01
beruf baggage and bicycles
Recommendation to go at your own pace
First of all, I would like to ask you about the reason why you started riding bicycles, which is closely related to the concept of the brand.
My story with a bicycle started when I moved and started my life in the center of the city. It started when I purchased a bicycle as an easy transportation system, around 2003 I bought a TREK cross bike.
In the city of Tokyo, I realized that it is pretty easy to get around on a bicycle. Along with the fact that I loved exercising, it became a standard norm for me to go from place to place on a bicycle as long as it didn’t rain.
Why are bicycles, which you have been riding for nearly 20 years, attractive as a means of transportation?
When traveling in urban areas, using public transportation can lead to congestion, delays due to traffic. But with a bicycle, depending on how you ride, you can almost always arrive at your destination at the scheduled time.
The sense of speed is completely different from walking or driving. There is a timeline of speed that only exists for people who travel on a bicycle. The feeling of being alone while traveling and the comfort of not being influenced by factors other than yourself really suits me.
Road racers are generally referred to as ``bicyclists'' or ``cyclists,'' and are enjoyed as competitive sports. On the other hand, if you look around you, you'll see that most people use “mamachari” (Japanese mom’s bike) as a way to get around.
Ever since then, I've bought bicycles that I simply thought looked cool, and I've been riding them pretty carefree wearing clothes in whatever style I like. Bicycles are also a form of transportation that gives you freedom in how you use them and how you enjoy them. I think that's one of the things that makes it so appealing.
But thanks to that I have been struggling with constant worry since I have too many bicycles with not enough places to store…
02
The start of beruf baggage
Guided by encounters and connections
Next, I would like to ask you about how and why you started this brand.
Around 2005, when I was preparing to launch this brand, there were more bike messengers in Tokyo than today, and I realized that their lifestyles, including their bikes, were interesting as both fashion and culture. Adults caught on, and messenger bags quickly became popular as a fashion item.
Messenger bags are worn tightly, so the outerwear you pair with them should be functional and fit well, or leggings and shorts are more comfortable for riding a bicycle. I remember that fashion became a trend.
I grew up in a family that made bags, so bags were my roots, and at the time, this company was involved in the planning, production, and wholesale business of casual bags and cosmetic pouches for the youth. Since I had all the know-how necessary to make bags, I decided to start my own brand as an in-house company and create messenger bags for people who enjoy city riding style. This was the beginning of “beruf baggage”.
There was a company called “T-Serv Co., Ltd”. that had been running bicycle delivery services for a long time, and I started by calling them directly and asking them to introduce me to an active messenger. While showing them the professional messenger bags they use, we gradually deepened our relationship with them. What I actually wanted to make was not something for professional use, but something I wanted to wear while riding my bike, so I got advice from a professional and added and subtracted things to create a prototype design.
What is the origin of the brand name "beruf," which is not often heard?
The brand name ``beruf'' is a German word that means occupation, vocation, or mission, but when translated into English, it sounds more like ``Calling'' than ``Job.'' I decided to start making messenger bags while listening to the people working on the bicycle delivery service, but since a messenger bag is a ``professional'' bag, it also has that meaning, and as the son of a bag shop owner, I ended up making this job. I adopted it with a double meaning, including the meaning of “destiny”.
03
beruf baggage’s philosophy
Easy wellness and environmental awareness
Please tell us about the attitude and values that are important to the brand.
At the time, I could travel the 20km distance from my home to the office in about an hour by bicycle, so it was fun to ride a bicycle to and from work and get some exercise.
By cycling to work, you can relieve stress by moving your body, and you can also get some exercise at the same time. This sense of reasonable wellness has not changed since then. Isn't it the most efficient way to use your commuting time to exercise and reset your mind?
Also, the entire world at that time was in the midst of an eco-boom. As a result of this, I was also aware that bicycles are carbon-free and environmentally friendly because they are powered by human power. The word sustainable, which we often hear these days, didn't exist yet, and words like eco, recycle, and reuse were popular.
Given this historical background, I was wondering if there was something I could do, when I came across a product from an overseas brand that was made using bicycle tire inner tubes.
While thinking about whether or not we could make something with the inner tube that was replaced during a puncture repair, we talked to a few bicycle shops in town and decided to collect the inner tube, which was going to be thrown away as garbage, on the condition that they would collect it themselves. We have created a system to provide it free of charge.
I took the large amount of rubber tubes I had collected to an embroidery shop I had a relationship with at the time, and had them make name patches with the brand logo embroidered on them. It has a colorful design using seven colors of thread, and has been used as the product's icon for a really long time.
Currently, the design concept of the product has changed, and the name patch has been changed to a small pis name, and the embroidery thread has been changed to white, which is sewn on the inside of the product as a symbol of the brand's philosophy.
Not forgetting our original intentions when we first started as a brand.
Live a healthy life with reasonable exercise habits.
Thinking about environmental issues by taking care of things.
The small pis name, which is made from reused bicycle tire inner tubes, embodies this idea.
04
future of beruf baggage
From the manufacturing site
Please tell us about the production background of your products.
Why did you choose "Toyooka" as your production base?
All beruf baggage bag products from 2018 onwards are produced in Toyooka City in northern Hyogo Prefecture. From the time the brand was established, bag makers in the suburbs of Tokyo had been contracted to manufacture the products, but more and more of them were going out of business due to issues such as a lack of successors. At the time when I was thinking that I had to do something, a coincidence of circumstances led me to move the production site to Toyooka. Toyooka has an overwhelmingly high market share in Japan as a production area for bags, and it has the best facilities and people to make bags, so changing our base has expanded the scope of what we can do.
Why have you consistently insisted on "Made in Japan" since the brand was first established?
It has been a long time since we launched our brand in 2006, and the world environment and our own moods have changed significantly since we started, but we have continued to "manufacture products in Japan" without changing. But now, I feel like it is once again fitting in with the trends of the world. Even among independent companies, interesting things are being spotlighted properly, and there are more actions that link consumption behavior and social contribution, and the current trend is definitely a tailwind for us.
Thanks to the high level of work awareness that is unique to Japanese people, they are able to accurately understand the nuances of my requests, such as detailed specifications, and are able to carefully create each item. That's why I think it's my role to shine a spotlight on the work of the craftsmen through these items.
Being a life gear
Finally, I would like to ask you about the future of the brand and what you are aiming for in the future.
If we talk about the current distance between beruf baggage and bicycles, the truth is that not much has changed since the brand was established. The ``life with bicycles'' that I envision has always been part of my daily life, but there is a distance from cycling as a competitive sport. In that sense, I am particular about the bag products I design being a "life gear."
However, the design and functionality of products has changed significantly, from a fashion approach influenced by the messenger style of the time, to a product approach that emphasizes functionality as a tool as I have gotten older. Things are changing.
My ideal life gear is a bag product that, like a bicycle, can be used for any purpose and enjoyed in any way. We aim for a simple design that is not only functional and easy to use, but also comfortable to use with any outfit, whether casual or business.
Also, something that I have been thinking about for the past few years is the personalization of functionality. We are not aiming for a mass market or mass product, so we thoroughly dig into the values and needs of people around us, and the behavioral patterns based on them. Consciously create products and propose ideas that reflect the ideas born from that.
Beruf baggage's products are designed to clearly articulate strong points so that people who see them will think, "This is what I was looking for. This bag is made for me!" We aim to continue creating products like this.
While designing a bag that can become someone's "life gear," I travel to various places and meet all kinds of people, and those encounters give rise to ideas for new life gear. It would be amazing if I could enjoy such a cycle in my life's work.
