Designed with Purpose
From Banners to Bags: Rethinking Waste Through Collaboration
A story of reflection, reuse, and reimagining in how RRS and Public Thread turned our company’s history into something purposeful.
At RRS, we believe circularity begins with action—small, thoughtful choices that align what we do with what we stand for. That mindset led us to a simple yet meaningful challenge: what should we do with more than 40 retired event banners that had told our story for decades? Instead of sending them to landfill or storage, we saw an opportunity to live our ethos through creativity, collaboration, and care.
Taking the Long Road On Purpose
Across nearly 20 years of events, our offices had collected dozens of retractable banners—some carrying the RRS name, others from past client campaigns and collaborative initiatives. Together, they represented milestones in our journey: projects launched, partnerships celebrated, conferences attended, and industry change in motion.
But with our brand refresh and a new visual identity on the horizon, many of those banners had reached the end of their use. Rather than discard them, RRS Marketing Manager Amanda Moore led an effort to deconstruct and reclaim every possible component by hand.
The process was meticulous: separating vinyl from metal, removing springs, screws, and pins, and sorting each material into categories for reuse or recycling. Some banners were a durable coated vinyl, others a heavy canvas-like fabric—materials designed to last, but rarely recyclable. Still, we found a way. Nearly 200 pounds of aluminum hardware were recycled, along with recoverable plastics, and every inch of banner fabric was saved for creative reuse.
What began as a simple cleanout became a story of persistence and creativity—the kind of work circularity often demands: practical, hands-on, and deeply intentional.
Where Creativity Meets Craft
That’s where Public Thread came in. Based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Public Thread is a social enterprise that transforms surplus materials into new, high-quality goods while creating local, living-wage jobs. They know firsthand that waste has value—it just needs imagination, intention, and the right hands to transform it.
Public Thread was also part of NextCycle Michigan, a program that helps circular businesses scale innovative recovery and reuse solutions. That shared foundation made collaboration feel natural: two Michigan-based organizations rooted in the same belief that circular systems should benefit both people and planet.
Using the salvaged RRS and client banner fabric, Public Thread’s design and production team developed a collection of custom laptop sleeves, square pouches, wrist straps, and cord wranglers, many lined with the interior material of our old banners and finished with repurposed Chaco straps. Each piece was cut and sewn in small batches at their local studio—no two exactly alike, each a physical reminder of what intentional reuse can look like.
The result? Durable, practical, one-of-a-kind items that tell a story—of design, renewal, and partnership.
A Collaboration Grounded in Shared Purpose
Public Thread’s approach to manufacturing reflects the kind of systems change RRS works to advance every day. Since its founding in 2016, the company has diverted more than 350,000 pounds of materials from landfills while providing living-wage jobs in Michigan’s textile and design sector.
Their work empowers BIPOC, immigrant, and refugee communities through training and creative entrepreneurship—proving that environmental and economic resilience go hand in hand.
“These materials represented years of work and collaboration,” said Amanda Moore, RRS Marketing Manager. “Repurposing them into something new and useful felt like a fitting tribute—a way to close one chapter while living out our values.”
— AMANDA MOORE, RRS Senior Consultant
Purpose, Made Tangible
The partnership between RRS and Public Thread reflects something deeper than a sustainability project. It’s a reminder that every material—and every decision—has potential.
Our old banners once told our story through words and images. Now, reimagined as everyday essentials, they tell a new story: one about creativity, care, and a belief that what we make—and remake—matters.
We make things that last, just like the partnerships we build.
