Recent headlines may give eco entrepreneurs a reason to worry!… In fact some of the bigger independent players in the natural and organic arena are doing just that according to a recent NY Times article.

“The whole landscape is shifting, and I think everyone is struggling to redefine their strategy in the midst of huge change that ain’t finished,” said Jeffrey Hollender, the president of Seventh Generation…

My concern, when I saw that Clorox entered the market, was that they would pose a threat and a big one, to smaller manufacturers.

The core of the issue is usually the distribution deals that large, established companies are able to make with large well known retailers. For example, it’s much easier for Clorox to sell one more line of products into Wal-Mart than it is for a small eco-cleaner company. Conversely, as Wal-Mart begins to look for green brands smaller companies which once only sold their products to natural stores suddenly have the opportunity to enter the big chains.

It turns out, I was right. As often happens, it didn’t take long for Clorox to flex its marketing muscle and dominate the category.

Clorox’s green gamble appears to be paying off: A year after the company launched its Green Works line of natural cleaning products, the brand has established itself as a leader in the category, capturing 42% market share.

Clorox’s move was only smart business. As they saw smaller natural manufacturers steal market share points, albeit only a few, from their core line product, they sought a way to reverse the flow. Grenworks was the answer, a timely one as the trend toward green was and is moving to a tipping point.

As I write this a year later, I wonder about ecopreneurs impacted by the Clorox decision to enter the green space. Larger, well know natural branded products, like Seventh Generation, may have the ability to compete. Retailers rarely like to have only one brand name in a category – it’s so much more fun to have them compete for shelf space (that is cough up the dough for placement and promotions).

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SimplyNeutral received the Co-Op America Seal of Approval because they are a company dedicated to these philosophies. The company was founded by Maggie and later joined by Sara. Together, this dynamic duo created natural cleaning products that really work.

My favorite product on the website are the Biodegradable Wipes. These wipes can be used on people (think baby wipe replacement) or for cleaning purposes. They are gentle, non-toxic, biodegradable, bleach free, durable and 100% natural. To expand the little disc, simply add a tablespoon of water. These are great to carry in handbags, diaper bags, the glove box, etc… The company carries a select few products (like these wipes) which are produced by other companies and filled a needed niche).

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