About Luke

I’m Luke Vernon, COO of Boulder-based Eco-Products, a leading brand of environmental foodservice disposables in a $35B industry. I’m also the Founder of Luke’s Circle (www.LukesCircle.com), a resource that connects Boulder-Denver growth companies with talented professionals, and vice-versa, as well as a Mentor at TechStars.

Eco-Products was founded in 1990 as the first B2B distributor of environmental products.  We make a complete line of foodservice products including cups, plates, food containers, and eating utensils all made from renewable resources and recycled materials.

I joined the company in 2004 with a passion for the environment and I’ve been fortunate to work with a fantastic group of people.  The company had 6 employees when I started and has grown to nearly 50 employees currently.  In 2009 alone, Eco-Products helped our customers save the equivalent of over 1,000,000 gallons of gasoline by using products made from renewable resources and recycled materials instead of petroleum.  We’ve also been honored with some nice awards recently such as those listed here.

  • #3 Fastest Growing Company in Boulder County (2010)
  • #1 Fastest Growing Company in Boulder County (2009)
  • #6 Fastest Growing Company in Boulder County (2008)
  • #13 Fastest Growing Company in Boulder County (2007)
  • #6 Fastest Growing Company in Boulder County (2006)
  • #297 on Inc. 500 Fastest Growing Companies List (2010) – 1,012% 3-year growth
  • #270 on Inc. 500 Fastest Growing Companies List (2009) – 844% 3-year growth
  • #834 on Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Companies List (2008)
  • “Emerging Growth Company” Award by the Association for Capital Growth (2010)
  • “Colorado Company to Watch” Award (2009)
  • State of Colorado Gold-Level Environmental Leadership Award (2008-2010)

I was honored by being named to Boulder County’s 40 Under 40 business leader list.  Prior to Eco-Products, I was a consultant for Deloitte living in New York City.  I have an MBA from the University of Colorado, a BS from Cornell University where I played basketball for the Big Red, and I was an entrepreneurship fellow at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.  More info on my background can be found on my LinkedIn profile.  Or you can email me at lvernon (at) ecoproducts.com.

On a personal note, I’m the lucky husband to a beautiful and talented woman named Brie and the lucky father to a wonderful little girl named Cora Rose and a son named Kierian.  They have a knack for keeping me sane when I work too hard, and they help me realize what’s truly important in life.  On the weekends, we can typically be found on the hiking trails around Boulder.

At home, we compost and recycle as much as we can.  We’re fortunate in Boulder to have a residential compost pickup on a biweekly basis with our trash service.  We dispose of all our food waste in our compost cart and have nearly eliminated the need for a trash can.

A couple more pictures of my kids… they are too cute to resist.


Disclaimer

Everything you read on this blog are my own thoughts and opinions.  The postings on this site in no way represent any group, company, or organization I’m associated with, including Eco-Products.  I am not getting paid by anyone to write this blog.  It’s merely a personal ambition.  If you have any questions or issues with any of my postings, please post a comment or email me.