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Mexico Week of Service

Going the Extra Mile

At Rejuvenation, we believe in valuing the past and working toward the future. Founded in 1977 as an architectural salvage store, our company is built on a commitment to socially responsible business practices. We put our beliefs into action in the communities where we live and work - here are a few examples:

Carbon Neutral
In 2007, we began an initiative to become carbon-neutral. Through changing our carbon-producing actions, we are reducing our footprint on the earth by negating the greenhouse gas impact of our operations.

The Natural Step
Rejuvenation volunteered to be the first participant in an innovative pilot project sponsored by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, the City of Portland, and the Oregon Natural Step Network. Utilizing The Natural Step process, we have developed a methodology to measure our environmental impact. As a result, we're making our metal cleaning, coating, antiquing, polishing, plating, and painting processes more environmentally benign.

For instance, we use a water-based ultrasonic degreasing system for cleaner parts, and our closed-loop ion exchange system treats water from the antiquing process and extracts heavy metals for safe disposal. These processes have eliminated pollution discharge to sewers and allow us to re-use the processed water.

Greening Our Supply Chain
We routinely perform on-site inspections and test the water quality at the factories with which we do business. We take pride in partnering with our vendors around the world to improve environmental performance as well as production quality.

Giving Back 10%
We donate ten percent of the company's yearly after tax profits to programs that help support vibrant, sustainable communities where our employees and customers live and work. Our charitable efforts are primarily in the areas of housing, historic preservation, the arts, and the environment. Some of the organizations we've helped support in this way include:

Days of Service Rejuvenation employees regularly participate in company-sponsored (i.e., paid) 'Days of Service' where they get their hands dirty in community efforts, from park restoration projects and trail maintenance to historic preservation and house painting. One example from 2006 was our support of the ongoing restoration of the historic Hollywood Theatre - namesake of the Hollywood District in Northeast Portland.

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Hurricane Katrina
In 2006, Rejuvenation supported the clean-up and rebuilding efforts in New Orleans by sending a team of employees to the city for a week of demolition and food distribution. This trip made such an impact on both the volunteers and the folks they were helping that we plan on doing something similar again.


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Cash-for-Kids
Once a year, our employees with children in public schools hand-deliver a Rejuvenation check for $100 to each of their kids' classrooms.


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Alternative Commuting
We offer cash incentives to our employees who walk, carpool or ride their bikes to work, and also subsidize tickets for public bus and light-rail travel. We even keep a fleet of company bikes on site at our Portland headquarters for employees to use to run errands or get out for a little fresh air.

Architectural Salvage
We are passionate about the beauty of great old hardware, lighting, and house parts - it's how we got our start. However, we also believe deeply in recycling and the wise use of second-hand resources as an important aspect of sustainable communities.

Sustainability Committee
This cross-departmental, employee-run committee has addressed everything from big-picture manufacturing practices to the cafeteria waste generated by small salt packets. (We now use large containers in the lunchroom.)

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Packaging & Paper
Nearly all of our packaging materials are 100% recyclable (some is actually recycled from our own office paper). We use paper with post-consumer recycled content for our catalogues and other collateral, and we limit our mailings to save paper.

Our Stores
Our Portland and Seattle stores were built in the very kinds of historical buildings that we love. Our Portland store was built in 1902 as an overalls factory, and later served as Portland's wholesale flower mart. Our second store, in Seattle, is housed in a former railcar plant from the early 1900s. In both buildings we recycled construction debris for best end use, used existing clerestories to supplement compact fluorescent fixtures with natural light, and installed salvaged wood floors (recovered from a Sears warehouse and a Seattle grade school, respectively). And our Portland factory was built in 1939 for the Chase Bag Company.

Resource Conservation
Our lighting fixtures speak the language of both past and future - many models are available with GU24 compact fluorescent (CF) technology. And our "take back" program states that Rejuvenation will pay the freight to have our products returned to us for recycling when customers are ready for a change.

Home Ownership
Rejuvenation employees who are first-time home buyers are eligible for an interest-free $5,000 loan to help with their down payment. The loan is forgiven after five years of service.

Education
Our workforce is diverse, with our employees speaking more than 20 languages from countries around the globe. To help non-English speakers, we pay for ESL classes. For others looking to further their education, we offer tuition-reimbursement benefits.

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