Used Rubber USA began in 1984 when owner & designer Mandana MacPherson was a student at Brown University. After spilling a bottle of ink in her leather backpack, she set out on a quest to make a bag impervious to stains and spills. While the initial prototypes she created with a classmate were inspired by the study of the Found Object art movement, Mandana quickly became aware of the powerful and positive environmental impact of her work. To manufacture quality personal accessories in an environmentally sound fashion has been her goal ever since.       From 1984 to 1989 Used Rubber USA styles were available in stores in the U.S. and England. From 1989 to 2001, Mandana operated her own store in San Francisco, California. That store received thousands of visitors each year from all over the world who were pleased and inspired by Mandana's work. (Stores were also in Berkeley from 1996-1999 and in Taos, New Mexico from 1993-1994) Over the years our line has expanded. In addition to Mandana's original riveted inner tube bags, we now offer sewn inner tube items such as wallets, cases, and card holders. We value evolutionary design, but never want our business to outgrow the principles it was founded upon. We are continually exploring new ventures and adventures! On April 29, 2001, after 12 years of operation in that location, we closed our retail store on Haight Street in San Francisco with feelings of pride and accomplishment. With the help of our loyal customers, we did a lot of good work in our stores, a lot of recycling, a lot of education. We look forward to continuing to do these things, and many more, as our company continues here in its incarnation on the web. Closing our SF retail store was a positive change for all of us involved with Used Rubber. The owner made a conscious choice to simplify the business in order to spend more time with her toddler and earn an MFA in Stanford’s Joint Program in Design through their Art & Mechanical Engineering Departments. The rest of our wonderful staff, who had worked at the store for years, went on to transfer their good energy to the pursuit of their own projects. Today Mandana balances her own design work and running Used Rubber USA, with teaching, consulting and writing about sustainability issues. In 2003, she created an inaugural sustainable design class for Stanford University’s Mechanical Engineering Department's Design Division. Continuing on as adjunct faculty at Stanford and California College of the Arts in San Francisco (where she created a class in 2005), she advises on Ecological Design curriculum and programming and teaches on occasion. Over the past several years, she has worked with a number of other schools and organizations, such as The Natural Step (an international sustainability think tank), creating and implementing tools and curriculum. She often speaks on panels and at conferences about Used Rubber and other sustainability issues. In the fall of 2006 the business went through yet another big change. After nearly 20 years in San Francisco, we moved our main office to the coast of Maine. For the time being we will still be doing part of our manufacturing in California (between our studio in Mount Shasta and our sewing contractor in San Francisco), but we are open to an ever-evolving future. One thing will remain the same - our products will continue to be made locally in the U.S. with the same care and concern that has always defined our work. We hope that you will wish us all luck with our changes and continue to support Used Rubber USA by shopping here on our web site and passing the word to others!       MEDIA COVERAGE & EXHIBITIONS Used Rubber USA has been instrumental in inspiring a new generation of designers, artisans and craftspeople through the way we think about materials. Used Rubber USA is well known throughout the world for the unusual nature of our products, design ethics and aesthetics. We receive a good deal of media attention as designers, as environmentalists, as a cruelty-free company prized by the vegan community, and as a woman-owned & run business. Our work has been featured in print publications such as National Geographic, The New York Times, Newsweek, Consumer Reports, Natural Health Magazine, PETA's Guide to Cruelty Free Shopping, Mirabella, Cosmopolitan, and Business Week, to name just a few. We have been seen on CNN, The Discovery Channel, MTV, and many news programs. Our designs have been shown in the collections of museums as diverse as the Smithsonian, Santa Fe's Museum of International Folk Art, the Los Angeles Children's Museum, and the Science Museum of London. We are always happy to talk to the press. Email us if you have media-related questions. If you write about us, please let us know! Questions about our store? Contact us!