While there was not an Okeechobee Music Festival this year, Rechulski, one of the founders of OMF and owner of Sunshine Grove, promoted the spirit of the “leave no trace” festival with the launch of a new company.

On March 1, 2024, Sungai Design officially opened its doors for business. Sungai Design is an innovative product and design company that is set to revolutionize up-cycled and sustainable furniture, products, art and more. Sungai Design creates high-quality, sustainable and one-of-a-kind designed products, whose sales will help combat the global plastic pollution crisis. Sungai Design was born out of an urgent need to productively use the plastic waste that its sister non-profit organization, Sungai Watch, has been collecting over the past three years since the organization’s inception. With 80% of the ocean’s plastic pollution coming from rivers, Sungai Watch has been focused on stopping the pollution at the source. To date, Sungai Watch has installed 270 floating barriers throughout Indonesia’s rivers and to date has collected over 1,800,000 kg of plastic, with daily barrier collection now averaging over 3,000 kg of river plastic every day.

“Collecting and amassing plastic waste solves one part of the problem of plastic pollution. The second challenge is what to actually do with all of this plastic. As we collected hundreds of thousands of kilograms of plastics, we started to look at plastic as an excellent source material for everyday products we all need and use, from furniture to small goods to even art,” remarked Kelly Bencheghib, Sungai Design Co-Founder.

Sungai Design is launching with two signature pieces – two variations of their Ombak lounge chair, designed and manufactured in Bali. Ombak, meaning “wave” in Indonesian, is an ode to Sungai Design’s commitment to striving towards plastic free rivers and oceans. Each chair is made from 2,000 plastic bags that are 100% up-cycled and rescued from Indonesia’s rivers by Sungai Watch. Each bag undergoes an intensive cleaning process before being transformed into durable sheets through advanced manufacturing methods. “We’re incredibly proud of what we are building. We harness the precision of CNC technology in the making of our products. The plastic sheets are intricately sculpted into a series of parametric panels that make up the backbone of the Ombak chair, ensuring the chair blends comfort and style, leaving no offcuts or waste behind. Every chair emerges from the collective passion of a dedicated team, wanting to leave our rivers cleaner than we found them,” said Gary Bencheghib, Sungai Design Co-Founder.

 By up-cycling river plastic into valuable products starting with furniture, Sungai Design is paving the way for a new era of sustainable design and products. Sungai Design pledges a minimal carbon footprint, audited and tracked sources of plastic, and that a part of its revenue will be donated to Sungai Watch to further river clean-ups in Indonesia and beyond. “We’re very excited to officially launch Sungai Design with our Ombak chairs and we’re even more excited for the designs and products that will be available for purchase later this summer. There is so much potential with this material. When you choose a chair from our collection, you're not just selecting a piece of furniture; you're embracing the transformation from waste to a beautiful, functional piece of art that has found its place in your home,” stated Sam Bencheghib, Sungai Design Co-Founder. Currently, Sungai Design ships within Indonesia and will be offering worldwide shipping later this year.

Sungai Design invites you to explore the world of its up-cycled plastic products at SungaiDesign.com and follow Sungai Design on Instagram, and TikTok.

About Sungai Design Sungai Design is a purpose driven design company on a mission to up-cycle as much river plastic into one-of-a-kind products to help fund river cleanups around the world. Sourcing its plastic from its sister non-profit organisation, Sungai Watch, each product is made exclusively from waste. Founded by the Bencheghib sibling trio, Gary, Kelly, and Sam, and New York based artist, Rechulski, Sungai Design is paving the way for a new era of sustainable design and products.