BUSINESS

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RODER CONNELL COLLIN EUTENEUER JORGEN HAMANN BRANDON MOORE

Common purpose drew 4 alumni to same Gilbert firm

TRIBUNE NEWS STAFF

They attended the University of Wisconsin at different times, but have ended up working at the same Gilbert company, drawn by its commitment to reduce – if not eliminate –the use of single-use plastic packaging.

And now, Jorgen Hamann, Brandon Moore, Collin Euteneuer and Roder Connell have embraced the ecological mission of Footprint, a molded fiber company occupying a 135,000-square-foot building near Baseline Road and Hobson Street that develops and manufactures ecofriendly packaging.

Headquartered in Gilbert, Footprint said its products have already led to a global redirection of 61 million pounds of plastic waste from entering the air, earth, and water working with leading global consumer brands like Walmart and Conagra.

Recently, it became publicly listed on NASDAQ through a combination with Gores Holdings VIII, Inc. The combined company is expected to have a post-transaction total enterprise value of $1.6 billion.

The four University of Wisconsin grads all went to its Stout campus, where close to 10,000 students are enrolled in what has been called that state’s polytechnic university.

Hamann (Class of 2018) is a packaging engineer who lives in Tempe; Moore (Class of 1996) is vice president of design and lives in Mesa; Euteneuer (Class of 2015) is sales director and lives in Chandler; and Connell (Class of 2019), a Gilbert

seeFOOTPRINT page 23

Bank salutes a Mesa laundromat with a conscience

TRIBUNE NEWS STAFF

AMesa laundromat has been rewarded by FirstBank for giving back to the community.

Social Spin, which has a coin-operated laundromat at 1255 E. Southern Ave., received $5,000 as well as an additional $1,000 to donate to a nonprofit of its choice.

FirstBank said in a release the two companies were among 10 in Arizona, Colorado and California that it wanted to salute for its contributions during the pandemic.

Social Spin offers free laundry access to those who need it but during the pandemic, the company expanded its giving by hiring food trucks and local caterers to provide free food and meal kits during their weekly free laundry events.

“In the end, an incredible 475 free meals were given out each week,” First Bank said. Former social worker Christy Moore founded Social Spin Laundromat in 2017. (Special

to the Tribune)

Giving back is part of Social Spin’s DNA. “Our business model and conscious capitalism drive our ‘pay it forward’ practices,” the company says on its website, adding that it aims to “create human-centered spaces that transform neighborhoods and the laundromat industry.”

It was founded in 2017 by Christy Moore, a professional social worker with 20 years of non-profit experience and calls itself “a community of champions.

“Social Spin has since grown into a team that represents all abilities and life-stages,” it says on its website. “We have dedicated textile experts who consistently show up and take care of your laundry and you.”

It also champions volunteering, noting, “To volunteer is to offer oneself time, heart, energy; to enrich a vision that uplifts us all. Volunteering is an action to strengthen community and cause.”

It also provides on-the-job training for people with barriers to employment, including youth transitioning from foster care, individuals formerly incarcerated and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

And it seeks donations of unwanted clothes to directly benefit people in need. (socialspinlaundromat.com).

First Bank also gave a similar award to Envision Painting of Gilbert for painting the homes of needy people for free.

“At FirstBank, ‘Good Business’ means giving back to the community by dedicating time and energy, volunteering, and helping charitable causes to make a deep and meaningful impact,” said Joel Johnson, East Valley market president at FirstBank.

“Each business that entered our Good Business Contest has left us inspired with the wonderful work they all are doing in the community, but Envision Painting and Social Spin really amazed us with all that they have been doing.” ■

resident, is a platform engineer. All four men reflect a commitment to Footprint’s determination to reduce the disastrous impact plastic has had on human and environmental health.

“Together, these UW-Stout alumni are fighting it head on by designing, engineering, and manufacturing plant-based fiber containers, bowls and trays that replace short-term use plastic,” a company spokeswoman said. Connell, who defines and manages the development path for new product launches, said he decided to major in plastics because it has become an increasingly more sought-after skill among corporations.

“There will always be a need for packaging,” he said. “Every physical item you buy comes in a package. There is an abundance of career opportunities for packaging majors.”

Though he is the youngest of the four alumni, he interacts with them on a continual basis, tackling tasks together on projects with their individually define roles and responsibilities. Though he initially had figured he’d end up working in his native, Wisconsin, he was drawn in part to Footprints because of its mission.

Indeed, at a job fair at the university, Connell said, “I did end up pitching my take on ‘The Benefits of Molded Fiber and the Danger of Single-Use Plastics.’ I had spent all night and morning rehearsing my pitch before the interview… and I guess I nailed it.”

Moore joined Footprint partly out of his passion for design, creativity – and the environment.

“Footprint and having multiple patents have been great accomplishments so far,” he said. “In the future, I would love to see Footprint go into history as a company that helped change the world.”

Like his three fellow alumni, Euteneuer says packaging offers a world of opportunity.

But as Hamann noted, Footprint also offered an opportunity to do more than make a living.

“Our mutual interest in living somewhere new and helping save the planet is likely what brought us together,” Hamann said.

And they share a common goal, he added: “To continue taking steps to improve the planet we all live on and make it a better place for the next generations.” ■

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