Truly made in San Francisco

I visited Rickshaw bags in the heart of the Dogpatch district in San Francisco on an unusually sunny San Francisco morning.  When I lived in the city 7 years ago this area was totally undeveloped but was earmarked as an 'up and coming area'.   The whole area has been gentrified with many offices, cafes and restaurants. Mark Dwight, the founder and owner of the company talked me through his journey and how Rickshaw came about. After working in the tech industry he began working for well known San Francisco bag company TimBuk2. He spotted an opportunity for custom made corporate products and so Rickshaw Bags was born. Dwight considers himself a disciple of the cradle to cradle methodology (creating products with an end in mind) however believes some elements are utopian. Creating a product in San Francisco, with USA woven fabric and stitched by local employees is zero waste in a different way due to his low carbon footprint and community engagement.

2 Take Aways

• Perfection is the enemy of progress

• Be careful of the ‘Gang Green’ culture that can limit business development