Case Study: One man’s trash IS another man’s Treasure
Alarmingly, the number of pallets being sent to the landfills each year exceeds 100 million.
Written By: Nancy Grace Brown
We’ve all heard this phrase, whether shopping at a yard sale, scouring a thrift store, or simply driving down the road. But in today’s world where sustainability is imperative for the future of our planet, trash takes on a different level of concern and importance.
Enter Luke Dixon, a dreamer, artist and planet protector from the small town of Helena, AL. He sees another man’s trash as a global environmental problem. In particular, he sees that pallets used to carry freight are primarily sent to landfills following the end of their supply chain journey.
Once aware of this daunting statistic, Luke saw the need for change as well as an abundance of opportunity. Motivated by challenge and possessing a knack for innovation, Luke demonstrated that for a problem so big, there is no solution too small. Born from a classroom assignment, he engaged in a budget-conscious venture that recognized the hidden potential in what others deemed trash. In his small Auburn workshop, where handmade design and business intersect, he transforms discarded pallets into handmade furniture, breathing new life into materials that would have otherwise been lost.
But what drives Luke is more than just a furniture company. At its core, he sees what he is doing as having a much higher level of purpose; it’s a movement. A movement driven by the mission to avoid mass production, to rethink the value of everyday materials, and to champion thoughtful, intentional design.
The idea of repurposing items destined for landfills started in an Auburn University classroom in the Fall of 2023. Luke and his fellow Industrial Design classmates were tasked with creating a product that could be pitched at the upcoming business idea pitch competition hosted by the Harbert College of Business.
While entrepreneurship was never an avenue Luke had considered for himself, his drive to create was intrinsic. Initially, he pursued studying architecture but quickly shifted to industrial design, a move that gave him more autonomy over his creations. He wanted to design and create things that were uniquely his. The drive for independence in his work flourished in the Industrial Design program at Auburn where the challenge to “pitch” his idea from one of his professors enabled him to merge his passion for design with a business model that could literally change the world.
It was during the following weeks that the details of a company that would become known as PALS began to fall into place.
One thing about Dixon is that he has always been fascinated by ‘free’. From growing up with a mindfulness of where money came from to being a college student with limited resources, Luke quickly identified the wooden pallets left behind buildings and on roadsides by local businesses as his materials.
His process idea was simple: find discarded pallets, deconstruct them, and turn them into high-quality, handmade furniture. The beauty of it? The materials were free- nothing but his labor, time, and creativity were needed to transform them. This model of sustainability not only thrilled Luke but also provided a business opportunity with minimal overhead. He began driving around the Auburn-Opelika area filling the trunk of his Toyota Venza with pallets and before he knew it, he had his first piece, a simple folding stool that became the catalyst for launching the PALS brand.
After presenting his folding stool and other potential design ideas at his first business idea pitch competition, Luke didn’t walk away with a prize- but he did walk away with something arguably far more valuable: confidence. He had the validation from the judges that his idea could work, even if it was still in its infancy. He had initially put a stipulation on this journey, telling himself “If I win, I’ll pitch again. And if I don’t win, I’ll be done.” However, this all changed after a meeting with Ward Swift, a mentor from Auburn’s New Venture Accelerator (NVA). Swift encouraged Luke to see the bigger picture, “The true value in pitch competitions isn’t about winning” Swift said, “it’s about the need for continuous learning and relationship building. You need to be able to persevere and pursue your dreams with grit and determination. Being an entrepreneur is hard. It’s every day hard. But you can make it.”
With that encouragement illuminating the path ahead, Luke took a risk and made a pivotal choice, saying, “You know what, I’ll give it a shot.”
From there Luke rolled up his sleeves and got to work. After two months of strenuous prep, he went on to take PALS into Auburn’s Tiger Cage pitch competition, where he won $5,000 in startup capital and the “Exemplary Undergraduate Award” for his presentation.
Since then, he has continued to expand his range of product offerings as his customers and creativity have led him. From the original folding stool to side tables, lamp tables, and more advanced woodworking pieces, PALS is still in the experimental stage of determining what it wants to produce long-term. The pieces are just as much artwork as they are functional everyday necessities. And that appeals to the artist that Luke is.
Capturing the story behind each piece he creates is at the core of the PALS brand and is what drives his ongoing creativity and openness to new projects. The ideal pursuit for Luke is “to work on custom orders with clients who are interested in making something more than just a piece of furniture.” He believes that his pieces lend themselves to a special client with a unique vision and voice.
Inscription: This seat was crafted from materials that would have added to the growing waste problem. The wood has been repurposed from landfill bound pallets, and the seat has been crafted from a burlap sack that transported coffee beans. These materials have been handcrafted into living art to continue their journey & provide a service to those who wish to sit.”
One of the most unique elements of PALS is the way Luke embraced imperfection. Every piece he makes, whether it’s a custom-designed coffee table or a basic folding stool comes with at least one distinct feature- a nail hole. Luke describes his thought process around them, saying, “I tried to figure out ways to avoid it and cut around them and block them off, but I’ve kind of realized that there’s beauty in imperfection”. He sees it as a custom branding that’s on everything he makes- in hopes that one day people might recognize his work saying, “Oh! A nail hole- that must be from PALS.” His decision to not shy away from imperfections has become a core part of PALS’ identity. Luke views his message as a reflection of a greater one- that nothing in life (or in furniture) is perfect, but that imperfection does not mean worthlessness.
As a bootstrap business, PALS is growing slowly but steadily. Since Luke graduated from the Industrial Design program in May, he has taken on a workshop space where all its operations take place. Like in any young business, each day is marked by much trial and error. When asked what he thought the hardest part of his journey has been so far, he deduced that it’s not so much figuring it out that is challenging, but that it’s having faith in yourself to overcome obstacles.
He has often found himself navigating a familiar cycle: a problem arises, freak out about it, find a solution. “The hardest part is that middle section”, he explains. Shortly after moving into his workshop, he encountered a critical moment while using his planer, an essential tool in his process. As he pushed a board through, it suddenly stopped working. In that moment of frustration, he felt like giving up. But after a simple breaker reset, everything was back to normal, and he realized how quickly he had gone from thinking, “I’m using my planer for the first time,” to “I’m giving up on PALS,” and then back to relief with, “Oh wait, it was really simple.” He admits that the mental struggle – the fight to not give up on your idea – is real. Deciding on the best way to move forward with a clear mind has been key to his entrepreneurial progress and serves as a testament to the reality of following through on a dream. When it comes to carrying out a big endeavor like PALS, Luke believes that you must embrace and love the journey.
One of the ways Luke has kept his business top-of-mind and reached new eyes is by piloting PALS’ presence on social media, particularly TikTok and Instagram. Over the last three months, Luke has committed to posting daily on his TikTok platform, using it to not only showcase his products and the design process but also inject his humor and personality into the brand. While he is in the early stages of developing his social media persona, he acknowledges it to be a piece of business that is of ever-increasing importance.
Aiming to connect with his audience on the principles of thoughtfulness and intentionality, he hopes that this ‘behind the scenes’ look into his operations will resonate with potential clients that want to make a unique difference with their household purchases and be a part of the greater PALS mission, “from landfill to living art.”
For now, people appreciate his storytelling and passion, so he says it’s “a great opportunity to talk about what I’m doing and why I’m doing it without people having to ask.” He is continuing with the mindset of growth and possibility, saying, “If it catches people’s attention, great! If it doesn’t it’s still a great record for me to look back and see ‘that’s where I was.”
Through the many successes and challenges of the PALS journey, Luke credits much of his growth as an entrepreneur to Auburn’s New Venture Accelerator, which offers mentorship, resources, and guidance to startups. From the inception of PALS, the NVA provided Luke with crucial support in the form of business advice, networking opportunities, and help with securing his first sales. What has made the NVA especially instrumental to Luke is the people. From entrepreneurs to fellow business owners, he says “If you have a certain problem, you can get a lot of opinions on different possible solutions, so the range of people is really great.”
Recalling a moment after his first month of business, Luke contrasted the immediate reactions of two of his biggest mentors. The first asked him if he could double the size of his business, and the second asked him how he felt and what it meant to him. By providing support in all areas- from reason to emotion- the NVA is composed of innovators that Luke believes, “will catch you if you fall.”
After just over a year of growth for PALS, the future is bright. While Luke enjoys the hustle of his one-man show, his dream is for PALS to be more than just him, to be a community. He desires to create a platform for others to develop sustainable things as well. The very name, PALS, symbolizes the sense of connection and community Luke aims to build through it all. He hopes to see his product offerings grow to be bigger and cooler as his business knowledge and technical skills advance.
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For more information about PALS, contact Luke Dixon at luke@pals-studio.com
To learn more about the New Venture Accelerator visit their website HERE.