Quality Makers: Steph Hon of Cadence

Thinking about traveling has become so much more fun than actually preparing to travel these days. Planning? Packing? Checking a bag? In this economy??

Cadence is the seamlessly designed Capsule-based system that you’ve likely seen popping out of people’s purses, carry ons, and travel bags—or at least from the belongings of those who are “in the know” when it comes to getting up and going…anywhere.

This is all thanks to Cadence Founder + CEO Steph Hon, who has imbued her own mission-led value system and design sense into a product line that prioritizes simplification, consolidation, and basically a “less is more” ideal. Whether for two days or two weeks, Steph wants people to be able to enact their routines (no matter how robust!) wherever they are—regardless of TSA guidelines.

We had the opportunity to hear about her literal journey, and we’ve never been more ready to pack our bags.

TQE: What is your background? How did you end up in the world of sustainable travel accessories?

SH: I was training to be a professional ballet dancer when a spine injury required me to evaluate and pick a new life path. I initially pivoted to a career in sports content and production, which required a lot of travel. As I became a more frequent traveler, I kept getting frustrated with travel containers. The refillable ones were poorly made, often leaking, and the single-use minis were wasteful. Eventually, I began traveling with full-size products, which took up very valuable space in my suitcase and sometimes required me to check a bag. I realized, there had to be a better way.

TQE: What was your impetus for starting Cadence?

SH: We have places we go and products we love, and there’s a massive gap between those two worlds. That’s what we’re building at Cadence.

My first pain point was around organizing and transporting my personal care routine, and I was tired of buying things that didn’t feel “worth it,” and didn’t align with my values.

I became passionate about solving this world of problems in a way that was different from a lot of brands in this modern day and age—we made a promise a long time ago that we would never outsource our design or engineering. We continually choose to go beyond simply picking a pre-made product off the shelf—we prefer to make it from scratch ourselves instead.

This led to our first product family, the Cadence Capsule System. As a first-of-its-kind modular, refillable, leakproof, TSA-compliant container system, Cadence is made with a blend of recycled plastics that are made for use both at home and away.

TQE: What has been the biggest learning from starting your own business?

SH: Very early on, I saw the importance of surrounding myself with the right people. From my very first employees, I took the hiring process very seriously, as I knew I was building the foundation of what was to come. Bringing the right people for the right job at the right time is an art that I am still perfecting, but bringing extra intention to the process has allowed us to get to where we are today.  

TQE: What is the most rewarding part of running your own thing?

SH: I get to build something I really believe in with people who are brilliant, and we get to build it our way and break rules that feel arbitrary.

TQE: How is Cadence transforming someone’s ability to travel seamlessly?

SH: Through innovative manufacturing and technology, we are helping make people’s lives easier. Whether at home or away, our products allow people to enjoy the products that matter most to them. 

TQE: What makes Cadence so unique?

SH: We make modular product families so that we fit into the customer’s life, not the other way around. So, we make product systems, not singular products. Additionally, we think of ourselves as an innovation brand that will solve any problem, whether travel or not, as long as it exists and we can truly make it better. 

Our Capsule System is flexible and can grow and change with the needs of our community of users.  We do solve specific problems such as making our systems 100% leak-proof, as that is typically the first complaint with travel containers. 

Ours are secured with an industrial-strength seal and threads so you feel that “click” and know it’s not going to open in your bag. We also have removable labels so Capsules can be used for different products as your routine evolves. All Capsules are magnetic and stackable so they are easy to pack and, most importantly for travel, they are TSA-compliant. Also, all of our products are made from 50% recycled materials.