HOW IT HAPPENED

BRAND STORY

Up-fuse is a fully-fledged Cairo-based cult brand and social enterprise created in celebration of You and this beautiful planet — Earth.

In 2013 Up-fuse started with Yara and Rania’s passion for material exploration and a need to reuse the disposed plastic and other waste in Egypt. The duo realized the capacity to go beyond making an environmental impact and the idea of designing and producing a local product that revolutionizes the Egyptian handcrafts became very appealing.

In 2015, Lama joined as a partner. The three girls changed that abstract idea and it manifested into an environmentally and socially conscious brand which applies a slow-fashion model, reducing waste through ethical production and supporting local artisans and women who endure harsh conditions.

Now in 2021, we’ve expanded our up-cycling process and product range, adding plastic bottles and tires to create new and interesting fashion pieces and footwear.

THE MATERIALS

Our materials are sustainable, unique and we LOVE it!

plastic bag

Plastic Bags

After the plastic bag’s material is
collected, it undergoes a 3-step
sanitization process using
specific detergents and a special
washing machine adopted by upfuse
especially for this purpose.
The materials are then hung to dry in
Egypt’s bacteria-killing sun as a further
precautionary and environmentally
respectful step.

With the help of our keen, artisan
ladies at Roh Al Shabab NGO, the raw
materials are processed into our
upfuse fabric sheets by compression
through yet another machinery
refined by our brand.

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Plastic Bottles

And now, plastic bottles have joined
the club!

We now use cloth made from PET
bottles! The cloth is made from 100%
recycled polyester, giving a second life
to plastic bottles that would have
ended up as garbage either in landfills
or waters.

Plastic bottles are collected, cleaned
and shredded. Through a unique, long
process, they end up being white cloth
that can be tailored into many fashion
options which respect the
environment we live in and support
people who have precious talents in
our country.

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Tires

Why leave tires end up in landfills
when they can fit perfectly under your
feet, making you feel comfortable and
making the Earth feel better?!
Less materials created, more reused
and repurposed. We use tires as the
footsole, without any further
processing – just cutting and fitting,
leaving zero carbon footprint.
Workshops in Shobra are our main
provider and work hard to offer this
unique material.

That’s why Nothing is ever wasted
with Up-fuse

Ecosystems We Support

MANSHIYAT NASSER LANDFILL

Known as Cairo Garbage City and is the world’s largest garbage village that
is home to over 60,000 Zaballeen – garbage-collectors. They are
entrepreneurial garbage workers who have achieved the most efficient
waste disposal system worldwide, recycling over 80% of their daily
collected garbage which accounts to 3000 – 4000 tons daily, while
developed cities and multinational waste disposal corporations recycle only
20 – 30 percent of what they collect, leaving the rest to rot in giant landfills.

SHOBRA-BASED WORKSHOPS

Shobra is one of the oldest and most beautiful neighborhoods in Egypt. It
embraces all people within it. We found a gem inside one of Shobra based
workshops! They’re able to transform the bulky tire we exhaust every day in
our commuting to a sustainable material that we repurpose.

HOW IT HAPPENS

MEET OUR TEAM

These are the people we cherish,
The ones who made our dream a possibility.

WHO THEY ARE,
WHAT THEY DO!

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  • FOUNDERS

    Yara, Rania and partner Lama are the brand’s driving force. Their vision, passion, determination, entrepreneurial minds and design skills gave birth to this world of Upfuse and their efforts sustain the brand’s growth. Whether it’s designing, overlooking production, managing the brand and its collaborations with the NGOs or catering for the needs of their teams, they do it whole-heartedly!

  • Yara Yassin

    CO-FOUNDER & MARKETING DIRECTOR

    Yara has enough passion, energy and ideas for multiple entrepreneurs! Ever since she enrolled in the International Organization for Migration to empower women through product design, she has found her passion for sustainability. Yara is always eager to get things done and is always making sure things are running as they should. She is THE person we go to whenever we need to turn ideas into actions – always ready with creative plans for any abstract thought we might have.

  • Lama El Khawanky

    PARTNER & PRODUCTION DIRECTOR

    Lama is responsible for all the magic happening in our studio. She’s the face behind our production process; from designing to prototyping, and finally bringing our creations to life. She is one of the most determined people you’ll meet. She knows exactly what she wants and won’t spend time beating around the bush. Whenever we need an honest take on any idea or suggestion, Lama is the one we look for.

  • Rania Rafie

    CO-FOUNDER

    Rania has been and will always been the support system behind up-fuse. She started the business in 2015 and witnessed its growth till she decided to go on other breathtaking
    ventures in 2020.

  • Production

    In addition to the NGOs we have a Full-time team, expert local artisans and technicians who help develop, prototype and produce our products.

  • Communication

    Our communication team is truly one-of-a-kind! We support students that want to gain experience early on in their educational years, so our team does have a couple of part-time hard working people. In addition to the cause driven full-time team that work in harmony to best reach their and the companies’ potential!

  • You Up-fusers

    The piece that adds it all up, YOU, the Up-fusers!

how can you help us

Our Achievements & Pride

  • 3

    NGOs Supported

  • 50+

    Job Opportunities

  • 260k

    Plastic Bags Recycled