033 zip code.

The Rounds is a zero-waste delivery service for dry goods essentials. The company started in New York in 2019, and is now also operating in Atlanta, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Miami and Chicago.

When customers sign up for a membership to The Rounds, they get customizable, weekly deliveries to their door by bicycle. Products vary from coffee and olive oil to shampoo bars and hand soap in reusable containers.

“Our members love that they don’t have to buy 30 rolls of toilet paper or paper towels in order to get good pricing,” said Eddy Sun, general manager of The Rounds. “We sell it on an individual basis at a similar price to what you would get it for at Costco.”

The Rounds sources products from some of the biggest national suppliers, Sun said.

“We source products in large quantities to buy in bulk. At The Rounds facilities, we take products from large packaging into our glass jars and reusable packaging sizes,” Sun said. “We don’t totally eliminate waste. We minimize it a lot.”

After they’ve been repackaged to smaller sizes, products like olive oil, hand soap and coffee are dropped at a customer’s door every Wednesday. The following week, the customer leaves the jars outside for The Rounds to pick up.

Approximately 30% of The Rounds’ products are locally made, like salsa verde from homegrown tomatoes by Tomatl Foods and ground coffee and coffee beans by Chrome Yellow. The best-selling local item is granola by We Three Girls, a Decatur-based company.

According to the website, the average household discards more than 1,200 pounds of packaging waste per year. That’s almost four pounds of packaging per day. As a company that values sustainability, The Rounds is working with Center for Hard to Recycle Materials in Chosewood Park to properly recycle plastics.

Sun said The Rounds is in discussions about expansion outside the perimeter.

“We’ve done a ton of events and farmers markets and festivals, and there’s been a ton of demand outside the perimeter. We’re definitely looking to expand OTP as quickly as possible,” Sun said.

Sun said The Rounds is excited about what the future holds.

“It’s not as important to be in as many cities as possible. It’s important to prove that this model works in different types of cities. So far, we’re very happy with how things have gone,” Sun said.

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