Our Story
The mission at DTE is to make beautiful things that people love to use every day.
We believe that if you have something that lives in your pocket, or on your desk, then it should last forever and give you a nice little dopamine hit every time you use it. We believe in people-centric design; tools should be designed to be used, not just optimized for manufacturing or only useful for pretty Instagram pictures.
We just finished our eighth Kickstarter. Before this we have launched the Spire Pen, the Buttress Wallet, the Arch Spinning Top, the Parametric Prybar, the Generative Art Coin #01, The Not For Climbing Carabiner, and The Not So Tactical Carabiner. Currently the majority of DTE's income comes from Kickstarter projects like this one and selling through this website and Etsy.
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My name is AJ Huff.
I'm a mechanical engineer by training and a self-taught machinist. DTE is based out of Muncie, Indiana. I have a family of five: myself, my wife, and three little girls. My goal is that someday DTE would grow to the point where it can sustain my family. And give me the platform to encourage, educate, and train others in business, art, and manufacturing.
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My name is Scott DeRuby.
I went to school for graphic and web design (which is where AJ and I met). I live in Indianapolis, Indiana, which is not close to Muncie, Indiana, but it's worth it. We have wanted to start a business since my junior (and AJ's senior) year of college and being able to do this full time is a dream come true. Hopefully this doesn't sound trite, but this wouldn't be possible without all of you and I'm incredibly grateful. My goal is to be able to continue doing this, grow my skills, solve fun problems, and hopefully help teach others anything I can. In my free time I listen to podcasts, play board games, and crush my friends in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.