Our Story
Why we do what we do
Morph transforms materials that would otherwise go to landfill into high-quality upcycled products, like bags and accessories. We design our products to help you through your day, in service of helping people rethink resource use.
Our Purpose
Morph exists to help people rethink resource use. We transform post-industrial waste into durable, purposeful upcycled bags and accessories to help people see that what gets discarded often has a lot left to offer.
Our Vision
A world where waste is a thing of the past. One where landfills are no longer needed because we value, reuse, and keep materials in circulation rather than generating waste.
Our Beliefs & Values
1. Waste is a choice, not an inevitability.
2. Resources are greatly underutilized.
3. Fairness is a requirement.
4. Transparency over performance.
5. Systems thinking over addressing symptoms.
6. Progress through iteration.
7. Slow down to seek understanding.
8. Change requires community.
Check out the full details here.
Carried By Purpose
Our tagline, Carried by Purpose, reflects the principles that guide our work.
We design products that are meant to last, reuse materials that would otherwise become waste, and collaborate with partners in ways that emphasize fairness, respect, and long-term relationships.
Some Morph products are manufactured. Skilled makers handcraft others in small batches, including informal seamstresses in Thailand and refugee artisans in St. Louis. Their craftsmanship brings creativity and character to every piece, and we compensate their work fairly.
Every Morph product combines recovered materials and skilled craftsmanship to create something useful and lasting.
The short video below shares a bit about what we do at Morph, how we go about it, and the why behind it all. Please give it a watch.
-Team Morph
Rethinking Waste
Morph began with a simple question: what could we do to help society think differently about waste?
Instead of treating waste primarily as a noun (an inevitable byproduct of modern life) what if we thought of it as a verb? Something we do through our collective choices, systems, and habits.
Around the world, human society discards enormous quantities of valuable materials every day. Meanwhile, many remain strong, functional, and useful. We throw them away not because they’ve stopped working, but because they no longer serve their original purpose.
Ultimately, this isn’t just a waste problem. It’s a design problem that’s rooted in how we think about resources and what we believe they’re worth. The problems it causes will continue to mount, until we change how we use resources.
What Morph Does
At Morph, waste is our resource.
We recover high-quality materials that would otherwise be discarded and transform them into durable, thoughtfully designed upcycled bags and accessories for everyday life. We do so in order to help people rethink resource use. In production, we prioritize quality, by doing things like using a double-layer in products for lasting strength, and where zippers are needed, we always use YKK. Through our pursuit of excellence, we extend the lives of the resources we source.
Unlike most brands, we don’t order materials from suppliers. Instead, we seek out resources that manufacturers and businesses can no longer use. We do so to demonstrate the value of keeping useful resources out of landfills.
Our Sourcing
Our primary current materials include printed polyester offcuts from a banner manufacturer, Thai silk remnants from a bag manufacturer, and neoprene offcuts from a diving suit manufacturer. Each source tells its own story. Vibrant polyester destined for landfill becomes a Market Bag or Yoga Mat Bag. High-performance neoprene that once protected divers now protects your sunglasses. Silk remnants that didn’t make it into a Bangkok bag manufacturer’s products become a pouch that’s built to last.
We’re constantly on the lookout for new resources and testing possibilities. Lately, we have been prototyping with decommissioned fire hoses, burlap coffee bags from local roasters, vinyl billboards, and more. As our materials list grows, the possibilities mushroom.
Our makers
Everything Morph makes is a product of the desire to make a meaningful difference through our work. We partner with responsible organizations and communities of skilled makers to produce all of our manufactured and handmade goods. In doing so, waste is directly avoided, which is the Morph’s “ikigai” (the Japanese idea of “a reason for being”). That said, treating our partners fairly is table stakes. In cases where we would have to offer makers lower wages to achieve profitability, we either shelve the project, look for other ways to make it work, or accept that sometimes breakeven is our best hope.
We respect the skills, creativity, and kindness of all the partners we have collaborated with. Moreso, we appreciate their humanity and believe that in working together we can lift each other up and make things better for all. Treating them well If we’re not holding up our end of that equation, how could we hope to have a broader impact on humanity?
Handmade in Thailand
In Thailand, we source a variety of waste materials, and informal seamstresses in Bangkok sew our handmade products there. This keeps production close to its source, which reduces transport, supports skilled workers, and builds lasting community relationships.
Handmade in the US
We also make some of our handmade products in partnership with refugee seamstresses in St. Louis, Missouri. They are trained and supported by our partners at Forai. Forai works with refugees to build economic independence through skilled, dignified work, and every Morph product they produce is a step toward that goal. Learn more about Forai.
Made to High Standards
We partner with a values-aligned family business in Thailand for our manufactured products. They treat their workers well, maintain rigorous quality standards, and share our commitment to circular economy principles. We are proud to work with partners who hold the same standards we do.
Our Founder
Morph Bags was founded by Chris Oestereich, a circular economy consultant, writer, and lecturer based in St. Louis. Chris works at the intersection of sustainability, systems thinking, and social enterprise. He does so through his consulting firm, Linear to Circular, as well as CircularSTL, the St. Louis circular economy coalition he co-chairs. He also leads the Wicked Problems Collaborative, the independent press he launched to address humanity’s biggest challenges. Chris has also taught courses on systems thinking, social innovation, advocacy, and social enterprise at Thammasat University’s School of Global Studies in Bangkok for the past decade and continues to take part as a guest lecturer. He welcomes invitations for guest lectures, talks, and workshop facilitation.
Learn more at chrisoestereich.com.
Let’s Build The New Thing
Bucky Fuller was an architect, systems theorist, and sustainability advocate whose work was a precursor to systemic design. He believed that the way to create positive change was to build things that fostered meaningful progress. That’s what we’re trying to do with Morph Bags.
We’re still learning and evolving, and that’s intentional. Each new product, partnership, and experiment provides insights into how to do this work better. Progress happens through iteration, collaboration, and a willingness to rethink familiar systems.
Meaningful change happens through everyday actions. Morph supports community-based efforts like CircularSTL, which is working to build a circular economy in St. Louis. We encourage you to take part in local efforts, or to find a coalition of the willing and start your own. We go farther together, and there’s nothing like being part of a growing community focused on delivering real impact.
There are endless ways in which we can all help keep valuable resources in circulation. Please keep digging in where you are, and we’ll do the same. A better world is possible. Let’s build it together.