RepawPlay
A platform that turns the guilt of accumulating old clothes into something your dog actually wants.
- Category
- UI/UX
- Year
- 2025
- Services
- UI/UX, Product Design, Branding
- Client
- RepawPlay
Role
Founder & Principal Designer · No Turn on Red
Industry
Pet-care / circular economy
Outcomes
Overview
Two dead-end objects — a closet of unworn clothes and a dog's shredded toy — closed into one loop.
The platform guides people through collecting, shipping, and transforming textile waste into handcrafted pet toys — a loop that would otherwise feed landfill. It's a warm, participatory path for pet families who want to live a little greener.
The challenge
Two separate waste streams. Two separate consumer behaviors. One design opportunity to close both loops. The brief required more than UI — it required a service design that could shift how people relate to two entirely unrelated objects in their home: the pile of shirts they haven't worn in two years, and the toy their dog destroyed last Tuesday. The UX challenge was emotional, not functional. Guilt is the wrong motivator. It makes people close apps. Participation is the right one.
The dog is the emotional lever — not the landfill.
So the platform leads with what the user receives — a handcrafted toy made from their own clothes — not what they're clearing out. The flow compresses to three steps (collect, ship, receive), closer to a subscription box than a recycling program, and the identity follows suit: warm, domestic, pet-forward rather than campaign-green.
85%
of discarded clothing ends up in landfill rather than being repurposed or recycled.
67%
of pet owners report buying new toys monthly, many of which are destroyed within days.
2 → 1
RepawPlay collapses two separate waste streams into one participatory loop.
In China, clothing recycling is becoming a green lifestyle for the younger generation — but trustworthy textile recycling channels are scarce, most discarded clothes are short-life and low-recyclability, and there is no emotional link between sustainability and everyday pet-care behaviors.
92,000,000
Tons of global textile waste each year
5,000,000
Tons — China's annual waste-textile recycling volume
78%
of families feel frustrated by accumulated old clothes
Lack of trustworthy textile recycling channels — users hesitate to donate.
Pet toys are short-life, low-quality, and often non-recyclable.
Missing emotional link between sustainability and pet-care behaviors.
Materials shared by pet toys + upcycling
Fabric
Soft, light, easy to work — ideal for DIY.
Leather
Sturdy and bite-resistant.
Rubber
Durable and chew-friendly.
Silk
Elegant and smooth, for light play.
Service vision
A warm, participatory circular service that gives old clothes a second life through pets.
Recycling & Mass Production
Send old clothes → cleaned, sorted, and upcycled into mass-produced toys.
User-led DIY Creation
Order a DIY kit and make the toy at home with templates and tutorials.
Community Workshop
Join offline workshops to make toys together in community spaces.
Recycling old clothes
Ying Zimeng
Female · Freelance illustrator · 27 · Nanyang
Scenario
She generates the need to dispose of old clothes when moving, changing seasons, or organizing storage. She pursues convenient, efficient disposal and tends to book door-to-door pickup through online platforms.
Expectations
- —Simple operation and flexible registration
- —Precise time and a controllable process
- —Transparent price and reasonable valuation
- —Clear information and privacy protection
- —Differentiated experience, valuable feedback
Acquisition
Select platform
Consideration
Register / login
Acquisition
Fill in the information
Service
Book a courier for pickup
Loyalty
Wait for the clothing payout
- —Which platform pays the most for recycling?
- —Which is more reliable?
- —Which has more drop-off points, or door pickup?
- —Quick login process
- —Is one-click login a privacy issue?
- —Which time frame is available for pickup?
- —How is my information protected?
- —How do I estimate the weight of clothes?
- —Is the courier pickup time accurate?
- —Do I need to take time off work for this?
- —So little money for recycling old clothes
- —Are the weights weighed accurately?
- —Where do the recycled clothes go?
- —Compare different recycling platforms
- —Browse social media for what people say
- —Click 'One-Click Login' to register and log in
- —Fill in the pickup address
- —Book a pickup time
- —Weigh the clothes to be collected
- —Wait for the courier at the door
- —Pack clothes for recycling
- —Hand used clothes to the courier
- —Check money / points exchanged
- —Exchange points for goods on the platform
- —Platforms have the same features — no differentiation
- —Most are not on social media
- —Forced login the moment you open the app
- —Privacy of personal information
- —Address details not protected
- —Weighing clothes at home is a hassle
- —Two hours of waiting
- —The courier handover is face-to-face
- —No feedback mechanism for users
- —No visibility into where clothes go
- —Differentiate platform functionality
- —Precise targeting
- —Enhance user engagement
- —Step-by-step guide to filling in info
- —Provide anonymous login
- —Commit to not storing or leaking address info
- —Photo-based weight estimation
- —Precise 30-minute appointment slots
- —No-touch handover
- —Real-time clothes-flow updates after sending
- —Clothes-flow data feedback
Buying a toy for a pet
Li Houyu
Male · Operations manager · 36 · Guangzhou
Scenario
He has a pet at home and finds its favorite stuffed toy chewed through. When choosing a new toy he checks materials carefully, but the buying experience often disappoints: some toys break in days, and some pets simply aren't interested.
Expectations
- —Quality assurance and information transparency
- —Value for money & flexibility
- —Aesthetic design and emotional resonance
- —Better after-sales mechanism
- —Scenario-based service matching
Awareness
Determine the need to buy
Consideration
Buy toys
Acquisition
Use of toys
Service
Damage to toys
Loyalty
Re-purchase of toys
- —Need new toys if the old ones broke
- —Got a new pet and need toys
- —Pet's birthday — want a gift
- —Is the material safe and durable?
- —Does the design meet my aesthetics?
- —How cost-effective is it?
- —How long will the toy last?
- —Will the pet like to play with it?
- —How much to restore a toy?
- —Feeling sorry for a damaged toy
- —Changing toys too often
- —What kind of toy to buy again?
- —Pick at a physical pet-toy shop
- —Compare and buy at online flagship stores
- —Search Taobao for affordable toys
- —Take the pet to a shop to choose
- —Touch toys by hand
- —Browse toy reviews on social media
- —Clean pet toys
- —Daily maintenance of toys
- —Repair damaged toys yourself
- —DIY interesting designs while mending
- —Compare toys online for better quality
- —Swap brands with friends
- —Throw away old toys
- —Price not proportional to quality — poor value
- —Lack of distinctive pet toys on the market
- —Pets may not like them
- —Short toy lifespan
- —Pet toys of questionable quality
- —Can't repair toys
- —Lack of materials to repair them
- —Too much time and money buying toys so often
- —Throwing away old toys
- —Toy durability ratings
- —Enhance the fun-match of toys
- —Add toys for different pets
- —Set standards for toys
- —Provide low-cost trial toys
- —Design a trade-in recycling mechanism
- —Beginner tutorials for repairing toys
- —Each toy ships with a free piece of matching fabric
- —Monthly / quarterly delivery of age- and type-appropriate toys
- —Recycling of old toys
Old-clothes recycling
Factory processing
Points & reward
DIY kit path
Mass-production toy
Offline workshop
- —Apply for free mailing
- —Pack clothes
- —Send package
- —Track status in app
- —Receive points
- —Choose kit
- —Make toy at home
- —Purchase toy with points + cash
- —Register
- —Bring old clothes
- —Make toy on site
- —App submission form
- —Shipping-label confirmation
- —Tracking timeline display
- —Points dashboard
- —DIY kit store
- —Video tutorials
- —Toy product page
- —Check-in
- —Workshop facilitators
- —Platform verifies materials
- —Sends shipping info
- —Cleaning
- —Disinfection
- —Sorting
- —Upcycling process
- —Platform scoring algorithm
- —Full points vs. 1/5 points
- —Platform hosts templates
- —Video content
- —Manufacturing partner packages toy
- —Community center coordination
- —Logistics provider picks up parcel
- —Manufacturing partner workflow
- —Database updates
- —Designers maintain patterns
- —Instructions
- —Logistics shipping
- —Volunteers assist users
- —App screen
- —Shipping box
- —Progress notifications
- —Points confirmation UI
- —Kit package
- —Printed templates
- —App tutorials
- —Toy packaging
- —Convertible sniffing box
- —Workshop table
- —Tools
- —Templates
Concept
The UI centers on eco-friendly recycling: soft, natural, warm colors convey new life for old clothes, complemented by vibrant tones for the warmth and interactivity of pet companionship. Overall approachable and uncomplicated — eco-consciousness, emotional connection, and playfulness.
Logo
App icon and branding logos are built from a paw-print 'RePaw' wordmark — used both in-app and across promotional materials.
Color palette
Aqua Breeze
#15C4C9
Warm Coral
#FE632F
Fresh Mint Green
#10B981
Soft Cloud White
#FAF8FA
Typography
The packaging is designed not just as a container but as a functional part of the circular service: cuttable templates let the box itself transform into a sniffing box for pets — reducing waste and adding another layer of interaction.
Workshop poster
A printed poster introducing offline DIY workshops in Liangzhu Cultural Village, encouraging community participation.
Introductory guide
A step-by-step booklet that walks users through using the toy or assembling the DIY kit, lowering the barrier to participation.
Product packaging
Cuttable templates turn the cardboard box into a sniffing box for pets — packaging becomes a meaningful extension of the experience.
Toy ID card
A small card introducing each toy: its name, what it's made from, and how to maintain it for safe, long-lasting use.
Outcome
Sustainability rides along for free — because the thing people actually sign up for is a better toy for the dog that wrecked the last one.