I am a thief.
Now, I'm not talking about how I go around the office stealing things from cubicles and "misplacing" them in others while playing matchmaker. And I am definitely not talking swiping purses in full view of the owner and prancing around the office. These are stories saved for a therapist.
The target of my sin is fashion: I steal ideas for clothing from others. For the majority of the time, probably 99% and up, those ideas are pilfered from celebrities and people on the television or movies. Ya know, "important people". Considering the ease at which it is possible for me to find the exact make and model of articles of clothing utilized in movies, I am going to guess that I'm not the only one. One might call this "inspiration" rather than thievery, but that's not as dramatic.
For the past few months, rather than rip off "important people", I noticed that my eyes were becoming glued on backpacks worn by the kiddies in malls and in subways. These trend setting teenagers, and possibly college students, were wearing backpacks with similar designs and a rather distinct badge. Unfortunately, even with contact lenses, my myopia isn't fully corrected, so for the first few months, I was unable to spot the writing on that badge.
Having seen something that resembled an "H", Hollister and Abercrombie were the first suspects. Both turned out to be dead ends.
A week ago, this finally changed in a packed subway station. A big "thank you" goes out to congestion because without the overloaded subway that slowed everyone to a crawl and forced people to give up their personal space, I don't think I woulda have been able to see it -- could have asked? It turns out that what I was coveting was a line of backpacks from The Herschel Supply Co. Brand.
The Herschel Supply Company Brand
From their website with accompanying online store, it appears that this is a relatively new brand based out of Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. Founded in 2009 by two brothers, they offer a line of duffle bags, backpacks, and wallets. Their collection is quite extensive and not limited to the few bags that I have seen over the past few months.
At the time of writing, I am seeing 195 separate items listed under their backpack category alone. Some are of the same design in different colours. In commenting on their designs, I would put them in the vintage-ish or classic-ish, lower key category. While the kiddies appear to be breaking new ground, I don't see any design decisions that would prevent "old people" like me from carrying these on a daily basis.
Price-wise, Herschel backpacks seem to fall into the mid-range. The cheapest backpack I found was $39.99 and the most expensive was $139.99. I found a lot of choices in the $50-ish and below range. Mountain Equipment Co-op was, and continues to be, my go-to place for bags and prices seem very competitive.
Having never handled or touched one of these bags, I can't comment on their durability. And my browser isn't working properly, so I can't see what the materials being used are. I can speculate, but you may as well just take the time to take a peek. There appears to be online shopping and shipping available to both Canada and United States.
Here are some of my picks:
Little America Backpack - $89.99
Parker Backpack - $57.99
Quarry Backpack - $59.99
Related Stuff:
Briefcase Alert: Roots New City Briefcase-Box
Getting a Briefcase for Men
J.Crew Abingdon Laptop Bag Review
J.Crew Cotton Cashmere Hoodie Review
J.Crew Stockton Racer Leather Jacket Review
