From the workshop, Sunday afternoon #5

My dad was originally from the U.S.A. When he arrived in Australia, he landed on Flinders Island, in Bass Strait, spending a year there labouring and (in his words) "reading every book in the Whitemark library." It cannot be denied his stories inspired me not only to become an avid reader, but also to become someone who would fall in love with the Furneaux Group and Tasmania. A couple of years ago, I was able to properly explore the group by sailing my 86 year old open timber boat alone across Bass Strait, sheltering in the cold with an oilskin tarp I made specifically for the trip.

Dad was an avid outdoorsman. My brother and I grew up with his stories of hiking in the Catskills with black bears and cougars, or navigating the white beaches of Flinders Island covered in black snakes. As kids, our holidays were spent caving, climbing, canoeing and skiing. When he came across the Pacific to settle in Australia, he brought along his small collection of personal possessions, including bits and bobs of gear from what can only be heralded as the absolute golden era of outdoor equipment - the period running from the 60's through until the early 80's, before it all became completely commodified and outsourced.

One of the pieces he brought over was this 1960's tote bag from L.L Bean, which I still use to this day:

USA made has always been a big inspiration for me. Original USA made Patagonia, Kletterwerks bags, L.L. Bean, Union Made Carhartt and the like. L.L. Bean out of Maine has particularly inspired me with their continuation of manufacturing in their home state. While not everything is made there any longer, they're still heavily committed to USA made, which cannot be said for Patagonia, who've focused more on design, marketing and environmental campaigning. Personally, I've always found that disappointing.

To me, manufacturing should be part of the DNA of the brand, and that DNA should not be divorced from production through outsourcing and abstraction. If you are going to make a physical product, the most genuine, real and ethical approach is for it to be confined to the founding and operational roots of the idea. Genuine brand DNA requires community, spirit, and deep geographical grounding throughout the entire product cycle. I truly believe complexity and abstraction are among the core maladies of the 21st century.

The idea for Kohutt's lifetime guarantee actually stems from L.L. Bean and my dad's tote bag. While they're no longer able to continue that program (it was ultimately being abused), that's the origin story. The repair aspect of the guarantee then synthesizes with the Patagonia repair program, which is perhaps the largest retail repair program in the world, repairing around 50,000 pieces a year.

As Kohutt scales over the coming years, I look forward to retaining these core principles, ultimately creating things we never see in the workshop again because of their durability. I also understand that things are things, and short of producing titanium spheres, things may break, things may need to be repaired, or perhaps quite simply a mistake is made because we are human. But the core philosophy is and will always be: Durability / Repair.

Grateful for all your support,

Nick.