CRAZY ABOUT ADVENTURE, SERIOUS ABOUT PEOPLE
We’re Matilda and Kelly, the wife/husband co-founders of Adventurist Backpack Co.
We have an incurable case of the travel bug, and we've set out to make the world's greatest backpacks - high quality, minimalist design, at a fair price.
PART I
It all started with a backpacking trip around the world.
In the spring of 2017, we began preparing for our first long international trip together. Naturally, the excitement was building well in advance and we were already planning what we would need to bring for our three-month long adventure. As they say in Matilda's home country of Sweden, we had "resfeber" - big time.
We were searching for the perfect backpacks for our travels, but we couldn't seem to find what we were looking for. What we did find was a big gap between companies making cheap bags, and brands with unnecessarily high markups. Why was there no middle ground?
We opted to borrow some worn, but trusty packs from family members for our trip, and put them to good use. We also decided that upon our return, we would try to fill the gap in the backpack market. For ourselves and anyone that had ever felt like us, we wanted to make sure that everyone and anyone could find a bag that looked great, would last through all of their adventures, and that wouldn't break the bank.
PART II
Fast forward several months...
Over a quarter of the year spent in 11 countries, we met with many families that were struggling with hunger, learned their stories, and the endeavors they faced to get back on their feet again.
Wanting to do what we could to help out, we prepared meals each morning and filled up our backpacks, sharing them with the people we met along our travels. While food insecurity isn't a problem that is solved overnight, we wanted to start somewhere and do what we could in the moment.
Ultimately, our travels shed light on a situation we had seen throughout our lives, but never experienced on a truly personal level. We came to learn that anyone can face food insecurity due to purely unlucky circumstances - all it takes is one job loss or an unexpected medical bill to uproot someone's life, and leave them unsure of how they will afford next month's rent or put food on the table for themselves and their families.
PART III
After returning home to the U.S. and learning more about the millions of families (18 million households as of 2023, according to USDA) struggling with food insecurity in our own communities and cities across the country, Adventurist Backpack Co. was started.
This adventure that led us around the world helped spark our mission to join the fight against food insecurity. Today we continue providing 25 meals to families in need from every backpack sold.
Want to learn more about our partnership with feeding america?