From a Louisville Garage to a National Brand

Recycled Firefighter started in a two-car garage in Louisville, Kentucky — with a $99 Singer sewing machine and a stack of decommissioned fire hose. Jake Starr, a career firefighter and self-taught seamster, wanted to make something useful out of gear that had already served on a line. He taught himself to sew from YouTube videos, starting with backpacking hammocks as a hobby project before figuring out that decommissioned fire hose was a better material than most of what was on the EDC market: tough, already proven on the job, and available cheaply from fire departments that were retiring it anyway.

The first product was a slim wallet sewn from real fire hose. That wallet — now known as the Sergeant Wallet, Firehose Edition — is still the bestseller today. The same pattern, refined over a decade of customer feedback, continues to be sewn in small batches with the same commitment to quality that started it all.

A Firefighter's Vision, Carried Forward

As a full-time firefighter working over 72 hours a week, Jake realized that even with overtime pay he wasn't making enough to fully support his growing family. With a decade of firefighting experience under his belt and a newborn son at home, it was time to build something of his own. After about 200 different failed products and prototypes, he landed on a minimalist wallet made from fire hose — and it took off.

What began on Etsy grew into a thriving e-commerce business with an international following. Jake credits his customers with keeping him going: when he felt like he couldn't sew another wallet, he would read the emails from happy customers telling him how much it meant to carry something with real history.

A New Chapter: The Mission Continues

In 2025, Kyle Doyon — another firefighter, longtime Recycled Firefighter customer, and entrepreneur — acquired the brand from Jake. The operation relocated to Cape Coral, Florida, where the shop is bigger, the team is bigger, and the mission is exactly the same. Kyle brought the brand new energy, more space for product development, and better shipping logistics, while preserving everything that made Recycled Firefighter what it is. Jake still consults on product development — the same way the original Sergeant Wallet pattern is still part of the catalog.

Built With Purpose — What Hasn't Changed

Every piece is made in the USA, most of them right in Cape Coral. Every wallet, bag, pouch, and mat carries material that once protected someone on the job — real decommissioned fire hose, retired bunker gear, and real military Combat Boot Leather. Every product is sewn in small batches with size 90 nylon thread and bar-tacked at the stress points. The Captain Wallet went through 13 months and 50+ failed prototypes before it shipped — that is the standard they hold.

Recycled Firefighter is a tactical, firefighter-rooted Everyday Carry brand built for people who want gear that lasts: first responders, veterans, active military, tradespeople, and EDC users who are done replacing cheap gear every year.

Made in the USA. Built to serve. Carried with pride.