What's your trash story?  Can you recall a specific moment, experience, or person that sparked your love affair with trash? Can you share an early memory related to upcycling trash that left a lasting impression on you?

I often joke that trash is in my DNA too, as the threads of Rewilder’s values were woven long before the company started (for each of our three cofounders!) For me, everything is, directly and indirectly, tied to being the daughter of immigrants. As a first-generation Chinese-American, I grew up with my parents eking every bit they could from depleted chicken carcasses, gnawed rib bones, and vegetable tops into delicious, nutritious soups now trendily known as bone broth. Nothing in this world brings me quite as much joy as the process of making bone broth. It’s a process of alchemy, transformation against all odds: a humble golden liquid coaxed over hours from the leftover parts of animals and vegetables unfit for consumption. Upcycling, too, is about transformation…it’s about making something out of nothing. It’s not unlike the American Dream. 

We are the quintessential American Dream immigrant story. It is not unique or novel, but it is mine and ours. My mom learned to sew in Hong Kong and carved a living here in the only way she knew how: first as a sample maker, then eventually opening up a small garment production factory in Alhambra, CA. I have colorful memories of playing in mountains of rags, scraps from the factory floor that would disappear every so often, presumably hauled to the landfill. It was shocking. How could all of this material, my perfect playground, be discarded like that?

These two experiences fundamentally shaped me. I carry them in my identity, work, and approach to the world. Bone broth instilled in me a relentless belief that what others typically discard still can have value – with enough labor and time. 

Describe your job. What’s trash got to do with it?

My passion for zero waste design stems from my family’s business and background in the incredibly wasteful garment and textile industries. I started in advertising, advising some of the world’s biggest brands, and then decided that I wanted to apply my background in science, research, marketing, and storytelling to discover – and convince people of – the beauty in trash at Rewilder.

What something you’ve seen or worked on in the world of waste that you found surprising, delightful or inspiring? 

Rags gave me a talent for seeing the potential in waste, and the conviction to change others’ perspectives on it through design. Together, they imprinted a burning desire to share what I see instead of waste on my path dedicated to material diversion and upcycling in the fashion industry. 

Our American Dream story is one of circularity and transformation: my parents sent waste rags to the landfill so they could provide me with the choice to devote myself towards giving those very same textiles a different fate. 

Every day, Rewilder reminds me what it means to make something out of nothing, just like my family did when they moved to America. That’s exactly what our business does.

Working with airbag and automotive waste really changed my own perspective on trash materials. Airbag is designed to save lives, and we source it from factory scraps and end rolls trashed during production. At Rewilder, we rehabilitate it and save it from landfill. Each piece has unique markings from its first life as an airbag. It’s incredible how beautiful the final pieces look, and I’m surprised every time I see a completed backpack, especially the Deep Ocean blue ones. Wow. 

This can be dirty, sometimes disheartening work. What’s something in your work that brings you joy right now? 

Talking to other founders at LACI, where we are gathering to lead on building an upcycling and textile recycling culture in Los Angeles. It’s invigorating to gather and share ideas.