I first heard from TRAKKE a few months ago when founder, Alec Farmer, wrote to me. I'm simply going to repeat his e-mail to me below because it embodies the excitement and charm I find in so many young British enterprises - and it's a good story:
Here is what Alec's e-mail said -
"A friend of mine recently introduced me to your blog, and I must say I really like your ethos - an ethos that I share with my own brand Trakke. While I must admit that I am not yet a Grey Fox (I’m 24) I have found that running a business inevitably generates grey hairs, so perhaps I do qualify?
I just thought I would get in touch to introduce myself and my company. Based in Glasgow, we manufacture bags for the great outdoors - for adventure. However, unlike many brands in the outdoor industry, we focus on quality. We’re trying to make the perfect bag. We don’t always succeed, but we keep striving. Our bags are made from materials that are time tested (and often sourced from British manufacturers too…). Waxed cotton from Dundee. Webbing from Derbyshire. Buckles from Wales. Tweed from the Outer Hebrides. We choose materials that age beautifully, and we assemble them into products that are made with individual attention and built to last.
Like you, I have no background in fashion. I studied graphic design at the Glasgow School of Art, and began Trakke as a hobby - spending my evenings making bags. I had no money at the time (I was a student, after all) and so I used to scour the streets of Glasgow rummaging through skips to find unwanted materials - old advertising banners, abandoned leather sofas, unwanted suitcases. Each find was stripped down to its component parts and hauled home ready to be turned into new products. They were very different product to that which we sell now, but this is how I learnt my craft - making hundreds of bags to no set design, refining my designs - seeing what worked and what didn’t. This knowledge proved invaluable when I turned to using higher quality materials.
Anyway - enough ranting. I just wanted to get in touch as I think we have a shared ethos - for better products that last longer and defy changes in fashion.
If you would like to find out more, please do check out our website here."
I've been able to use and test a grey Harris tweed 'Wee Lug' messenger bag (pictured above). It's everything that Alec claims of his products - a perfect synthesis of design and skilled manufacture, with every detail having a clear function and the whole oozing durability. I can't recommend these bags, available in a variety of sizes and fabrics, highly enough.
