Colorado Company Provides Sustainable Way to Capture Memories

With a new CEO at the helm, Colorado-based, Artifact Uprising, is expanding its product lineup and making it even easier to move our stories “off our devices” to keepsakes that are sustainable and handcrafted.

Founders and sisters, Jenna Walker and Katie Thurmes, both professional photographers, realized their clients photos were increasingly living in digital archives and thumb drives, not in print. They knew there had to be a better way to store those memories.

The sisters didn’t see anything in the marketplace that represented their vision or design aesthetic so they started the company in 2012, bootstrapping it with their own savings, according to CEO, Brad Kopitz.

Artifact Uprising offers premium quality custom photo products that provide a new kind of permanence to our otherwise digitally documented lives through custom-bound hardcover photo books whose interior pages are printed on 100% post-consumer waste material, Instagram-friendly softcover books made in minutes and a collection of wooden gift items handcrafted with mountain beetle pine.

“Jenna and Katie spent an enormous amount of time in the beginning to ensure they used the right materials and manufacturing process to make an archival quality product,” said Kopitz.  “They were very passionate about using sustainable materials wherever possible.”

Kopitz began working with Walker and Thurmes through Galvanize, a co-working space in the Golden Triangle neighborhood in Denver, about eight months after launch. The sisters had experienced a great deal of early organic growth, and they were looking for help to grow the business.

“Our focus has always been on providing excellent and unique customer service,” said Kopitz. “One of our core tenets is to take care of the customer no matter what. We want to guarantee every customer leaves happy.”

Artifact Uprising has been featured in Real Simple, Conde Nast Traveler, Better Homes & Gardens, Martha Stewart Weddings and Oprah for their use of sustainable materials and elevated design, including beetle kill pine from Colorado.

“Our products honor those experiences that are most meaningful to people,” said Kopitz. “We want them to last a lifetime so our customers can pass them on to the future generation.”

Artifact Uprising was acquired by VSCO in early 2014. Kopitz became CEO this year after Walker and Thurmes decided to step away from the business to have more time for travel and their families. Kopitz said Artifact Uprising is evolving and increasing its focus on technology, particularly in the mobile photo space. Their iPhone app allows customers to create premium quality photo books, photo cards and gifts from your iPhone in minutes. The Today Show said, “If you want to send a truly beautiful keepsake that will be enjoyed for a lifetime, grab the Artifact Uprising app and start scrolling.”

Check out the Artifact Uprising blog for product updates, photo tips and trends, travel stories, creative ideas and more.

Fast Facts

Location Denver, CO
Operations Headquarters
Industry Technology

Fun Facts

100%

Post-consumer waste material in Mohawk Options Paper

250,000

Feet of fallen Rocky Mountain pine reclaimed.

Brad Kopitz CEO

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