Smash Cup
A collapsable and environmentally friendly to-go vessel for your coffee
by Chérmelle Edwards
Ben Melinger was at a coffee shop when he came up with Smash Cup—an idea to hopefully lessen his (and others’) coffee cup footprint. Combining functionality with eco-friendliness, Melinger takes to Kickstarter today with his simple but effective project: a reusable, collapsible coffee cup.
Aiming to be the solution to a common problem, Smash Cup (if funded) will be the first universal portable travel mug that saves space and the environment with its ability to downsize its physical size in one smash. The concept—like so many concepts—came from recognizing a void in the existing market. “Big travel mugs are so cumbersome in a city setting. We started to think about what a reusable cup would look like if it were made for someone like us: somebody who lives and works on the go, with no car for storing a travel mug. Somebody who carries everything they need for the day on their shoulder.”
After the creation of 2D drawings of a Smash Cup prototype, Melinger began modeling early concepts of the cup. Then, with the introduction of industrial engineer, Dean Pietro of Tomorrow Lab, a fold design with compression and injection molding tools allowed for expert sealing and mass production.
Now, after over two years of prototypes and designs, Smash Cups—with their easy-to-rotate lid and a focus on coffee cup conservation—are ready to become a reality. The reusable cups (which come in five colors, are dishwasher-safe and hold hot or cold beverages) launch on Kickstarter today. For $12 supporters will receive one of the first Smash Cups in a colorway of their choice.
Images courtesy of Smash Cup
