We've interviewed thousands of successful founders at Starter Story and asked what advice they would give to entrepreneurs who are just getting started.

Here's the best advice we discovered for starting a backpack line:

#1: Chez Brungraber, founder of Gobi Gear:

We chatted with with Chez, founder of Gobi Gear ($20K/month). In our interview, Chez says:

The best measure of success for isn’t just the bottom line, but rather walking through an airport and seeing a stranger with a Gobi Gear backpack on.

Additionally:

Manufacturing is one of the hardest parts of running a business. Not only does inventory mean you are cash poor (or vice versa), but any delays or issues with manufacturing can drastically hurt your bottom line.

Read the full interview ➜

#2: Kelly Belknap, founder of Adventurist Backpack Co.:

We chatted with with Kelly, founder of Adventurist Backpack Co. ($25K/month). In our interview, Kelly says:

We had no idea what we were doing and how we were going to get the word out about our new company. But we decided to move forward with the idea and start an Instagram account, the only free way we could think of advertising our new brand.

Additionally:

We were in awe the first time a huge 18-wheel semi-truck stopped in front of my parents house to drop off our first shipment of backpacks.

Further:

About a week into being a company, we received a message on Instagram from a retailer in Montana with 6 locations that wanted to order 100 of our backpacks

Read the full interview ➜

#3: Kelly Belknap, founder of Adventurist Backpack Co.:

We chatted with with Kelly, founder of Adventurist Backpack Co. ($25K/month). In our interview, Kelly says:

Just keep setting concrete goals, and accomplish them step by step, with the hopes of growing a bit each year.

Read the full interview ➜

#4: Fred Perrotta, founder of Tortuga:

We chatted with with Fred, founder of Tortuga ($300K/month). In our interview, Fred says:

Context matters. What worked for us won’t work for you. The hot new thing everyone’s talking about probably won’t work either.

Additionally:

After experimenting with every type of travel content, we landed on a niche that was underserved yet in demand and adjacent to our products: packing tips and gear recommendations.

Read the full interview ➜

#5: Kelly Belknap, founder of Adventurist Backpack Co.:

We chatted with with Kelly, founder of Adventurist Backpack Co. ($25K/month). In our interview, Kelly says:

Making the wrong decision can really be a benefit down the road when you can apply what you’ve learned to different situations.

Read the full interview ➜

#6: Tom Worcester, founder of Lunchbox Packs:

We chatted with with Tom, founder of Lunchbox Packs ($55K/month). In our interview, Tom says:

Build a team that is bought in on a cohesive mission and message, and centered together around a long term collective goal (rather than individual tasks or achievement).

Read the full interview ➜

Part of

Starting A Backpack Line: Everything You Need To Know

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