Buddy Pte Ltd, Singapore’s new lifestyle and well-being company, has launched its debut product aimed at helping school children cope better with their ever-increasing bag load, aptly named “Mighty Pack”. Crafted through a collaboration between Keith Tan, a Singaporean industrial designer, and Larry Olmsted, a master bag maker based in Portland USA, the “Mighty Pack” stands out with its patent-pending ‘A-Frame’ Back System, which gives the child a custom fit as they grow from Primary 1 to 6, and many other thoughtful features that reflect the lifestyle of kids today.
1) In anticipation of the increase in capacity that their child will require as they advance in their curriculum
2) Thinking their 7-year old child will grow too quickly and therefore will have to purchase another soon bag again.
This behaviour resulted in a lot of children carrying school bags that is oversized and poorly balanced, affecting their gait and posture, causing unnecessary stress to their core muscles.
This insight led to the design of the unique ‘A-Frame’ ergonomic back system (Patent Pending) that is fully adjustable in 3 easy steps. This allows the child a custom fit as they grow. Furthermore, the carefully-engineered balance and load-bearing design of the ‘Mighty Pack’ ensures weight is evenly distributed, so the school bag and its load actually feels lighter.
The collaboration with Larry Olmsted proved highly valuable in the definition and engineering of the ‘Mighty Pack’. With over 20 years of designing backpacks, mountaineering equipment and performance sportswear, Larry’s expertise helped to ensure the performance, support and comfort of the highest level in the ‘Mighty Pack’.
“If there was one element that inspired me throughout the collaborative process of crafting the Buddy pack, it was that we were creating something that would make the user’s life better” said Larry.
With unique features such as the centralized and removable water bottle pouch, 3+1 Load Bearing Zone and the +1 Zoom Expansion Zone, the emphasis is not just on protecting the child’s spine but also to ensure an evenly distributed load to care for the muscles supporting the spine. Other features include:
- Multiple pockets of convenience – to store music players, mobile devices and little essential items.
- ‘Whistle in a Buckle’ – a whistle is integrated into the chest strap so that a call for help is quick and easy.
- Integrated Rain Jacket – a reflective, waterproof cover that slips on easily on to the entire bag, and can be tucked away conveniently at the bottom of the bag.
Buddy’s “Mighty Pack” is now available for purchase online (www.myawesomebuddy.com) and at the Red Dot Design Museum Shop.