CASE STUDY: HELPING LOCAL BUSINESSES MAKE THE SWITCH FROM SINGLE-USE ITEMS TO REUSABLES WITH REUSE SEATTLE
In 2022, Seattle Public Utilities launched the Reuse Seattle Incentive Program, a $500 incentive for Seattle area businesses to replace single-use items with durable dishware.
Seattle Public Utilities and Cascadia Consulting Group hired Blue Daisi Consulting as an outreach consultant to help foster advocacy-based relationships among businesses interested in the program. Since joining the project, we have guided dozens of businesses through the program.
Blue Daisi is first and foremost focused on community. Our connections to business owners, local government, and residents allow us to conduct outreach with intention and effectiveness, cultivating long-term relationships with the businesses and organizations we usher through the program.
Explore a handful of these relationships and these businesses’ journey with the incentive program below.
rōJō Juice
rōJō Juice is the go-to spot for freshly pressed organic juice in Pike Place Market. Located right at the market entrance, customers can pick up their ginger shots or cider and sip while they shop. When we connected with Rhonda, she expressed her desire for rōJō Juice to become more sustainable—namely, reducing the number of single-use plastic juice pouches sent to the waste stream—but she wasn’t sure how to transition to a reusable product while maintaining simplicity and brand identity.
Our discussions with Rhonda focused on identifying her priorities—providing a quality product for her customers, increasing sustainability, uplifting brand identity, and maintaining simplicity. rōJō Juice’s single-use juice pouches hit a couple of these marks: they are clear, allowing customers to clearly see the freshly pressed juice they ordered, and they’re simple and convenient, as customers can purchase their juice and take it throughout the market. Our goal, then, was to find a reusable solution for rōJō Juice that didn’t compromise on aesthetics or the customer experience.
The solution? High-quality, branded stainless steel cups that customers can take with them as they stroll through the market. These cups complement rōJō Juice’s aesthetic, with the rōJō Juice logo placed front and center on the cups. To maintain the customer experience of walking around the market, juice in hand, Rhonda established a $5 deposit to ensure the cups are returned.
Marmalade
Marmalade, Fremont’s premier gelato spot, is known for its artisanal desserts, handmade with fresh, unexpected flavor combinations daily. It’s a neighborhood family-friendly favorite, offering everything from crepes to sorbets.
Christopher Yamka, Marmalade's owner, loves sharing his unique flavor combinations with his community—if you stop in, Christopher is sure to encourage you to try as many flavors of gelato as your heart desires. Before joining the incentive program, patrons of Marmalade taste-tested Christopher’s gelato using wooden spoons. After seeing the amount of waste this created, Christopher reached out to Reuse Seattle to make a change.
Through the incentive program, Marmalade secured stainless steel tasting spoons, ceramic mugs, and plates so that customers can enjoy their gelato, espresso, and crepes waste-free.
One of Christopher’s favorite aspects of the program is how it has elevated the dining experience for his customers: “The Reuse program has completely transformed the experience of our guests and elevated the quality of guest satisfaction. Everyone appreciates metal cutlery over plastic or wood. The hardware greatly improves how business is evaluated… Classy. The compost, recycle, and garbage footprint has drastically reduced, as well as the odors from waste and recycle bins during service.”
Peace Peloton and the Columbia City Night Market
Every third Saturday of the month, the Columbia City Night Market brings together dozens of food vendors, small business owners, and bands, uplifting Black-owned businesses in the area.
Peace Peloton and the Columbia City Night Market have been steadfast partners of Reuse Seattle for years, first joining the program in 2022 by incorporating reusable cups through Bold Reuse, a Reuse Seattle reusable dishware service provider.
In 2026, Columbia City Night Market decided to deepen their commitment to sustainability and acquire their own set of reusable cups for their monthly events through the incentive program.
When selecting dishware for this event, the Columbia City Night Market’s chief concerns were in providing a quality product, maintaining inventory, and furthering branding. After selecting a high-quality stainless steel cup complete with the Columbia City Night Market’s logo and color scheme, the next hurdle was maintaining high retention rates. To do this, we helped craft event-specific signs, guiding guests to the enclosed beer garden on exactly how and where to return the cups. The result was a beautiful reusable cup with high retention rates.
Doc Wilson, Executive Director of Peace Peloton, highlights that in addition to reducing waste, this program saves vital funds the event would otherwise spend on single-use cups: “We’ve been in community with Reuse Seattle for the past two years, and it’s been one of those partnerships that just makes sense. Using durable dishware at the Night Market helps us dramatically cut waste and saves us real dollars we’d otherwise spend on single-use cups—money we can put back into supporting small businesses and community programming.”