Built on Geology, Shaped by Sustainability

Four Directions’ Hanna Larchinese shares her family’s journey with the Ann Arbor Green Business Challenge

Some businesses stumble into sustainability through regulatory pressure or customer demand. Others are born from it. When you're raised by a geologist and build your livelihood around the earth's treasures, environmental stewardship isn't just a marketing strategy. It's who you are.

Hanna Larchinese, owner of Four Directions in downtown Ann Arbor, grew up in a family where rocks, minerals, and nature shaped everything. Her dad's background in geology and environmental sciences meant that caring about the planet was simply part of life.

About ten years ago, her parents started a weekend side business selling rocks and minerals, partly to help Hanna and her brother pay for college. That modest operation in Paw Paw grew into Geoscape Rock Shop. Then in 2020, the owners of Four Directions reached out about selling their Ann Arbor shop. Hanna, who'd graduated from the University of Michigan in 2015 and was living in Kalamazoo during the pandemic, didn't hesitate.

"I said yes, I will happily move back to Ann Arbor to run that location," she says.

Making It Official

Last June, Hanna attended a networking event at Spark during Ann Arbor's 1820-0 campaign week. She learned about the Green Business Challenge.

"Well, we were already kind of doing this stuff," she thought. "It would be cool to more formally engage with it, maybe meet other people in the community who value sustainability, and then learn what else we can do."

She signed up. The results have been better than expected.

The Numbers: 20% Energy Drop

Four Directions started with LED lighting. The previous owners had installed some LEDs, but Hanna's team went all in. Today, about 98% of the building uses LED bulbs.

Energy use dropped 20%. That's several hundred dollars saved every year. "So it's basically paid for itself already," Hanna says.

They didn't stop there. A new, efficient AC unit went in earlier this year. Now they're adding timers to jewelry showcases and fixtures without switches. The lights turn off automatically at night. Staff doesn't have to remember.

Learning What the Data Shows

The Green Business Challenge connected Four Directions with the 2030 District. Hanna set up Energy Star Portfolio Manager, which tracks three years of water and energy use based on actual bills.

"That alone was interesting," Hanna says. "Like, even if we just did that, it could be very informative for our own projects, right? It's interesting to see how cyclical it is with the summer versus the winter. But also, you could tell when we installed our new lighting. It just started decreasing from there."

Fresh Ideas from Fresh Coast

The challenge paired Four Directions with Fresh Coast for climate consulting. That opened up new possibilities. UV window film for their large storefront windows could make them much more energy efficient.

Fresh Coast also helped create a sustainability plan that Four Directions can post on their website. The big dream? Solar panels on the roof. That takes more money, time, and cooperation from their neighbor. But it's the goal.

"You can only reduce your energy so much, and at some point you have to look at renewable energy," Hanna explains.

Planning for the Unexpected

One part of the Green Business Challenge caught Hanna off guard: resilience. Preparing for storms, ice storms, power outages. Not just protecting the building but training employees on how to handle emergencies.

James from the Green Business Challenge gave her an emergency kit with heat blankets, cooling blankets, and N95 masks. He also suggested getting a battery backup so the store could still process transactions if the power went out.

"I never thought of that," Hanna admits. "I just thought we would just take cash. But it just lowers the stress of that event, right? The incident is hard enough."

Building Connections

Maybe the best part has been meeting other business owners. Hanna discovered that Cinnaholic, which shares an alley with Four Directions, completed the challenge too. She wants to meet more businesses nearby. "Maybe we could collaborate on something," she says.

Even Four Directions' supply chain reflects this thinking. They import directly from mines and lapidary factories in Brazil, India, and Mexico now. Products travel once instead of bouncing between multiple distributors. It's better for the environment and their bottom line.

Why Other Businesses Should Jump In

Hanna's still early in the Green Business Challenge, but the benefits are already clear. Cost savings, yes. But also connections to resources and other businesses she wouldn't have found otherwise.

Her advice to other Ann Arbor businesses? Join the Green Business Challenge and see for yourself.

"Joining the Challenge was a great step for us," she says. "It saves several hundred dollars a year in energy just by switching to better light bulbs alone. And it lifts your profile."

For a business built around the earth's natural beauty, environmental responsibility isn't optional. It's practical and measurable. And increasingly, it's what sets businesses apart.

Learn more about Four Directions at fourdirectionsa2.com and the Ann Arbor Green Business Challenge at a2gbc.org.