Successful recycling in downtown retail environments works best when business owners and local governments work together. In-store or sidewalk recycling of cans and bottles helps reduce litter and keeps other trash receptacles from overflowing.

Careful placement of receptacles — near trash containers and in close proximity to food and beverage retailers — can increase usage. Brightly-colored and clearly-marked receptacles with simple instructions also help reduce contamination of the waste stream.

In some areas of the country there are good programs for recycling cardboard boxes, which may even produce additional income for local businesses.

Retailers whose incoming merchandise is shipped using polystyrene "peanuts" or other packing materials should return the packing materials to the shipper or reuse them. There are many environmentally responsible alternatives to polystyrene, and new purchase orders should specify that only biodegradable packaging will be accepted.