*notcot in food+drink , 13:16

RuMe Bags - Early Earth Day- 04.21.08

rumeuse1.jpgHappy Early Earth Day (it’s tomorrow) - we have a sneak peek from the girls at Delight who are touting this new bag line as the next big thing in the reusable bag market. They were even nice enough to send over a set for me to play with early to share my thoughts… (so my pics of it in comparison to others, on the next page!). These new RuMe bags are larger than any of the others i’ve come across, which can be good and bad… good: they hold more in less bags! bad: they make me look like a midget when carrying them full… while they are also lightweight - their material is a bit on the crunchier side (mom of the NotEmpire, and our official reusable bag tester explained the difference as… the envirosax felt more like an umbrella material, whereas the RuMes were a bit more like a raincoat)… but i do like the velcro strap that ties these together, and that it hangs INSIDE, unlike the envirosax which leave the button dangling as you carry the bag. Anyhow…. there are two sets of colors, the “Sillicon Valley” greys and blacks, and the “Spring in New York” set of colorful brights. See below for more pics of these in context!

black rume car-700.jpg

RuMeExcersizeBag-700.jpg

RuMeFoldedKeys-700.jpg

RuMeSpringAll-700.jpg

Also noteworthy: (excerpt from the RuMe site)

RuMe’s premier product, the reusable RuMe Bag, is designed and packaged following a no-waste philosophy and all RuMe products are manufactured in South Korea under strict Fair Trade policies and standards including, but not limited to:

* A fair, living wage for all factory employees (2007 per capita GDP of South Korea is estimated at USD $24,600 per year by the CIA Fact Book).
* Employees have ample meal breaks, are not obligated to work overtime and employees may unionize.
* The factory is modern, clean, well lit and has emergency protocols in place.

RuMe’s manufacturing partner in South Korea belongs to the Fair Trade Commission.

Here are my comparison pics!
rume1.jpg

rume2.jpg

rume3.jpg

rume4.jpg

rume5.jpg

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39 Notes

Heard that envirosax had declared bankrupt few mths ago. Does that mean no more new designs?

----- Teresa 28.12.12 20:18

I love RuMe bags!

----- Kelly 01.08.09 20:08

@jessica

Mark has admitted to me in an email and via his actions that he has read this blog post and followed up on the comments regularly.

If the ‘Mark’ mentioned above is not him, surely it would have been easy enough for him to refute the fact that he is not ‘an idiot-jerk’ and it was indeed a conspiracy by another company to put Envirosax’s name in disrepute.

In my dealings with Mark, it’s pretty clear a conspiracy to drag Envirosax’s name in the mud would be redundant as he does a pretty good job of it himself.

So funny how a company that has a HUGE early market penetration advantage and could clearly ride on that to even greater success despite the vastly superior product alternatives that have come out in the market, chooses to circumvent that advantage by shooting itself in the foot with poor branding and operational choices.

----- Li 08.03.09 22:48

thanks Mark for digging hole for your own company, I have a couple of much more expensive roo-shopper, but no, I won’t even spend a dime on your product.

----- Kel 07.03.09 17:32

I recently (a few months ago) wrote a comment on this blog about Mark’s behaviour and just said that it was unacceptable from a marketing standpoint. Unfortunately, they linked me to my sister’s store and ended up doing something really terrible, and confirmed my opinion about Mark and his company.

My sister had started stocking Envirosax about 2 or so years ago, sinking a lot of money and time into promoting the product. We managed to get a few newspaper articles and features in holiday gift guides and even did a few giveaways, all at my sister’s expense. Through this whole time, Mark would have no contact with my sister and she had to deal with the distributor in Singapore. She asked for exclusive rights to Malaysian distribution, since she was already doing it, but they refused, saying they just wanted to deal with Singapore.

After my comment was posted on here, they called up the Singaporean distributor and in turn, she called my sister to abuse her about the comments made on this blog (not specifying) and on Facebook about my preference to RuMe bags because of the box cut.

That was in December, and just yesterday (March), my sister gets a call from a local distribution agency telling her to take down that she is sole distributor of the Envirosax in Malaysia because he just got the exclusive contract with Envirosax. Sneaky, petty and downright rude. Of course my sister is angry at Mark and how his company operates. Just because she is stocking a variety of reusable bags and I make an opinion (which is my right, and I don’t even work for my sister in this regard), he sneakily went behind my sister’s back and made a deal with another distributor.

All in all, I just want to say here that Envirosax may be a product with good intentions, but their company’s ethics are downright despicable and dirty.

I’m sure there will be backlash for writing this, but we don’t care anymore. RuMe is a better product (in MY opinion) and a better company overall, with proper ethics and good customer (and distributor) service.

----- Marcus 05.03.09 19:53

i like the workhorse bag from reusable bags - classic black, and easy to pack. rume’s not bad too, great designs.

----- Michael 18.12.08 06:16

All traffic is good traffic, or something like that, right Jean? :)

Wow.

I’m always amazed when supposedly professional people writing online seemingly have no concept of how their (typed) words can/will be perceived.

----- Daniel Holter 17.12.08 00:33

Wow, I’m surprised to see this thread on mark & envirosax. i know him from school way back and i must say…. all these negative feedback is true!!!. he’s well-known to be petty & narrow-minded.

----- Sara 16.12.08 23:41

I made the mistake of buying Envirosax from the website because I couldn’t find any stocked in local stores (they seem to be these days in at least one store I visit semi-regularly). They are warehoused out of California and I had a terrible time returning these disappointing bags. They wouldn’t take a return without the approval of Belinda, so the customer service is in another hemisphere. I have seen some of them in use, never mind the quality or the designs that only go on one side, or even this weird Mark character. They just look sloppy and bulgy when there’s anything in it. I am much more likely to try the RuMe bags.

I have been using cheap Whole Foods reusable bags in the meantime, since my poor experience with Envirosax. I didn’t want to try a lot of different bags and waste my money and time again, so I stuck with the WF bags. The Whole Foods bags are hard to carry along and don’t fold up too small, but they are hold a lot of stuff and don’t look awkward when they’re not really stuffed full. I am looking for all that plus more compact and I think RuMe has the right idea.

I can’t believe the popularity of Envirosax. They didn’t really make any breakthroughs over the problems of similar bags, except the EXCITING DESIGNS. When looking at a “package deal,” some of them are too weird, even the black/white design which I chose. The sloppy shape is still there. I can’t get over how horrible Envirosax look. The RuMe looks much neater and convenient, and the designs are nicer, and they offer solid colors; they keep coming out with new designs too. Envirosax has only one claim to fame and that’s the patterns (loud!) that you don’t have to carry a sloppy plain bag. After I sent them back, I was shocked how I couldn’t find anyone to say a bad thing about them. How great are they NOW when someone who knows how to construct a bag and offer pretty designs comes up?

I guess that’s everything. I like the look of RuMe bags.

----- Kodie 23.11.08 15:36

I am so glad I found this thread. I visited both the RuMe booth and Envirosacs booth at the New York Gift Show this past August, and I did like both. I couldn’t decide which to get for my store and decided to do some web research. After reading this nonsense the choice is easy. I’ll be going with the Fair Trade RuMe Bags who seem to be in all ways superior.

----- Carl 07.09.08 21:10

Hi,

I work for a reusable bag company and can attest to Marks and Belindas reputation as jerks. We have picked up many of their customers because of bad customer service and shody products. We have heard from a couple of their reps how they did not pay them and took orders knowing that they would never be filled. And marketing their bags to children (new kids) line? When was the last time you saw a 4 year old carrying grocery bags?

----- ads 27.07.08 22:11

I love my RuMe Bags! By far the best I’ve ever seen or used.

----- Laurie 17.05.08 08:17

I am yet another store owner who has unfortunately met Mark & Belinda and heard many grumblings of their & Envirosax’ shoddy reputation from peers in the biz. He is a jerk.

----- M.K.L. 08.05.08 13:39

Loving my Envirosax and just ordered some RuMe bags, too. Found a GREAT comparison chart that shows the differences between the Envirosax, RuMe and the Chico bags… really helped me to decide. I opted for a set of the Valley Solids cause I think hubby will use them, too.

Here’s a link to the chart (top of the page):

http://www.brightandbold.com/reusablebags.html

----- Jessie 06.05.08 06:19

Just picked up some RuMes from delight and got them in record speed. I even popped for the patterns and though I was worried about being too girly, they’re actually really cool. Plus they fold up flat and fit in my back pocket.

----- adam 03.05.08 08:47

Well, just as readers of notcot.com can do a quick google search - RuMe sellers can as well. There is still no substantial evidence to back up that the actual Envirosax’s Mark has been leaving these comments. So, unless someone can get a hold of Mark so that he can personally answer the question “Are you really this big of an idiot jerk,” then my conspiracy theory still stands. ;)

----- Jessica 02.05.08 23:36

Jessica - a quick google of “Mark Envirosax” will show you instantly that he is indeed the co-founder of Envirosax with his wife Belinda. So, your theory is wrong. Mark really is a jerk.

----- Lisa M. 02.05.08 06:09

So Mark says a few immature things and insinuates that he’s associated with envirosax, although he doesn’t have anything to back that up - and suddenly we’re all swearing off envirosax and snatching up RuMe’s…
There’s no way an employee would represent their own company like this, unless A. they hated their job or B. they were an idiot.
Thus, the conspiracist in me is saying - Mark is a YuMe employee, and he is effectively losing envirosax their customers!

----- Jessica 30.04.08 22:03

This blog has helped me to decide to go for the RuMe bags - thanks for the info! I love delight.com and they’re customer service is wonderful.

----- Hope K 29.04.08 07:32

actually.. no matter rume or envirosax, i think as long as they play a part in helping us reduce the use of plastic bags, it’s good.

----- Gwen 27.04.08 22:29

I love Envirosaxes, and I have bought quite a few from the Australian online store. No issues with delivery (it was very fast and I’m not in Australia), and when I had one snap that broke - out of a total of 20 bags I bought total, there was very good customer service and I was sent a replacement bag within the week.

That said, if the comments above really were made by Mark, they are in extremely poor taste. I don’t think the Rume bags look much like Envirosax at all, and they have several differentiating factors (slightly heavier load carrying, floppy vs. stiffer material, different placement of straps, different use of strap closures (velcro vs. snap), box vs tote shape, and one is made in China while the other is made in South Korea).

----- GA 25.04.08 22:56

I am a fellow blogger, and Mark has left similar crude messages on my blog as well. (i’d leave my site name but I don’t want to deal with him again) Don’t buy their crappy product, which I did. one of the bags split totally in half after the first use. it took me three weeks and several phone calls to get a replacement and THEN a snap broke on another bag! These people are a sham, mean, and poor business people. I’m glad to see new ideas in the market. And yes, the RuMe bags do look like a new idea to me!

----- a.k. 25.04.08 05:31

i am an inveterate and loyal envirosax buyer, even through recent price hikes — got my RUME bags today and will be trying them out — IMHO both kinds of bags (and the CHICO & REUSEABLE BAGS, reisenthal) are viable and useful, the envirosax is definitely much smaller to carry in a city bag and the RUME ia boxier & possibly stronger.

the IDEA is to promote and use reusable bags, which i do — so whatever you use, set the example & show them to everyone!!!

peace.

----- sara 24.04.08 20:34

Well, I went onto Delight.com at the suggestion of a friend and just fell in love with the site. With Earth Week and everything I was inspired to do my part. So, I went looking for the reusable bags. I love the design of the RuMe’s, but opted for the “other guy” (no free publicity from me!) because of the carrying case. I haven’t received the bags, since I only ordered them two days ago, but I’m already sorry that I opted for the “Mr. Stuck on himself” product. After reading this blog, I’ve decided to send those bags straight back to Delight.com……and for their trouble, I will order two sets of RuMe’s instead.

So you “other guys”, you know who you are…..Mr. Lecturer himself, you should be reminded that along with treating the earth better, we should also treat each other better. Reducing global warming, helping the earth, protecting our children’s futures, and bringing smiles to our fellow man should go hand in hand.

So, lecture all you want…..I have learned a thing or two from you……and that is to just smile, walk away and stop listening to your banter. The earth is polluted enough without also polluting it with your bad vibes.

Mitzy

----- Mitzy 24.04.08 18:50

Mark,


Do you believe in your product? You don’t mention where it is the superior product anywhere. Good luck on the “nanner-nanner boo-boo; you suck” advertising campaign. Will you in fact be able to belittle and berate every single potential consumer of yours? I am not sure of your end goal with this campaign, but you are immensely successful in advertising your raving insecurities.

Does anyone own Evirosucks.com?

----- norm deplume 23.04.08 10:05

Late to the convo I guess, but I vote RuMe!!!

----- andrea p 23.04.08 07:03

Wow…I’m not even in the market for an Envirosax or RuME bag but this thread has compelled me to contribute.

Mark, mate, a sincere ‘hats off’ for putting such an environmentally responsible product to market…the mere fact that your product is driving others to copy/emmulate should make you feel proud and give you a big dose of self worth. You’ve been a catalyst - you’ve inspsired others to take action…environmentally beneficial action whose effects could (who knows?) potentially grow and grow and be significant for hundreds of years.

Being a college lecturer is also a great achievement. Being both a college lecturer and successful product developer/marketer/seller should make you feel really accomplished. Add to that the fact that your product is good for the Earth….wow, on paper you are a saint.

All of that makes it so interesting to see your reactions on this blog. You’ve done yourself no favours getting caught up in petty argument. There’s nothing witty about it. It sends the impression that you’re petulant and immature.

I don’t reckon that you genuinely are petulant or immature…I don’t think you could have achieved what you have if you were. But, after reading this blog that’s the conclusion that I’d come to.
I know you’d be passionate and protective about your product - good, you should be. But mate no one likes a smart ***, worse than that, no one wants to buy a product from a smart ***.

Right now RuMe is a valid competitor…and from all accounts sounds like a superior product (no one cares if you were first, people want to buy what’s best, not what came first). I reckon you’re helping RuMe get momentum by behaving like a turkey….mate if you don’t check yourself R.U.M.E could very easily end up an ironic acronym for “the RUining of Mark Ecosax”

CJ

----- CJ 23.04.08 06:39

Wow! this is getting a little personal, but being a college lecturer myself it is good to see young people showing such spirit. Thanks for all the great publicity guys, just remember everytime you write a comment to write the word Envirosax or even better www.envirosax.com Sorry guys, have to run to work on the eco-friendly breast implant idea.

Regards

Mark

----- mark 22.04.08 18:47

Mark, please let me know when you shut down and/or kill yourself. I’ll give you $150 for envirosax.com — I’m thinking about marketing some eco-friendly breast implants.

----- Hotwani 22.04.08 18:24

Mark got owned so badly even Jesus lol’d.

After this brilliant display of professionalism on Environsax part, I am fully convince that I will NOT ever do business with the company. Way to go Mark, you’ve just dug yourself into a publicity nightmare.

----- Dave 22.04.08 18:16

Dear Mark,

Here’s a tip: Forget about the old saying ‘stop while you’re ahead’, you need to stop while you’re not too far behind!

Let’s recap - a competitor launched a better bag than yours, and all you can come up with is a lame post about a similar picture, a shower and a timer? What’s wrong with you? You ramble about “original thought” … did you invent the bag? The car? The bag in a car? Are you claiming that your bag is the first ever reusable bag?

Because it’s not, I’ve owned my Chico bags for years now. Oh, and I’ll be buying RuMe too.

Take my advice, either go back to the drawing board and try to match the superior product that RuMe has come up with, or alternatively start a blog about a bitchy lame ass who can’t handle a little competition. Your call.

----- Wendy 22.04.08 17:22

Dear Sarah and BK,

Can I recommend a four minute cold shower using an Envirosax shower timer.

Thanks for the great feedback

Regards

Mark

----- mark 22.04.08 16:09

This is funny - I tried to order Envirosax when Notcot wrote about them awhile back…I figured I’d just order straight from the Envirosax website. Big mistake. After two + weeks of no response and no delivery of my order I had to email them SEVERAL times asking where my order was. I finally got a curt reply saying they were out of stock and I would just have to be patient. No apology or anything. I finally just canceled the order through my credit card. Even though I was so fed up with their terrible customer service, I still wanted to do my part and get some reusable bags, so against my better wishes I ordered them AGAIN from Delight.com. To my surprise, I received my order in 3 DAYS AND with a nice thank you note!
To be honest, after finally getting my bags, I wasn’t really all too thrilled with them (too girly, too hard to hold groceries in my car), and I’ve always wondered what all the hype was about with this company. I can’t even believe how rude they really are - especially with all the press they get. What is really amazing is that they would be openly mean to such a great company and promoter of their products like Delight.
These guys really seem to be on a high horse - and doesnt Envirosax still make their bags in China? I’m going to give these RuMes another go - if for no other reason than reading this blog post. At least I know that if I’m still not crazy about these bags, I have the pleasure of doing business with a nice company like Delight again.

----- James 22.04.08 15:58

Not sure what Mark’s problem is, but these RuMe bags look great. The box-stitched design is awesome… makes much more sense than a bag that simple meets at the bottom - how is it supposed to stand up?

Love the patterns, love the size, and most of all love the fact that they’re not made in China like so many other products - probably including the bags Mark seems to be pushing. I’ll be buying RuMe and telling all my friends to do the same.

----- Jenny 22.04.08 15:47

Thank you Mark for bring it to my attention that not only are you rude when a college student asks a few questions about Envirosax (for a school final), but that your rude to everyone! I emailed Rume for some information and they were so nice! I can’t wait to get my Rume’s. maybe you should take some notes.
BK

----- Brianna 22.04.08 14:51

Mark from Envirosax right? I’m going to have to agree with Sarah. Anyone who rips on their vendors and does it publicly just shows the poor quality of Envirosax in general. The Rume bags are not a copy…they’re a better bag than Envirosax. Don’t be so bitter Mark. Someone made a better quality, better everything bag before you did. You shouldn’t rain one peoples parades -including people how sell your bags- Nice one. Power to the Rume and Go Delight.com!- love your stuff! (minus one now).
BK

----- BK 22.04.08 14:39

Wait - doesn’t Delight.com sell Envirosax too? What is this guys problem? I work in retail, and I’ve NEVER heard of a vendor publicly ripping on one of their clients. Very poor form.
I was going to leave a comment on how lovely the RuMe Bags are, but now I want to say that if this is how Envirosax represents themselves as a company, then you can count one customer who wont be buying their product or purchasing it for my store.
Hang in there RuMe! (and Delight!)

----- Sarah 22.04.08 07:18

These are the best copies of Envirosax I have ever seen. Ask the girls on Delight.com where they got the picture of the bags in the back of the car from, I sent it to them for the Delight site for Envirosax. Amazing how the picture now appears on the Remu site. When I first looked at this site today, I thought I was looking at Envirosax. Whatever happened to original thought. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.

Regards

Mark

----- mark 21.04.08 23:20

Yowsers! I so want one

----- Lazarou 21.04.08 17:07


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