An Easy Way to Recycle Your Firm's Material Samples

If you've ever worked at an industrial design or architecture firm, you've seen that closet or series of storage bins filled with material samples. Eventually there's a major office cleanup to reclaim space, and a bunch of that stuff goes. Goes where? Into landfill, according to Swatchbox, a sample-providing middleman between manufacturers and designers. "The architecture and design industry generates tons of waste from specifying materials," they write. "Every day, thousands of physical samples (tiles, textiles, laminates) are shipped out to architects and designers globally. Most end up in landfills after a single use." That's hardly a good look, if your firm touts their green credentials. To combat the problem, Swatchbox has launced a program called Second Life Samples—the first of its kind, they say—where firms can send material samples back to them, even if you didn't get them from Swatchbox. The company will then recirculate or recycle them.Since 2018, the company has already been doing this with samples they themselves have provided, but by opening up the program to all samples regardless of the source, reckon they can reduce waste by "up to 90% in participating architecture and design firms." After assessing returned samples for quality, those in good condition that are still labeled (a sample isn't much good unless you know where it came from) are made available on Swatchbox's online platform. As for the rest, "Unlabeled, discontinued, or lightly worn samples are made available to students and educators. Any material that is not recoverable due to damage is processed through Swatchbox recycling partners." The program is open to firms located in the U.S. and the U.K. You can sign up here.

May 29, 2025 - 18:25

An Easy Way to Recycle Your Firm's Material Samples

If you've ever worked at an industrial design or architecture firm, you've seen that closet or series of storage bins filled with material samples. Eventually there's a major office cleanup to reclaim space, and a bunch of that stuff goes.

Goes where? Into landfill, according to Swatchbox, a sample-providing middleman between manufacturers and designers. "The architecture and design industry generates tons of waste from specifying materials," they write. "Every day, thousands of physical samples (tiles, textiles, laminates) are shipped out to architects and designers globally. Most end up in landfills after a single use."

That's hardly a good look, if your firm touts their green credentials. To combat the problem, Swatchbox has launced a program called Second Life Samples—the first of its kind, they say—where firms can send material samples back to them, even if you didn't get them from Swatchbox. The company will then recirculate or recycle them.

Since 2018, the company has already been doing this with samples they themselves have provided, but by opening up the program to all samples regardless of the source, reckon they can reduce waste by "up to 90% in participating architecture and design firms."

After assessing returned samples for quality, those in good condition that are still labeled (a sample isn't much good unless you know where it came from) are made available on Swatchbox's online platform. As for the rest, "Unlabeled, discontinued, or lightly worn samples are made available to students and educators. Any material that is not recoverable due to damage is processed through Swatchbox recycling partners."

The program is open to firms located in the U.S. and the U.K. You can sign up here.