seattle community

Seattle Community

Our flagship store is in Seattle’s SoDo neighborhood, just a couple of miles south of Pioneer Square. Our spacious showroom, remodeled in 2008, provides customers with a new retail experience that’s based on the way people really shop for building materials. An interactive resource center where patrons can play, create and discover, the Seattle showroom is a prototype for our other stores.

Though we’ve moved a couple of times (see our history), we’ve been serving the Seattle area since 1992. Our mission then was the same as it is now: to offer sustainably made products that perform as well and look as stylish as conventional ones, without costing more.

We’ve grown by magnitudes, but our founder is still here, making sure that we remain true to our roots. As always, we have an exceptionally well-trained sales team to provide you with candid, credible information about every product we sell. We also offer professional design and installation services and home delivery.

As grateful members of the Seattle community, we give back in a variety of ways to the city that has supported us. We sponsor green building projects and donate materials to Habitat for Humanity. We have store tours for design students, and we donate event space for local nonprofit organizations. Our showroom is a community drop-off spot for CFL bulb recycling, and a pick-up location for Community Supported Agriculture. We’ve received an award for our Commute Trip Reduction program, which supports employees who want to leave their cars at home. As we see it, being a good corporate citizen is just good business practice. We’re thrilled to have a presence in a city that embraces that philosophy.

Upcoming Events

Driving Directions - Avoid Construction

Starting on Sunday October 18th, 2009, Spokane Street will be closed in both directions due to road construction. An alternate route that we recommend if you are coming from I-5 is as follows:

  • From I-5 North or South, take Exit 162 - Corson Ave S. / S. Michigan St.
  • From Corson Ave S., turn right on S. Michigan St.
  • From S. Michigan St., turn right on E. Marginal Way
  • From E. Marginal Way, turn right on 1st Ave. S.
  • In approximately 1 mile, the road ramps up over the railroad yard.
  • Cross the bridge and Ecohaus is the first driveway on your left as the road ramps down.

For more information on the construction project, visit the DOT website here.

Store History

In 1990, Matt Freeman-Gleason was a carpenter and boat-builder who saw that his profession was taking a toll on the environment and human health. At the same time, he knew that if even a fraction of the world's construction and remodeling could be done in a sustainable way, the benefits would be staggering. With a mixture of frustration and hope, he set out to find sustainably made products that would perform as well and look as stylish as conventional ones without costing more. “I had high ideals,” he says, “but I really wanted to do something practical.”

After months of research and testing products, he decided to put his livelihood in line with his principles. In 1991, he and his wife, Alison, opened EnviResource, an “earth-wise general store,” in an 800-square-foot former fish market on Bainbridge Island, just across the Puget Sound from Seattle. They sold everything from organic-cotton clothing and recycled-content shoes to low-toxic paints and finishes. “I wanted to sell nothing but building materials, but at the time people were clamoring for toothbrushes and candles and hemp lingerie,” Freeman-Gleason says. “None of that stuff was widely available then. You couldn’t go to a supermarket and find unbleached paper products or environmentally friendly cleaning supplies.”

The operation soon outgrew its tiny storefront. In 1995, the Freeman-Gleasons opened Environmental Home Center in a 12,000-square-foot space on 4th Avenue near downtown Seattle. The new store focused entirely on building materials and interior finishes, and it grew quickly. “At first we wondered how we would ever fill that huge space,” Freeman-Gleason remembers, “and before we knew it we were bursting at the seams.”

Soon after the move to Seattle, Freeman-Gleason sought out Tim Taylor, then CEO of Laird Norton, a holding company that owned one of the largest building materials retailers in the U.S. Freeman-Gleason was looking to replace himself at the helm of EHC, because he felt that as the company got bigger it would need someone with “really deep and broad experience in management, so we could grow successfully, ethically and sustainably.” In 2000, Taylor left Laird Norton and became Chief Executive Officer of EHC.

For his part, Taylor saw an opportunity to put some of his convictions to work. “I had developed very firm beliefs about integrating corporate responsibility and sustainability principles into the core of the business,” he explains. “It is not only the right thing to do, but it is the strategically smart way to do business. I was attracted to the idea that there might be a place that had already moved in that direction, where I could fulfill those principals.” He felt so confident about EHC’s growth potential that he invested his own money in the company.

Taylor’s management strategy was based on creating sustainability in all areas of the business. He stressed a “partnership model” with suppliers in order to ensure an efficient and consistent supply chain. As the staff grew, he aimed to keep turnover low by treating employees with respect, and providing them with fair compensation and a path for advancement.

The company grew more rapidly than ever, with revenues soaring 50% from 2001 to 2002. Then, in August of 2004, a fire roared through the store, destroying the showroom, main warehouse and offices. Customers, neighboring businesses, and the green building industry responded with overwhelming support, including offers of financial assistance. But even disaster couldn’t keep the company down. Though it remained without a showroom for five months, relying strictly on the store’s call center, EHC reached the highest sales in its history less than a year after the fire.

The facility built in on 1st Avenue in Seattle’s SoDo neighborhood after the fire is now the flagship store for ecohaus. Completely remodeled in 2007, it houses the company’s corporate offices as well as a beautiful new interactive showroom. Freeman-Gleason, now the Chief Knowledge Officer for ecohaus, inc., marvels at what his little store has become. “It started with Alison and me, and now we have this large group of people with spirit and intelligence and ability,” he says. “But we’ve kept our pragmatic idealism. We look for ways to do something every day that puts our ideals into action. That’s what gives us our edge.”

Professional Sales Team

For builders, contractors and designers, ecohaus Pro Sales delivers

Since 1992, Ecohaus has helped building and design professionals grow their businesses by offering a wide selection of sustainable building materials.

With a dedicated Ecohaus contact and personalized service, our Professional Sales staff understands the “green” building industry and shares this knowledge with customers, creating a partnership that ensures mutual growth and a high degree of client satisfaction.

At Ecohaus, we offer the peace of mind that all of our products will stand up to the highest standards of aesthetics, sustainability, quality and performance. Ecohaus is the source for stylish, durable and price competitive building and finishing materials that are resource and energy efficient, and promote a healthy indoor living environment.

Ecohaus sets the bar high to consistently meet professionals’ expectations by offering:

  • Stylish, Durable & Price Competitive Green Materials
  • Exclusive Brands & Innovative Products
  • In Stock Items & just-in-time Product Availability
  • Design & Installation Services
  • LEED Accredited Staff Members
  • Beautiful Showrooms
  • Flexible & Timely Shipping & Delivery
  • Contractor financing

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