She took a trip to Denver, Colo. in December 2024 where she saw a refillery, a retail store where customers can bring in their own containers to refill with household products.
This was after Belangia-Sanchez was already making her own household products such as hand soap and laundry detergent.
Credit: Natalie Jones
Credit: Natalie Jones
“We need this in Dayton,” Belangia-Sanchez said. “That got my wheels spinning.”
With a desire to shop local and to create a network of people, she started brainstorming with her friend, Bridget Flaherty.
“By the end of our conversation, we came up with a subscription service with boxes of locally created goods,” Flaherty said.
What is Living Local Dayton?
Living Local Dayton is a new subscription box service that delivers handcrafted essentials from local artisans and small-scale creators to those within a 20-mile distance of downtown Dayton.
“We are going to be driving the boxes around ourselves. We’re going to be making the boxes here in downtown (and) sourcing the stuff locally,” Flaherty said. “That reduces our carbon footprint, which reduces our customers’ carbon footprint.”
The company currently offers three boxes:
- Bath & Body Basics Box (two artisan bar soaps, foaming hand soap, shampoo, conditioner and a bonus item) $45
- Household Cleaning Box (laundry detergent tablets, dishwasher tablets, dishwashing liquid, all purpose cleaner, a handmade dish towel and a bonus item) $45
- Clean & Care Bundle (all items from the Bath & Body Basics Box and Household Cleaning Box) $79
Subscriptions launched Sept. 15. For those that order within two weeks of the launch date, they will get their first delivery around Oct. 3.
“Our goal is that when you get your Bath & Body Box, you will have what you need for that month,” Flaherty said. “Whether or not that comes from the same vendor may change, but the basics that you get in the box will be the same or similar items.”
Every item is carefully selected to ensure quality, sustainability and care.
Packaging is important to the owners. Once customers get their first foaming hand soap bottle, the next refill will come in a biodegradable bag.
“We’re trying to reduce waste, but also we’re trying to create community,” Flaherty said. “We’re trying to network with other people that are doing this kind of work locally.”
Supporting local entrepreneurs
The October box will feature Fox in Socks Soapery, a local bath and body brand founded in 2015 with a mission to create high quality soaps and skin care products with fewer chemicals and as many locally sourced ingredients as possible.
Living Local Dayton has not only collaborated with them on products for the boxes, but have supported them as vendors.
Belangia-Sanchez has a background in procurement, so she has been working with the owners on where they can source their ingredients other than Amazon.
“Our goal is not just to have local vendors stuff in boxes. It’s to create a community where we’re all supporting one another,” Flaherty said.
Their goal is to help local entrepreneurs source their products together in bulk to lower costs and increase profit margins.
Filling a gap in the market
When they were looking for local vendors to source products for the boxes, they found that it was hard to find cleaning supplies made in the Dayton area.
In addition, they knew that they needed to make a profit somehow, so they began their own cleaning supply company, Bee Green.
“I was making a lot of these things anyways all by myself for use at my house,” Belangia-Sanchez said.
Bee Green provides the laundry detergent tablets, dishwasher tablets, dishwashing liquid, all purpose cleaner and foaming hand soap for the boxes.
Flaherty is also making the dish towels that will appear in the Household Cleaning Box.
Creating a local ecosystem
Living Local Dayton wants to create a blueprint for other entrepreneurs to launch similar models in their own cities.
“The instability that Daytonians are feeling is the instability that Americans are feeling right now, and it is a call to action,” Belangia-Sanchez said. “It is a call to action to bring everything as much as humanly possible within our local community.”
They want to be an example for how others can create local ecosystems to compete with big box stores.
“For every dollar we spend in Dayton, 82 cents of that $1 stays in Dayton,” Belangia-Sanchez said. “That means women support their families better when we buy local, as opposed to the 24 cents that stays in our community when we buy at Kroger.
They plan to create at least two other boxes such as a premium bath and body box featuring products like deodorant, face wash and lotion and a box focusing on pets.
Meet the owners
Belangia-Sanchez, who is originally from South Carolina, moved to Dayton more than 20 years ago.
She opened an insurance agency with American Family Insurance before diving into the world of sourcing, supply chains and sales of industrial goods.
Belangia-Sanchez opened Epic Blade & Industrial Solutions, followed by TK Solutions.
Flaherty, who is originally from Pennsylvania, moved to Dayton nearly 20 years ago.
With a background in database development, business analyst and project management, she spent time doing business process improvement consulting.
She co-founded Empower HER, a monthly panel conversation for women in the community.
A year later, she founded LORE Storytelling, a company that offers coaching, workshops and live events to help individuals and businesses connect with their personal stories.
Flaherty is also the author of “Be the Journey,” a book featuring 365 daily mantras, reflections and action prompts.
“Dayton has created some amazing people,” Flaherty said. “We have a welcoming community, an involved community, and I want to be part of what Dayton is becoming.”
MORE DETAILS
Living Local Dayton is looking for additional vendors to be featured in their subscription boxes.
For more information, visit livinglocaldayton.com or the business’s Facebook (@livinglocaldayton) or Instagram (@livinglocaldyt) pages.
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