Urban Ashes turns blight into vintage building materials

Urban Ashes Picture Frame Co got its start finding a useful purpose for the ash trees that had fallen victim to the emerald ash borer nearly a decade ago. "Most of them were being mulched and burned," says Paul Hickman, founder of Urban Ashes Picture Frame Co. "We wanted to come up with a better solution." The Ann Arbor-based company ended up using the wood for things like picture frames. As the ash trees death toll tamped down in recent years the company has moved on to using other green materials, such as existing wood from deconstructed houses. The company only employs one person but its suppliers that make its products employs a number of people. Urban Ashes Picture Frame Co now has 125 locations in 40 states that sells its products. Hickman hopes to grow that number in the near term. "I'd like to be in 50 states in more than 300 locations," Hickman says. Source: Paul Hickman, founder of Urban Ashes Picture Frame Co Writer: Jon Zemke Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.