Reno Designer Cleans up Kitchen, Workspace and the Environment by Creating a Towel "Holster" in his workshop.

  RENO, NV - 02/07/2017 (PRESS RELEASE JET)

One enterprising innovator is helping to clean up his community’s dirty spots and surfaces by providing a simple solution to the problem of “where the heck is my towel?”. Creator Dan Rauch calls it the “Towelster”–the holster for your towel.  It is a belt-clipped accessory that allows users to keep their towel, rag or microfiber cloth within easy reach and without dirtying up one’s clothes or workspace. In addition, the ease and convenience of the Towelster’s design encourages the exclusive use of cloth towels, eliminating the need for paper towels that clutter landfills and negatively impact the environment. The Towelster came out of Rauch’s love for cooking at home, a constant frustration with where and how towels were traditionally stored, and several long years creating over a dozen prototypes in his shop. From those prototypes came a simple and elegant device that allows for quick, slip-on/slip-off transitions between cleaning and working in almost any environment. The Towelster is confirmed for use in restaurants by the Washoe County Health District and is made of a material approved for food contact in the USA and Europe, making it ideal for professional chefs, restaurateurs, and casual cooks alike. 

Although the invention sprouted from Rauch’s love for home cooking, the Towelster can be used in a variety of work situations. Maintenance and housekeeping staff, bartenders, and mechanics can benefit from always knowing where their towel is: right at their fingertips. The product’s efficient design lends it a lot of versatility for multiple different careers. Basically, anyone who has ever encountered an issue with leaving dirty towels in inconvenient places should look no further than the Towelster.

More than just providing convenience and keeping one’s workspace sanitary, Rauch built the Towelster with the additional mission of reducing paper waste in the environment. Paper towel waste accounts for one-third of landfill waste by volume. This, coupled with the fact that nearly 3,000 tons of paper towels are sent to the dumps each year (with each ton requiring 17 trees and 20,000 gallons of water to produce), inspired Rauch to make his invention about much more than just keeping the area around your work clean—it’s a statement about eco-mindedness and sustainability. The Towelster incentivizes reusable towel usage by keeping it conveniently in reach, putting the mere thought of pulling sheet after sheet of paper towels out of sight and out of mind. 

The two-part, high-quality polymer and stainless steel Towelster is being sold in 12 stores locally and across the West Coast including Carter Bros Ace Hardware, Tavern Supply, Resco-Reno, Nevada First, Shelly’s Hardware, and Resco-Las Vegas. Every aspect of the product; design, photography, printing, 3D modeling, and package design is done in Reno, right where it began. Rauch hopes to expand to even more locations across the country within the next year. Part of his strategy involves attending the International Home and Housewares show, the largest trade show in the industry, in March. His company, West Star Design, LLC is set on putting a Towelster in every kitchen and workshop in America, starting in the biggest little city in the world.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Wiuys2rqYQ