City Limitless

MANILA, Philippines – Bag and accessories label Herschel Supply Co. is in the business of modernizing nostalgia. Steeped deeply in vintage Americana, Herschel is the perfect fusion of past and present; the right mix of an urban sensibility layered with a patina of heritage and tradition. Herschel Supply Co. is based in Vancouver, Canada and manufactures quality backpacks, bags, travel goods and accessories. Founded in 2009 by brothers Jamie and Lyndon Cormack, the relatively young brand has expanded globally into 70 countries in the short span of seven years. 

Herschel has grown to become a cultural phenomenon with its own brand of urban cool, inking collaborations with Apple, American designer Mark McNairy, and most recently, a print collaboration with Liberty of London.  It’s a robust lived-in aesthetic that perfectly captures the new urban lifestyle.

Herschel’s very own co-founder and managing director Lyndon Cormack was recently in Manila to introduce the label’s #CityLimitless campaign. Coming off of their previous photo essay series #WellTravelled, the bag brand continues its credo of building a community and celebrating unique perspectives that cater to different lifestyles.

With respect to its fervor for photography, the design-driven global accessories brand Herschel Supply Co. introduces City Limitless — a detail-oriented content series that utilizes photography and insight provided by members of the Herschel Suppy Co. community. In the series, local architecture, beautiful spaces, side street, and aerial views capture the urban culture that brings each city to life.

Introduced in early 2015 as #CityLimitless on Instagram, the global community has embraced the tag — populating it with myriad images as diverse and inspiring as the cityscapes they depict. It now lives as a content series on the Herschel Supply Co. blog and features dynamic scenes from places such as Tokyo, Rome, New York, Bangkok, and now, most recently, Manila.

General Supply

“Modernizing nostalgic products and finishing them with a fine regard to detail,” shares Lyndon, has always been the Herschel Supply Co. design DNA. Founded in 2009 Herschel adopted the name of the small town where three generations of their family grew up.

A fine regard for detail manifests in every bag and accessory; the utilitarian aspect drives the aesthetic that builds the foundation of the brand. Herschel continues to be inspired by the utility features found inside hiking backpacks and travel bags in earlier years. All of their products include their signature striped lining, key clips and pocket sleeves to ensure the quality and reliability the modern user should be able to enjoy.

Daydreamer

Fifty percent of your day is spent daydreaming, we take this idea of daydreaming very seriously in our design direction,” shares Lyndon.  For fall/winter 2015, Herschel draws from the visionary mind of a daydreamer as it wanders from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Just beyond the boundaries of everyday life, sounds of windswept waves crashing along a rugged coast inspire the imagination — the inspiration behind the season’s offerings manifests in a uniquely crafted line of products.

Select materials for fall include lustrous lightweight nylons; cotton canvas and reflective ripstop refine Herschel’s signature silhouettes. With whimsical feathers and wildflower motifs, this season’s color story (made up of rich wines, khaki and burnt coral, deep ultramarine) is enhanced with diagonally color-blocked rubber accents.

For more insight into the global accessories label, YStyle sits down with Herschel co-founder and managing director Lyndon Cormack.

YSTYLE: How did the idea for Herschel come about?

LYNDON CORMACK: Ideas are the foundation of any movement. It’s the first thing you think about before you move on to the next step.

Our ideas were born out of a lifetime, I would say, between myself and my brother Jamie. Herschel started out as two-brothers chit-chatting, much like how we’re chit-chatting now. It was a lot of throwing ideas at each other, it was our way of throwing things at a wall and seeing which one sticks. Eventually, out comes one idea, an idea you can’t stop talking about —  the year was 2009, and that’s when we decided to bring Herschel Supply Co. to life.

Herschel Supply Co. comes off as an accessory label deeply steeped in heritage with a vintage aesthetic in mind. Has that always been the approach from the beginning?

Ever since the beginning, Herschel has always been about taking nostalgic products and modernizing them. The idea of celebrating the past, the idea of celebrating tradition, heritage; these are things important to us. But having said that, we don’t just want to be a remake of an old product. Our goal has always been to execute new ideas — but with that sense of patina.

Were we trying to fake it? We never faked anything. Herschel Supply Co. and our story has always been the same.

Coming off of that, can you tell us about the core design DNA that goes into each and every Herschel product?

We always try to introduce timeless product with fine regard for detail. That’s the goal; something that’s going to last, something that will stand the test of time. Something you’ll be able to pull out in 10 years and still be able to use.

I remember this one thing I heard in our office some time ago that I think captures our aesthetic: “We want to be the new nostalgic.” Herschel isn’t old enough to be a vintage brand, we’re too young!

If you were to introduce Herschel to the uninitiated customer, which bag would you say encapsulates the brand best?

I’d say our Little America model, it’s a backpack shape. Or a Herschel backpack in general. We’ve got 750 back pack styles to choose from; and if a first time customer or someone who isn’t acquainted with the brand should buy into our product, it should be a backpack.

What’s next for Herschel Supply Co.? Are you looking to move into other categories?

I think one thing that has made us so successful is that we’re specialists, and being specialists enables us to bring exciting things to the market. When we’ve done enough research, when we’ve done enough development to enable us to create something new and exciting in an altogether different segment, that’s when we’ll move to another category. 

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Herschel Supply Co. is available at TriNoma, SM Megamall, Alabang Town Center, SM Aura Premier, SM City North EDSA Annex, UP Town Center, Uptown BGC, Ayala Center Cebu, Abreeza Mall, MarQuee Mall and Ayala Centrio Mall.

Herschel Supply Co. is also available at GRIND, General, Flight 001, Res|Toe|Run, SneakPeek, Bratpack, The Travel Club, and Rustan’s stores nationwide. Herschel Supply Co. is exclusively distributed in the Philippines by Primer Group of Companies.