Our Story
About the Founder
Kendra Schneider, founder of Takeout Takeout, has been championing reuse in the Lansing area for the past four years. Tired of seeing innovative green solutions emerge in more progressive states, she decided to do what no one in her area was doing. Kendra made the bold choice to pioneer her own circular economy. After being met with great enthusiasm by businesses and customers, she’s continuing to expand her business. Takeout Takeout is more than just taking the trash out of takeout, it’s about empowering communities who often feel overlooked. She believes if we want to see real change across the globe, everyone needs access and the ability to participate. We need to think globally and act locally for this to work.
Where we started
Takeout Takeout is a reverse logistics company located in Lansing, MI. We are a grassroots initiative that is a product of The Fledge as well as the LEAP One and All program. In the summer of 2022, we partnered with Abundance Café and launched our first reuse pilot program. Within the first month over 100 single-use items were saved from landfills and participation rates gradually increased. By the end of 2022, Abundance Café customers had reused over 600 times just by requesting our reusable packaging once a week. With the support of Apple Blossom Kombucha and Red Bike Delivery, customers were able to swap out their containers during deliveries as well as when they picked up their orders.
Where we are
As 2024 draws to a close, we are reflecting on the past two years of our journey. This year Takeout Takeout not only was selected to be a NextCycle Michigan team, we also met with members of the Michigan legislature, were recognized by Upstream Solutions and received the 2024 Reusies Activist of the Year Award. Our pilot program with Abundance Café ended in October 2024, and we are proud to say that over 4,200 single-use items were saved from Michigan waste streams.
Where we are going
We are currently working with our tech partners at reUser to implement an inventory tracking system for reuse. We plan to relaunch at event spaces and restaurant hubs in 2025. If you or someone you know is interested in implementing reuse at your event or business, please contact us to learn more. Stay tuned for future announcements!
Takeout Takeout in the media
