JanSport

Ours starts with friends, an innovative patented design, and a shared dream to do something different. It was 1967. The summer of love. Seattle, Washington. Three friends with a passion for getting outdoors and making their own adventure wanted to build a better backpack. And not get real jobs. They had no money, no business plan, no experience—just one original idea and three unique talents.

Skip Yowell, a charismatic talker, handled sales and marketing. His cousin Murray Pletz brought the innovative design and the patent. Murray's girlfriend Jan Lewis knew how to sew and work with fabric and patterns. Murray promised to marry Jan and name the company after her, if she helped create the prototype. She did. He did. And JanSport was born.

They set up business above a transmission shop, started making aluminum-frame packs, worked hard, had fun, and never looked back. JanSport continues to innovate, grow, and change with the times. But our core values are the same today as they were in 1967.

Love of the journey, the discovery of fun, freedom, and being an original. This isn't just a story - it's our history. And now, more than 40 years later, JanSport releases the Heritage Series, an authentic reissue of our best packs from our past with all the original details; rugged Cordura® and nylon fabrics, seat belt webbing and brass zippers and hardware.