Summiteer wants to manufacture its rucksacks in Cumbria
A gear company has launched a crowdfunding effort to kick-start its planned rucksack manufacturing operation in Cumbria.
Summiteer wants to set up a new workshop near Kendal to produce packs using recycled plastic bottles.
The company is chasing £3,000 of funding and currently has pledges of almost 40 per cent of its target, which must be reached by 11 December to succeed.
The backpacks will be made from RPET fabric, a type of polyester produced from 100 per cent discarded plastic bottles, an alternative way of producing polyester which is much less harmful to the environment.
Summiteer said this is in line with a new focus to put the environment and fair working conditions at the top of its agenda. The launch of its rucksack factory also coincides with its entry into the tent market. The Summiteer Haven, is a spacious two-person mountain tent that weighs in at only 1.95kg.
Company owner Ethan Thomas said: “It became clear to me that the industry was looking at things the wrong way; ultimately the biggest draw for people is pricing.
“If something’s cheap people buy it. I’ve seen posts on forums promoting rucksacks being sold in supermarkets for £20. People’s only concern is whether the quality will be any good.
“My concern is how on earth can they produce something so complicated and time-consuming and be able to sell it to a customers for £20? When you consider the mark-ups these products have for retailers to make a profit, and then the brand to make a profit, and then the factory owners to make a profit, there really is very little left for the workers who actually made the products.
“Overseas manufacturing is fine, but it has to be done right. I’m also concerned about the environmental impact this industry has. I accept that it’s very unrealistic to think that we can be a company that causes no environmental harm, but we can certainly create as little harm as possible.
“But it is something many brands fail to think of. I think half the battle is just being bold enough to do something like this, and then making it clear why you’re doing it. It may not earn us the most money in the short term, but I think promoting this ethos is a way of educating consumers to make better decisions in the future.”
People pledging cash on the Crowdfunder website will be offered discounted prices on the rucksack range.
More details are on the Summiteer website.
colin b
30 November 2017Maybe I'm missing something about this but how has someone got the barefaced cheek to ask other people to fund the start up of their business. And why are people stupid enough to give them their money.
I wonder if he'll pay everyone back when / if the money starts pouring in.
Howard
30 November 2017I'm thinking of starting up a business in the Peak District that will reduce the carbon miles of beer. I would like crowd funding to allow me to drink lots of locally produced real ales instead of imported foreign larger. Anyone want to give me some money please?
Tom g
30 November 2017COLIN B, you did miss the point entirely. You are buying a PRODUCT not giving the company money for nothing.
Loads of businesses use this as a means to generate capital BEFORE going into production. In Summiteer's case the start up costs are quite high. If you sell 30 packs at £100 then suddenly you've got £3grand worth of orders and a few weeks work.
Far from being barefaced cheek, you get a cheap backpack and he gets the capital he needs to get his product out there. Seems a good idea to me!
Gaston
30 November 2017Tom g
Naaa, getting a cheap rucksack or not, whichever way you look at it he's using other peoples money to start up / expand his business.
Tom g
30 November 2017And what's wrong with that? You get a pack and he gets the capital his business needs to help him grow. There is nothing different here to you buying a pack on Amazon... What do you think Cotswolds do with the money you give them for some POS North face pack made in Vietnam other than profit?
Good on you Summiteer. Keep at it.
Gaston
01 December 2017There's a lot different about this than buying something from an established business.
Buy something from Amazon or Cotswolds or the local bakery and they use the profit from the sale to maintain / expand their existing business.
In this case this greedy individual is asking other people to actually fund the start up of a business which he may well end up making a lot of money from. Why should other people be expected to do that for him. He should use his own money to start up the business.
Bad on you Summiteer.
Ethan Thomas
01 December 2017Hi Gaston and the others, I'm the greedy individual who's set up the crowdfunder. Exactly what Tom G said. I'm basically selling products at a reduced price as a way of getting the product off the ground, doing exactly what amazon, cotswold or the local bakery do - selling a product, making money on it and using it to expand my business. The difference between Cotswold and amazon is obviously they are much more successful at it than I am and as a result have directors receiving nicer wage packets (and good on them).
I hope whoever reads the above comments can just see what I see - a rather silly individual with too much time on their hands. What a sad pessimistic life you must live.
John Hollinson
01 December 2017I feel the problem is the article hasn't explained how the crowdfunder works. This company isn't asking for free funding off people.
They are effectively just selling their products as preorders...
For instance on the crowd funder one of their rucksacks that retails at £139 can be bought through the crowdfunder at £75.
The idea being that you pay for this in advance and they then have the money to make it and send it out to you the following month or whatever. They'll then presumably make a bit of profit off this sale and use it to maybe buy more fabric or invest in machines etc. It's exactly the same as any other retailer/ brand selling a product in that respect.
I guess this isn't explained in the article hence why you all have the wrong end of the stick.
Rik Hollinson
01 December 2017Nicely clarified by a Hollinson! Relative of mine?
Bob
01 December 2017As Mr Thomas says, it is possible to buy Summiteer products at discounted prices as part of the crowdfunding set-up. Follow the link in the penultimate paragraph for details.
And please keep comments civil and in compliance with our terms and conditions: https://www.grough.co.uk/about/terms-and-conditions/
Bob Smith, editor
Sheepy
01 December 2017£3,000 is not very much money. If you are an existing business why don't you have that much already in your bank or even an overdraft for that amount? My personal account overdraft is that much. If you are confident in your business then that is not a lot of money to find yourself, why crowdfund?
£3,000 is not going to set up a factory and employ people is it? Plus there is the fact that whilst you may say that crowd funders get the benefit of a discounted rucksack that may already be a vastly inflated price to manufacture cost and of course it might also be a rubbish product.
You could draw up a business plan and go to a bank whereby they would look at it and if it looks viable then lend you the money.
Or you could raise the capital yourself from your own savings, your own family or re-mortgaging your own house and invest that.
Or if the business idea is so good, approach a Private Equity house and they would surely back you.
Or get another business owner to input capital for a share of the business and you would also get their expertise to boot.
My wife set up her business by selling some shares she had. I subsequently then set up 2 further businesses by borrowing against my home(which I've now paid back) and a further business funded from the money I made in my first 2 businesses. I took the risk and now I reap the rewards.
Crowdfunding might be the new hip trendy techno way but it does come across as taking the "P" Either you look like you're not confident enough in yourself or your business and aren't prepared to take any of the risk yourself, or, if you are very successful, make millions but you only rewarded the people who helped you get started by giving them a few of quid off a rucksack.
I'm not sad or negative, I'm a realist and have a lot of time for people who take risk to set up and run businesses. Lots of people like myself would surely be happy to invest even higher sums of money into a good idea, that would be taking a risk but for that there has to be a reward, a share of the future profits.
Ethan I wish you luck but one further piece of advice, when you're trying to promote your business don't insult people on public forums, no matter how wrong you may think they are. You just don't know what that person does or who they know. They could be buyers for an outdoor shop where you might want to sell your product in the future. Those 3 previous posters on this website that you've called silly, sad and pessimistic were 3 potential customers.
Gaston
01 December 2017Sheepy
you've said in a much better way exactly what I was getting at and yes, I probably was a potential customer.
Mr D
02 December 2017yup. agree with Sheepy totally, interesting article which had me thinking it was time perhaps for a new sack and why nt one which was kinder to the environment... but if that's the opinion he holds of potential customers then sorry... I'm out
Glyn
03 December 2017one difference between Ethan/Summiteer and Amazon is that the former (probably) pays his tax in the UK
nigel
04 December 2017Glyn
unless he gets that crowd funded as well
Andrew
13 December 2017nice idea but terrible pack..no back protection/system... for the money you pay its over price for what you get...
Howard
21 December 2017Remind me NEVER to deal with a company who's owner has so little respect for his prospective customers. Just imagine what his view of customer service must be like.
Gaston
21 December 2017Howard.
This is a reminder for you NEVER to deal with a company with no respect for prospective customers.