With adventurous spirit and enduring character, eco-preneur Brooke Schultz lends her unique perspective of the world to the retail industry, putting a new twist on shopping and the community in which she lives. Her lifelong environmental ethic, combined with an array of unexpected life events, taught Brooke to look beyond the ordinary to create a better world and through her retail endeavors hopes to spread the message to others.
A native of Mississippi’s Gulf Coast, Brooke grew up in a world where composting was the norm, pesticides were never used and reusing what you had was a way of life. Because of this her creativity flourished and at a young age learned, that just like when composting, something great can indeed come from what others might consider nothing. Her sky’s-the-limit aptitude for life led her to University of Southern Mississippi and then Tulane University, where in addition to finding her entrepreneurial zeal, she discovered her passion for skydiving. Never one to settle for ordinary, Brooke rose within the ranks of Pfizer’s Sales Divisions, while, at the same time, pursuing over 1550 skydives and becoming a member of the Women’s World Record team in Vertical Formation.
Then in 2005 Hurricane Katrina ravished her hometown and took with it all her childhood possessions. Though Brooke experienced the devastation from her new home in Atlanta, she couldn’t help but drop everything to help friends and family rebuild in their time of need. In a society where over consumption thrives, her experiences made her recognize the value of goods and materials and the importance of using every little thing to its fullest potential. Through the devastating aftermath of the hurricane, Brooke was overcome with the resilience of her Mississippi community and their “make something out of nothing” attitude brought back her creative childhood upbringing. Brooke’s original idea embodied the recycled gift idea because she really felt like we have enough “stuff in our lives”. Through research and hours of scouring other artists work, it was clear the concept of selling only recycled art and gifts was one that needed to be tried.
As Brooke continues to grow this remarkable Atlanta gift store, Re-Inspiration, she hopes to expand her involvement with Atlanta’s green community and help influence a consumer shift to more sustainable goods and responsible practices.
