Owner Amy Suggs with several tote bags from her Mooresville home business “Carried Away.”

Amy Suggs started her new company, Carried Away, as both a fun part-time endeavor and to help do her part to save the planet. She got the idea after she picked up a collapsible market tote for a friend while on vacation in Myrtle Beach. Suggs thought the little tote bag was a neat idea – durable, convenient, easy to store, and, best of all, it eliminated the need to use plastic bags when shopping. After she returned home, the Mooresville resident figured she’d pick one up for herself, but couldn’t find any stores around the Lake Norman area that sold them. Seeing an opportunity, she launched Carried Away this spring, with an emphasis on selling stylish, trendy and re-usable items.

On starting small: “Carried Away is a fun side project (when not at a full-time job for a rug company) that I hope one day will turn into full-time,” Suggs says. To help keep costs down, her husband, Robbie, who works in IT, designed the Web site. So far her biggest expense has been the initial inventory investment, which she bought from various wholesalers. And Suggs is no amateur when it comes to selling products. She worked at Lowe’s for 11 years as a merchandiser and buyer.

On helping the environment: “Our family is trying to go green, and this is just one way for us to do that,” she says. In addition to several styles of reusable tote bags and travel bags, Carried Away offers acrylic partyware and thermal party tubs that hold drinks and ice. “They’re all things you can reuse instead of disposable products,” she says. Also available are Frisbees, checkbooks and aprons. And all items can be personalized with embroidery, pictures or artistic designs.

On branching out: Suggs says she plans to introduce a few new products next year including scarves and other personalized gifts. She’s also trying to grow the business by attending home shows, church functions and area festivals, including the Brushy Mountain Apple Festival in North Wilkesboro. “That’s how we’re getting the word out. Even if people don’t buy that day, they might tell someone else about us. We hope to eventually have a storefront. But we want to go about it the smart way and establish a customer base first, especially with the economy the way it is.”

www.carriedawayoflkn.com, 704-660-1853 or e-mail sales@carriedawayoflkn.com.

$25-$40 for collapsible market totes, which have a lightweight aluminum frame and durable, easy-to-clean polyester cover; $7 to $35 for acrylic partyware, and $8 to $40 for travel bags and $25 for party tubs.