how could we use this plastic that was
generated by a really
negative event and be a part of a
solution here for the future of flint
i'm allie rose van overback i'm the
founder of genesee eyewear
we make eyeglasses right here in flint
michigan from recycled single-use
plastic water bottles
i was working in new york as a fashion
designer
i had ties to michigan i grew up here i
had been volunteering
in flint during the water crisis with
the red cross and i was just really
drawn to the creativity and the
camaraderie
here in the community so i saw a waste
stream
of single-use bottles that was being
generated by this man-made water crisis
and a community that was in need of more
infrastructure
as well as jobs and i don't know how to
solve a water crisis
but i know how to make things so my
thought was how can we use this waste
to do something positive in the
community by creating
jobs so
our eyeglass frames are made from
recycled single-use plastic water
bottles
the bottles are collected from here in
flint they're processed locally
into pellets which we then injection
mold into the frame parts
it's a pretty extensive process to make
eyewear
there's a lot of hand assembly as well
as hand finishing and processing that
goes into
those parts we sand them we wash them we
buff them
and then we assemble them and you have
the best pair of classes in the world
yes i am proud absolutely proud
especially
from where i came from to be accepted in
a you know
company like this that treats you like
family
that's a great thing right gc is an eye
gas company but
it's also an incredible opportunity
provider
and i've already learned so many new
skills that i
can't even imagine having done i'm
incredibly proud of the eyewear that we
produce every day
we're growing really quickly so we're
doing everything
from post-processing and assembling
the frames we do shipping and
fulfillment so
our assembly team marketing design
everything's happening here locally
at our facility in flint
clint's an underdog it's a city that's
full of possibilities and just so many
amazing people
that live and coincide here so much
talent is in flint it's just people just
have to give us opportunity
to see it for themselves really but the
great thing
about flint is that no matter what comes
our way
we gonna find a way no matter what
so genesee's supply chain is really
uniquely within 180 mile radius of flint
michigan
our goal is to keep all of our
manufacturing production and material
sourcing as close to flint as possible
our polishing bags are sewn at the new
life center on the north end of flint
the bags are even made from recycled
plastic water bottles and they're sewn
here locally new life center employees
they're structurally unemployable and
trains them with sewing skills
and gives them pathways to employment
they're super rooted in the community
and aligned with the same values that
genesee holds
i want people to know that we are so
much more than
what everyone has seen on the news i
hope that someone actually
sees all the talent that we really have
and actually
tap into that talents but actually make
someone
feel that they can be a better them i
think genesee
is one of many solutions
in making life better here in flint for
individuals
and really just using our business as an
opportunity to amplify the voices of a
community
genesee's really setting a new standard
of how to do business
in a way that takes into account people
and planet
we need to create sustainable solutions
so that we can protect our resources
and actually have a future environment
you