00:00 - Intro
00:28 - Meet Fred Perrotta, Co-Founder of Tortuga
2:01 - Tortuga in 2010
5:32 - The Rise of Backpacks on Kickstarter
9:01 - The First Tortuga Prototype
10:28 - Why Tortuga Moved Manufacturing to Vietnam
11:10 - Backpacks Made in China vs. Backpacks made in Vietnam
17:01 - How Backpack Fabrics Have Evolved Over 15 Years
22:23 - Being innovative vs risks
26:03 - Why Tortuga Only Focuses on Travel Bags
39:06 - How Airline Restrictions Are Changing Bag Designs
40:30 - The Water Bottle Pocket Controversy
43:08 - The Emotional Connection to Travel Bags
48:04 - The Role of YouTube Reviews in the Backpack Industry
51:59 - Is It Harder to Run a Bag Brand in 2024?

If you want to get notified when the newest bags and travel gear drops, be sure to sign up to the NNewsletter 👉 https://nomadsnation.com/newsletter/

🎙️ Welcome to Episode 15 of the Nomads Nation Podcast!

In this episode, I chat with Fred Perrotta, co-founder of Tortuga, about everything from travel bags to making backpacks to how the industry is changing. We get into how Kickstarter helped launch backpack brands, why people get so attached to their bags, and yes—the great water bottle pocket debate (it’s a real thing, trust me).

Fred also shares why Tortuga only focuses on travel bags instead of everyday carry, why they moved manufacturing to Vietnam, how airline rules shape bag designs, and whether running a backpack brand in 2025 is tougher than ever.

If you’re a bag nerd, travel junkie, or just love a good behind-the-scenes story, this episode is for you! 🚀

If you want to get notified when the newest bags and travel gear drops, be sure to sign up to the NNewsletter 👉 https://nomadsnation.com/newsletter/

🔥 Check out the bag I made 👉🏼 https://go.nomadsnation.com/fyro-t22

Welcome to Episode 14 of the Nomads Nation Podcast! Today I chat with Bellroy founder Andy Fallshaw about all things bags and warranties. We chat about the challenges surrounding warranties, and what Bellroy is doing to improve their own warranty and customer support.

00:36 - The carry community
2:46 - New Bellroy bags
6:20 - Traveling lite
10:30 - Bellroy's ambitious year
13:29 - Different EDC for different locations
17:09 - Bellroy's new warranty
29:08 - Innovation vs playing it safe
31:45 - Evergoods
32:29 - Fine print in warranties
36:55 - GORUCK & Osprey warranties
40:30 - Bellroy repair center?
42:11 - Overseas repairs
43:03 - Bellroy customer support
46:20 - Brand reputations
49:15 - Why 6 years?
54:30 - Upcoming Bellroy bags

If you want to get notified when the newest bags and travel gear drops, be sure to sign up to the NNewsletter 👉 https://nomadsnation.com/newsletter/

🔥 Check out my bag on Kickstarter! 👉🏼 https://go.nomadsnation.com/fyro-t22

Welcome to Episode 13 of the Nomads Nation Podcast! Today myself and my guest, Luke Reynolds the founder of BagMe, come at you live from Vietnam where we talk all about the behind the scenes of developing and manufacturing bags!

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00:00 - Intro
01:34 - Community questions
07:00 - Starting BagMe
12:06 - Replicas/Knockoffs
15:50 - Why Vietnam?
20:20 - Factory conditions
25:39 - Timeframe of bag development
31:50 - PU Coated zippers
42:43 - Fabrics
54:28 - Lukes go-to bag?
1:0:27 - Sustainability

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Here at Nomads Nation™, we thrive to create the best travel content on the web! To do that we create EPIC videos that take a lot of time and money, so we monetize our videos with affiliate links. This means that if you click on one of our links and make a purchase, we make a small commission - at no extra cost to you!

Using our links for purchases is the best way to support the channel so we can keep making amazing videos.

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Thanks for the love! :)

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