Timbuk2 is an American bag manufacturer based in

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, known for its durable messenger bags, backpacks, and travel accessories. Founded in 1989 by bike messenger Rob Honeycutt, the company originally catered to the urban cycling community and gained recognition for its customizable, made-to-order designs. While it began with local production, Timbuk2 now manufactures both custom and non-custom products, with global distribution and a focus on sustainability initiatives such as bag recycling and reuse.

History

Timbuk2 was founded in 1989 by bike messenger Rob Honeycutt in a garage in San Francisco's

Mission District The Mission District ( Spanish: ''Distrito de la Misión''), commonly known as the Mission ( Spanish: ''La Misión''), is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California. One of the oldest neighborhoods in San Francisco, the Mission District's name ...

. Influenced by the Toyota "just in time" model, he created a bag pattern suited to custom orders for local bike dealer. Honeycutt was fascinated by "just in time" manufacturing and studied the Toyota manufacturing model which led him to develop a bag pattern that was able to accommodate custom orders from independent bike dealers in San Francisco. The company was originally named Scumbags; Honeycutt changed the name to Timbuk2 Designs in 1990. The name Timbuk2 was inspired in part by the American rock band

Timbuk3 Timbuk 3, stylized TIMBUK3, was an American rock band that released six albums between 1986 and 1995. They are best known for their Top 20 single " The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades". Career Timbuk 3 was formed in 1984 in Madison, Wis ...

and the company's swirl logo was designed by Honeycutt and is meant to mimic the rotation of a bike wheel. Non-custom products are manufactured in China, Vietnam, and Indonesia. The company launched its flagship retail store in

Hayes Valley, San Francisco Hayes Valley is a neighborhood in the Western Addition district of San Francisco, California. It is located between the historical districts of Alamo Square and the Civic Center. Victorian, Queen Anne, and Edwardian townhouses are mixed with h ...

in 2006. In 2011, Timbuk2 launched a bicycle share program in its retail stores. In 2013, the Timbuk2 opened a retail location in Seattle, Washington. That same year, the company incorporated recycled Bike to Work banners into messenger bags and donated a portion of the profits to the

San Francisco Bicycle Coalition The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition (SFBC) is a California 501(c)(4) nonprofit public-benefit corporation established to "transform San Francisco's streets and neighborhoods into more livable and safe places by promoting the bicycle for everyday ...

. Patti Cazzato was appointed to the role of

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

in July 2014. That same year, the company encouraged bag owners to reuse and recycle their bags through its Timbuk2 Life Cycle program. Timbuk2 also added retail locations in Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles and Toronto in 2014. That same year, Timbuk2 collaborated with

Blue Bottle Coffee Company Blue Bottle Coffee, Inc., is a coffee roaster and retailer once headquartered in Oakland, California, United States. In 2017, a majority stake in the company was acquired by Nestlé (68%). It is a major player in Third wave of coffee, third wave ...

to release a coffee travel kit. As well, the company was ranked as the second largest manufacturer in San Francisco by the

San Francisco Business Times American City Business Journals, Inc. (ACBJ) is an American newspaper publisher based in Charlotte, North Carolina. ACBJ publishes ''The Business Journals'', which contains local business news for 44 markets in the United States with each market ...

. In July 2016, the company collaborated with the footwear company

New Balance New Balance Athletics, Inc. (NB), doing business as New Balance, is one of the world's major sports footwear and apparel manufacturers. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the multinational corporation was founded in 1906 as the New Balance Arch Su ...

to release specially branded products. The company opened a flagship store in

NoHo, Manhattan NoHo, short for "North of Houston Street" (as contrasted with SoHo), is a primarily residential neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded by Mercer Street to the west, the Bowery to the east, 9th Street to the north, an ...

in October 2016. In June 2017, the company opened an additional location in Brooklyn. As of 2023, the Manhattan and Brooklyn locations are no longer open.

Ownership

The company was sold to a venture capital firm in 2005. In 2006 it sold to private equity group TB2 Investors, which owned it until 2019. In August 2019 it was sold to Exemplis, a Los Angeles-based furniture company.

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://www.timbuk2.com Companies based in San Francisco Manufacturing companies established in 1989 Retail companies established in 2006 Online retailers of the United States Sporting goods retailers of the United States 1989 establishments in California