Trapper Keeper is a

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create a ...

of loose-leaf binder created by

Mead Mead () is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alcoholic content ranges from about 3.5% ABV to more than 20%. The defining chara ...

. Popular with students in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

and parts of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

from the 1970s to the 1990s, it featured sliding plastic rings (instead of standard snap-closed metal binder rings), folders, and pockets to keep schoolwork and papers, and a wrap-around flap with a

Velcro Velcro, officially known as Velcro IP Holdings LLC and trading as Velcro Companies, is a British privately held company, founded by Swiss electrical engineer George de Mestral in the 1950s. It is the original manufacturer of hook-and-loop fast ...

closure (originally a metal snap closure). Trapper Keepers usually had a theme, such as a cartoon, television show, or video game. Between 1988 and 1995, "Designer Series" Trapper Keepers featured abstract designs and, later, computer-generated images.

Design history

The Trapper Keeper was invented in the late 1970s by E. Bryant Crutchfield, Director of New Ventures at the Mead Corporation. The binder got its name because it was sold in combination with pocket folders designed by Mead called "Trappers", which differed from other pocket folders in that the pockets' three sides connected with the bottom, outside edge, and top (as opposed to the bottom, outside edge, and spine) of the folders. This design prevented papers from falling out of the Trapper's pockets when it was closed. Trappers were three-hole punched so that they could be put in any 3-ring binder, including a Trapper Keeper. In August 1978, the Trapper Keeper was tested in Wichita, Kansas, and to the surprise of Crutchfield, it completely sold out. Three years after the Trapper Keeper was released, the design was tweaked to include a Velcro strap instead of the initial metal buckle. This design change allowed for greater ease of use and more efficient manufacturing. The Designer Series ran from 1988 to 1995, and introduced "fashionable, funky and sometimes psychedelic designs... The company also made a deal with

Lisa Frank Lisa Frank (born 1955) is an American businesswoman, the founder of Lisa Frank Incorporated, headquartered in Tucson, Arizona. She is known for producing whimsical commercial design for school supplies and other products that are primarily mark ...

... and licensed cartoon characters like Garfield and Sonic the Hedgehog." From 1996 to 1999, Mead released a collection of notebooks and folders known as "FuturoCity", featuring futuristic city and landscape designs. In 2007, a new version of Trapper Keeper featured a magnetic closure in place of the Velcro closure, a customizable front cover, and binder dividers instead of Trapper folders. In 2014, another new version of the Trapper Keeper was released, featuring a metal button closure, as well as a new feature called "Snapper Trappers", which are plastic strips that act as dividers and they can have regular notebooks attached to them in addition to folders and dividers; the Snapper Trappers can be placed or removed without having to open the rings of the binder. For the 2015 school year, Trapper Keeper introduced ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has been expanded into various film ...

'' Trapper Keeper supplies, ''

Hello Kitty , also known by her full name , is a fictional character created by Yuko Shimizu, currently designed by Yuko Yamaguchi, and owned by the Japanese company Sanrio. Sanrio depicts Hello Kitty as an anthropomorphized white cat with a red bow and n ...

'' Trapper Keeper supplies, and a new patterned line called ''Fun In The Sun''. Mead brought back the original design for the Trapper Keeper with most of its original features in 2021.

References

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External links

Vintage Trapper Keeper gallery
Products introduced in 1978 1980s fads and trends American brands Stationery Personal information managers

Design history

See also

References

External links