bolstr 1.0: How it all began.
A Minimal Every Day Carry Obsession:
The pictures don't lie: Men are obsessed with their everyday carry (EDC) items. While "necessity" may vary from man to man, almost everyone tends to carry at least a smart phone, keys, and wallet. But sometimes we need more — sunglasses, a point-and-shoot camera, headphones, tablet, external battery, notepad, pens, pocketknife, or other "stuff.”
Even with the convergence of technology (ie. smart phones), a few extra pockets can really make a difference for today’s Modern Man. Most of us do not want to lug around an oversized laptop bag, strap on a fanny pack, or carry some funky man purse, though, just to accommodate a few more EDC items — a particular hassle in warmer weather when the convenience of wearing another article of clothing for pockets is not an option.
Why bolstr?
Unsatisfied with other options available on the market, Jay Yoo set out to design a minimal, man-sized, everyday carry bag, somewhere between a laptop bag and a holster. After two years of prototyping and testing, bolstr launched on Kickstarter in August of 2014.
bolstr Design:
The bolstr Small Carry takes on a futuristic design concept combining minimalism, functionality and asymmetrical geometries in a modern form that fits perfectly in-between a laptop bag and a holster.
- Asymmetrical design eludes the man-purse stigma. Tapers to a slim profile.
- Minimal space saving design. Perfectly sized for the iPad Mini. iPhone X, 8, 7 as well as other smart phones and phablets.
- Contoured shoulder pad and perfectly positioned strap anchors provide comfortable, ergonomic cross body fit.
- Made strong. Heavy duty, urethane coated 1680D ballistic nylon. Military grade, high strength (1500 lbs. tensile), lightweight nylon webbing.
- Waterproof zippers.
- 5 EDC compartments: Sunglass quickdraw. Never loose your sunglasses again. Smart Phone pocket on the backside so you can feel it vibrate. D-rings on the insides and outside for your key.
Coming up with a simple everyday carry bag for guys was no easy task. Keeping the design to a small, non-symmetrical form factor, without compromising function, proved to be the main challenge. For example, at first I thought the bag might have to be slightly bigger to for keys in order to store them separate from the other contents in order to reduce scratching.
Noticing that a lot of people clip their keys on a belt loop, I decided to "86" the pocket idea and simply add a d-ring for keys on the backside of the bag. A bigger bag to accommodate the iPad or a MacBook Air could have been designed, but then where does it stop? Why not add straps to turn it into a backpack (which everyone and their brother is making), or add an extra pocket for this or that...
The design considerations to get to something delightfully simple and functional seemed endless. Staying focused on the perfect, minimal everyday carry bag for guys and their smart phones, keys, wallets and just a few extras proved to a be a process of elimination more than anything else. If someone wants or needs more than just a few extra pockets, then bolstr probably is not for them. There are plenty of larger, boxy bag options already on the market; is there really a need to create another one? It might be hard to tell by just looking at the bolstr Small Carry how much thought went into the design of this bag, but once backers put it on and start using it, appreciation for bolstr was immediate.
Thank you to all who backed the original bolstr (1.0). We appreciate your feedback and input and look forward to creating improving what we started...
MINIMAL EDC is bolstr.xyz