Who We Are
Defy is Sydney-based company that specialise in designing and manufacturing impactful products made from plastic destined for landfill. We are a passionate team of designers and innovators dedicated to improving the environment through action, rather than words. Our design lead approach to solving complex problems of our past places us at the forefront of the movement to close the loop of our plastic waste streams in Australia!
Our Mission
Our mission is to stop the production of all virgin plastic and keep all existing materials in circulation! We want to reconnect people and products to the story of our waste so that plastic is considered a valuable material that can flow within a “closed loop” system without ever going into our natural environment.
Meet The Team
What We Do
At our factory in Botany, we do everything under one roof, from recycling to design and manufacturing. We sort, wash and shred post consumer waste and turn it into unique products with our bespoke manufacturing methods. We offer mobile, educational workshops that break down the recycling and manufacturing process. This tangible experience is understandable and relatable to all audiences and is still our favourite part of the job!
What Makes Us Different
We’ve found that rarely products are designed for their end-of-life and most companies design using a linear approach - make, use, dispose. Defy have set out to create the new “gold standard” for manufacturing and business waste accountability. Our wholistic approach to the design process means that the lifecycle and circularity of a product and its material is considered from stage 0. To work towards our zero waste strategy we mark all our products with “DEFY” and the type of the plastic type it is made from, so that at the end-of-life, our products can be returned to us, shredded down and transformed into new useful things. We pride ourselves on making premium quality products with bespoke patterns, matt or high gloss finishes and weighty parts (good-bye thin and flimsy). Our goal is to rewrite the narrative on plastic to prove it is a valuable, beautiful and robust material.
Our Clients
Just a few inspiring businesses choosing to be apart of our movement.
As Seen On
Good Design Awards Trophies
We collaborated with an inspiring team of designers and thinkers to manufacture the newly designed Good Design Award Australia trophies.
Proudly supported by the City of Sydney
Recycling Project - Igniting A Local Circular Economy
We’ve been piloting a new way to collect and process plastic recycling for local businesses. Thanks to the support of the City of Sydney, we teamed up with a handful of awesome businesses to connect them to the circular economy, educate about waste management and share our knowledge about recycling and sustainability.
Part of the project's knowledge sharing strategy led to the development of two custom recycled products with two local business partners.
Follow the link below to read our case study about the bread boards we developed with Bourke Street Bakery!