Australian-born and Brooklyn-based, Bainbridge Metalworks was created as a tribute to our founder’s late father, Donald Bainbridge, who passed away in 2018 after a long battle with cancer. He was an old-school maker and a tough old bugger, with a much varied career starting as an apprentice carpenter in New Zealand in his youth, immigrating to Australia where he built houses and worked on large-scale engineering projects before starting a family and devoting his life to a long career as a police officer.

From our founder:

“My dad was my first teacher and mentor, and I recall many hours as a kid “helping” him in his workshop make and repair various things around our house (and even the house itself), watching and learning from him as best I could. At the time of his passing I was already in the throes of an existential crisis thanks to an unfulfilling career in the corporate world and no clear view of an alternative path ahead. This was exacerbated when the Pandemic struck, and so when forced to determine a new direction for my career and my life in search of something more meaningful, more tangible, I looked to him and the things he taught me about doing what you love and being true to yourself. Thus, Bainbridge Metalworks was born.

“After a lifetime in the digital world, it felt like a perfect way to honour him and thank him for the love he instilled in me for working with your hands, and the joy that comes from hard work and self-reliance. Through his presence, and now his absence, he taught (and continues to teach) me about life and resilience and perseverance. Like how there’s always a second chance; how beauty and truth are to be found in flaws and imperfections; how to have both the courage to be your authentic self and the humility to take the time to find out who that self is; how purpose and meaning are not inherent, and we must each of us seek them out or create them for ourselves.

“Life is short and there’s so much to learn, so many questions unasked, so many things left unsaid to those we love. We always think there’ll be enough time until one day there isn’t. Don’t waste it. Find that meaning, that purpose, or make it for yourself. Try new things, It’s OK to be scared (you can’t be brave if you’re not scared) but don’t let that fear hold you back from discovering or experiencing something wonderful that could teach you a little bit about who you really are and how much you can endure. You can never know your potential until you know your limits.

“This one’s for you, Dad.”