At just fourteen-years-old, Swedish born \u00c5ke Nordin was unhappy with the cumbersome nature of his rucksack. A boy scout, Nordin knew a thing or two about how you should carry heavy loads on your back \u2013 so equipped with a wooden frame and his mother\u2019s sewing machine, he set about creating his very own backpack.<\/p>\n
The wooden backpack frame was so successful a design that Nordin could now carry significantly heavier loads than ever before. The design attracted the attention of the Sami people, who spent several weeks at a time in the mountains, and needed a backpack that could withstand greater weights. He was able to sell designs to the Sami long before Fjallraven began, but it was not until his return from military service that Nordin recognised that even the elite in the armed services were in need of functional and robust equipment. In 1960, he registered Fjallraven as a company to his family\u2019s one room flat, and it was here that the backpacks and modern, aluminium frames were first created, and from this small start, an internationally loved brand was born.<\/p>\n
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In 1978, almost twenty years after starting Fjallraven, Nordin became concerned with the increasing issue of back pain amongst school children across Sweden. Based on the measurements on two A4 ring binders he designed the Fjallraven Kanken as a solution to these aches and pains. Soon it wasn\u2019t only school children who took on this innovative little backpack: commuters, trekkers, and anyone who could get their hands on one were eager to wear the coveted Kanken backpack.<\/p>\n
So what is it that makes the Kanken so fantastic? Well firstly, it\u2019s constructed from a durable, water resistant Vinylon fabric that swells when wet to protect your valuable from water damage. The handles and straps are made from robust cotton webbing that can be adjusted to suit all heights. The inside is incredibly spacious, plus there is a zipped pocket to the front for smaller items, and easy access side pockets. The frame is kept in place with the addition of a foam seat pad which sits in the back compartment.<\/p>\n
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The Kanken is designed around the measurements of two A4 ring binders, so you can be sure that this handy little backpack will support your textbooks, notebooks, pens, and of course trusty snacks to get you through lectures. For younger students, summer gym kits and exercise books fit in easily, and the side pockets double up great as water bottle carriers.<\/p>\n
This might seem strange, but the Kanken is actually ideal for young families! With all the space you need for carrying around nappies, spare grows, bottles, dummies, wipes…(the list goes on), the Kanken is a great alternative to a shoulder changing bag. And what\u2019s more, the hand seat pad can double up as a soft changing pad when you\u2019re out and about.<\/p>\n
Being able to have both hands free when on the commute is critical to navigating that urban jungle. Whether it\u2019s swiping your oyster card while you take a phone call or are running to catch the bus, you can be sure all of your everyday essentials are tucked securely in your backpack while you get on with your day.<\/p>\n
View our full Fjallraven collection here<\/a> or find the iconic Kanken bag here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" At just fourteen-years-old, Swedish born \u00c5ke Nordin was unhappy with the cumbersome nature of his rucksack. A boy scout, Nordin knew a thing or two about how you should carry heavy loads on your back \u2013 so equipped with a wooden frame and his mother\u2019s sewing machine, he set about creating his very own backpack. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6517,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_cloudinary_featured_overwrite":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[593],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6506","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fjallraven"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6506","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6506"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6506\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6517"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}