Topanga ReusePass

Designing the end-to-end reuse system—from the customer-facing app to the operational backbone that made it scale.

Product designSystems designService designProduct strategyProduct management

380,000+ Students onboarded across university campuses

7M+ Single-use containers diverted from landfill

A hand holding a phone showing the ReusePass QR code screen, on a wooden table — Fig. 1Users receive unique QR codes that enable them to scan out reusable containers.

Reusable packaging only works if borrowing and returning feels as easy as throwing something away—for the customer using it, and for the operators running the program behind it.

As Topanga’s second employee, I helped build ReusePass from the ground up, designing the end-to-end experience for borrowing, using, and returning containers across university campuses. Every interaction was designed to reduce friction, from sign-up in busy dining halls to reminders that encouraged students to return containers on time, helping students build lasting habits without adding work.

Three ReusePass screens: the campus home screen with rental status, the account activity view with impact stats, and the digital pass with QR code — Fig. 2Active ‘rentals’, impact, and wallet pass.

Timeline diagram of the ReusePass checkout window, showing the late, charge-pending, and charged stages with SMS touchpoints — Fig. 3The checkout timeline, from due date to charge, with a reminder along the way.

None of that holds up without an operating model that can support it at scale. As Head of Design, I also led the design of the end-to-end system spanning customers, operators, and back-of-house teams—from enrollment and container checkout to return workflows and administrative tools—so reuse felt as effortless as disposable packaging from every side of the counter.

Rather than asking organizations to adopt entirely new ways of working, we integrated reusable packaging into existing operations and leveraged RFID technology to minimize behavior change for both customers and frontline staff.

An operator scanning a reusable container and a customer's ReusePass QR code at checkout — Fig. 4Checkout, made as quick as scanning a container.

A customer placing an empty reusable container into a ReusePass return bin — Fig. 5Returns, made just as easy: no scanning needed.

Swimlane diagram of an existing participant's container lifecycle, from checkout through enjoy, return, and recirculation, across student, employee, and back-end steps — Fig. 6The full container lifecycle, mapped.

Program owners needed a way to see where their reusable assets were and how the program was doing overall, so I designed the operator dashboard that made that visible. There was no existing standard for what success looked like in a reusable packaging program, so a lot of the work was in defining those KPIs myself. Return rate became the hero metric—the number we evaluated overall program health against.

Fig. 7The operator dashboard home—giving program owners a real-time view of their reusable assets and how the program is performing.

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