WHO ARE WE AND WHAT WE DO

The three buckets of our work include:

Cut & Sew Education, Training & Upskilling 

Circular Economy Development for Textiles

Collaborative Systems Change 

We are transitioning and can't wait to tell you more about what that looks like!

Public Thread the company launched in June of 2016 with the dream of building a worker owned company that could make high quality, small-batch products in Michigan. Public Thread has gone far beyond our humble kitchen table beginnings, serving individuals and companies in our state and across the U.S. We have a global reach through our partnerships and a passion to design unique products that serve people, the planet and support living wage jobs.

Now in 2023 we have transitioned to be a brand under Public Thread X our parent, 501c3 nonprofit organization. 

We are so excited for the next chapter of our work because even BIGGER THINGS ARE AHEAD!

HOW IT STARTED

“I want to honor the people & process of making.”

After leaving a 15+ year career in community level systems change work, Janay Brower wanted to put her experience and creativity to work in a different way. She started with the goal to develop a worker owned cut & sew manufacturing business that supported sustainability and living wage jobs. What she quickly found out was that there is a LOT of textile waste left over from manufacturers and almost no options to do anything with it besides throw it away. They started with the brewery industry and quickly evolved into furniture/upholstery, leather, signs, banners and billboard vinyl, and shoes. What has evolved from our humble beginnings, is a company that offers bold upcycled products made in our community from textile waste created here. 

HOW IT'S GOING

Today, Public Thread products have a global reach through partnerships, creating bold, upcycle luxury from materials diverted from landfills: speciality fabrics, traditional textiles, 3D knit material, leather, and banners, signs, billboards and more. We measure our impact with a triple bottom line that includes people, planet, business.

01

People

We support sustainable and joyful livelihoods by paying our workers a living wage and building a cut and sew manufacturing business that honors the talent and skill it takes to design backwards from existing materials, and support our staff and the building of a worker-owned business model.  

02

Planet

The amount of textile waste in landfills has doubled in the last 20 years to nearly 18 million tons a year across the U.S. We’re not cool with that. By re-imagining how existing materials can be used and given a second life, we have diverted more than 150,000 pounds of textiles from landfills and transformed them into bold, luxurious goods that challenge the status quo.

03

Business

Through our partnerships, we help companies live their values by transforming their spent materials into promotional products. We strive to create a circular economy that supports upcycling products at scale and generating profits for designers and entrepreneurs who want to bring their goods to market.

WE START LOCAL AND BUILD OUTWARDS

Did you know that 85% of textile waste comes from the manufacturing process?

While textiles do decompose over time, they emit 72 times more methane than glass, metal, and paper combined.

Textile waste is largely ignored in the U.S and globally. In Michigan only 9% of textiles are diverted from landfills or recycled/upcycled. 
But textiles are a major contributor to accelerating global climate change. Instead of throwing these materials away, we’re creating new products from materials that are already here. Along with partner companies, entrepreneurs and suppliers, we are helping to build a cut & sew manufacturing infrastructure, support living wage jobs, and grow the creative economy across West Michigan.

We work with manufacturers to divert their textile waste from the landfills and upcycle the material into beautiful products for your everyday lifestyle.

• People:
  - We have created more than jobs for more than 50 people.
  - We are intentional about our hiring and since 2016, we have maintained that at least 50% of our staff must be People of Color and representative of our community.
  - As our company grows into a worker-owned business, we will intentionally continue to seek out and hire diverse creatives as staff, contractors, vendors, and suppliers.
• Planet:
  - We have collected more than 150,000 lbs of textile scrap, surplus and salvaged materials since 2016.
  - We have upcycled thousands of pounds of textiles into products so far!
  - We work with suppliers and manufacturers across the community to help them meet their circular economy goals and to re-purpose scrap and salvaged materials into quality upcycled products.
  - Over the next few years, our goal is to divert more than 68 tons (136,000 lbs) of textiles from our landfills per year.