Boblbee

Boblbee (also expressed as BOBLBE·E when used on their products; English pronunciation: /ˈbɒbəlbiː/, BAH-bəl-bee) is a corporation that began in 1997 as a think tank for research and development of sports and recreational equipment. This led to the design and manufacture of hardshell and softshell backpacks. Corporate headquarters are located in Malmö, southern Sweden where the products are made and assembled. They have received two Good Design Awards.

History

Jonas Blanking, an industrial designer, has a background in the automotive and sports industries having worked with such companies as Alfa Romeo, Volvo, Porsche and sports-gear maker Salomon. As an outdoorsman, he had trouble with conventional backpack designs that would render his books and papers soggy in inclement weather or allow damage to his laptop casings. Therefore he felt the need for a backpack unlike those considered suitable for sports such as hiking and biking, it would have to be rigid and provide adequate volume.

Blanking looked to the air cargo industry for his first attempt in working out his predicament, which led him to employ the use of aluminium and ABS plastics. Prototypes were developed in 1996. The prototype featured a concept in which the outer shell could be implemented such that the outside surface area is as useful as the internal volume. Fasteners located all over the pack led to one being able to carry a skateboard or snowboard with simple straps that could be taken off with ease. Later, accessories were made to fit around the sides and the crevasse situated at the bottom of the pack for lumbar support.

The concept was finalized in April 1998, leading to the birth of the Boblbee monocoque hardshell backpack, now known as the Megalopolis.

In July 2014 the company became part of Point 65 Sweden and moved its HQ from Malmo to Solna. In spring 2015 the complete range of products was relaunched under the new brand name 'Point 65'.

Megalopolis

The Megalopolis was their first backpack. It uses a design that reminds some of a toboggan or even a jetpack. So individual is the form that the Megalopolis (and the identical but smaller Peoples Delite) have appeared as accessories in movies such as Charlie's Angels, Hitch, Jason X, The Fast And The Furious, The Italian Job and Bicentennial Man.

The Megalopolis comes in two versions, the Executive and Sport models. The difference between the two is the color selections - the Sport version has in-mold primary colors, whereas the Executive has been painted and lacquered in a myriad of colors. The Executive has a partition of the interior, where the Sport has a removable laptop sleeve instead of an actual laptop compartment.

Target audience

Boblbee bills itself as a sports enthusiast company, but the vast proportion of their products are used in urban situations. Couriers, cyclists, motorcyclists and DJ's are buyers of Boblbee packs, especially the Megalopolis. Popularity has been achieved particularly in Japan where a big portion of Boblbee items are sold. Boblbee Japan has a website separate from the main site which features products exclusive to that region.

Other lines

Hardshell

Softshell

External links

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, September 20, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.