Darron Losse turns over a green iPad case, pointing out the faint imprint of old ads. In another life it was a print blanket, rolling out sheets of publication for the Seattle Times. He points also to a tote bag, its handles made of old seatbelts, its sack a Starbucks billboard that once sat atop Macarena Bakery in SoDo Seattle, 30 feet wide, 100 feet tall.
“[Each of these] has a story to tell,” says Losse, who launched Upcycle Goods two years ago, a line of useful products, made from useless materials. “I think people like that they can see what it originally was,” he explains, fingering a red belt. “This was a fire hose. This was a billboard. They can look at it, and they know.”
A former contractor at Microsoft, Losse often saw promotional products go to waste after a brand launch – hats, mugs and other signage. When a client one day approached him about the surplus, he did some research and discovered that at least some of it could be salvaged and repurposed as tote bags and lunch sacks. The upcycled items were a hit, and he began to think there may be more to the idea.
“It’s something you don’t normally think of, upcycling something that is headed to the dump and making something useful out of it,” says Losse, whose corporate partners now include industry behemoths like Microsoft, Alaska Airlines and Starbucks.
Operations are small at Upcycle Goods, based remotely out of Losse’s home in the Bridle Trails neighborhood. He works with a creative designer, an assistant and his wife, who helps manage the books. Then there are his daughters, he adds jokingly, whose peers, Losse says are his target audience.
“They let me know if I’m on the right track or not,” he laughs. “I get 100 percent honest feedback.”
Losse admits the business, which he now operates full time, has marked a dramatic shift of thinking and living for him. He wasn’t always aware of his environmental footprint.
“It’s difficult for me to say, but coming from a [background] of promotion and marketing I haven’t always been [environmentally conscious]. This is my eco-payback,” says Losse.
Most surplus items go to landfills if they aren’t immediately recyclable. But Losse recognizes a change in the way people are buying, not just an environmental consciousness, but an interest in buying locally and in well-made, ethically-produced goods.
Losse applies that thoughtfulness to all areas of business. The company has been using JanSport’s manufacturing facilities, shut down when business went overseas, to produce some of their goods.
“The life of these products doesn’t have to end if you think about it,” he says. “We take it, re-engineer it, put some lipstick on it [so to speak], brand it, and sell it in stores. People love the message.”
Everywhere, Losse sees possibilities. Driving across 520 provoked yet another idea, he says.
“It’s crazy. With the construction of the bridge, a lot of fire hoses are being used to wash the trucks and machinery. I can’t help but notice when I get on the freeway. I wonder what will happen when they’re done. Would we be able to turn those into an iPhone sleeve?” Losse muses.
