54 North Central Avenue
Upland, CA 91786
Hours: Tues. - Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Located in the Workshops Industrial Park
(909) 982-8288 or
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News and Events
The Only Store In the West!!
UPLAND, CA – The SoCal Solar Store in Upland held its Grand Opening on Saturday, June 9th, it is notable in more than one way. Besides being a minority-owned business, it will be one of the only retail stores in America selling renewable energy and sustainable living products. Not only will this new store be a place to purchase “green living” products, it will also be a place people can examine and understand household renewable energy systems firsthand—something entirely innovative in Southern California.
Owned by Michael Ponce, SoCal Solar Store will sell solar panels to create electricity; solar hot water systems for pool heating and household hot water; Energy Star and other high-efficiency household appliances; sustainable living books and magazines; educational toys; and other items to help homeowners in the Inland region achieve energy independence.
Last October, Ponce read a newspaper article on the growth and market potential of renewable energy and wanted to be part of the movement. “Like many people I had seen all the reports about global climate change and high energy costs. I had to do something,” he says. Ponce was soon shocked to discover that he couldn’t find any stores selling solar products in San Bernardino County, or anywhere in Southern California for that matter, despite the rising interest in green living and renewable energy. Looking online and in the yellow pages he saw there were plenty of independent contractors selling rooftop photovoltaic (solar electricity) systems, but despite Southern California’s abundant sunshine, there was nowhere to get energy e
fficient appliances and renewable energy products all in one place. In addition, there was nowhere for retail customers to see these products and learn about them firsthand before purchase—much less a store educating consumers about conservation and green living. To him, the answer was obvious. With the hearty laugh that often punctuates his sentences, Ponce recounts how he told his family, “We need a store!”
Michael Ponce is a charismatic retired Army Captain who served 3 years of active duty and 17 years in the Reserves, attended Loyola Law School, and has been practicing law for more than 20 years. But the gregarious semi-retired attorney was looking for new challenges. He Googled “solar store” and stumbled upon the USA Solar Store web site— a “family” of stores based in Vermont that works as an independently owned and operated cooperative buying group of renewable energy stores. “The aim of USA Solar Stores is to bring renewable energy to Main Street America,” says its president and founder Dave Bonta. “It was a no-brainer, I knew this is where we need to be,” Ponce recalls with infectious enthusiasm. Ponce talked to Bonta and decided to sign on to the Solar Store network.
Ponce couldn’t find a rental property where he would be allowed to put solar panels on the roof, so he decided just to buy his own store. With help from his sister Dorothy, his brother Jim, and sister-in-law Joanne, he bought a 1,200 square foot building in Upland. Along with his girlfriend Maria, nieces, nephews, and his four other brothers and sisters in their close-knit Mexican-American family worked feverishly on the renovations and decoration of the building. Ponce’s SoCal Solar Store will be the first USA Solar Store on the west coast.
To prepare himself for his new venture, Ponce threw himself into the world of renewable energy like a man obsessed—attending every sustainable living class, workshop, and seminar he could find. He even traveled to Washington, DC to attend a convention held by the American Council On Renewable Energy, a nonprofit advocacy group working to bring renewable energy into the mainstream of America’s economy and lifestyle—something Ponce says SoCal Solar Store is passionately committed to doing on a local level. An avid gardener, Ponce says “I even went to garden shows with green living displays.” Not surprisingly, SoCal’s showroom will feature a garden theme with dozens of solar-powered fountains, lighting, and other unique accents.
In Southern California, Ponce explains, large, home-sized solar electric solar pool heating systems are the most popular forms of renewable energy among homeowners. Ponce says his solar energy systems will give homeowners peace of mind in this age of rising energy costs as well as greater energy reliability during California’s infamous rolling blackouts and brownouts. He adds that since home energy creation is one of the greatest contributors to CO2 pollution, alternative energy is also a significant step every family can take in reducing global climate change. 
The SoCal Solar Store is located at 54 N. Central Avenue in Upland, California 91786. For more information call (909) 982-8288 or email
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. All of the USA Solar Stores can be found on the web at www.usasolarstore.com.
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