RE backpacks as a student must:
What saved students from this avalanche of loose books and papers? The smart retooling of an existing product. Day packs, the smaller, lighter offspring of hefty hiking backpacks, were already popular among recreational climbers. JanSport, the company Yowell began with Murray McCory (formerly Pletz) and Jan Lewis in Seattle in 1967, made its own line. It was when these day packs made their way into university bookstores that the revolution began.
I spent a great deal of time in Colorado during my formative years, first as tourist on our annual family trips, and after graduating high school, living and working out there during the summers, as well as a year at uber-hippie Colorado College. While Jansport was the de facto backpack of choice, I bought an Osprey in 1994 for the giant sum of $80, and nearly 20 years later, it hasn’t lost so much as a stitch. My Osprey was made in Delores, Colorado, and was probably one of the last generation of Osprey packs to be made there. They moved the company to Cortez and, per the company history liked, now make most of their stuff overseas.
So there’s that.
[...] Backpacks for students: The rise of the book bag, courtesy of JanSport, Caribou, and L.L. Bean. – … [...]