Searching for an inexpensive, but durable bag while traveling? You might not want to overlook Pappeal’s backpacks and duffle and messenger bags.
The bags made out of Tyvek, a durable paper material – which is durable, water resistant and recyclable – are a fashionable and green option for travelers seeking an alternative to bringing heavier and more expensive bags on excursions or bringing home souvenirs.
“It’s extremely durable with great functionality,” says Madeleine Furuvald, 26, co-founder of Pappeal. “When we meet people and they see the bags the first thing that they want to do is to try to tear it apart, but it’s extremely durable and they get really surprised about it.”
Madeleine co-founded the Miami-based company at the end of November with her college friends Giam C. Mariela and Juan Kapan.
It was at university that she hooked up with her business partners Giam and Juan working on various business projects before they decided to launch Pappeal, a company that creates backpacks, duffle and messenger bags out of Tyvek, at the end of 2013.
The bags, which recently hit the market, currently come in white and cost only $30, making it ideal for the traveler – urban or world – looking for a normal size bag that can easily fold into their luggage without taking up much space or weighing a ton and is easily cleanable with a warm damp cloth.
Madeleine should know. The Swedish native has been traveling for much of her life around her home country and then abroad studying business administration in Barcelona, Spain and London, United Kingdom before landing in Miami, Florida in the United States, where she met her business partners who are from South America.
“I’ve been traveling a lot through my life,” says Madeleine, who still travels a lot. “You always tend to get more things when you have to go home. It is when you are standing at the airport, ‘Should I go and buy another bag for $200?’ That’s not very appealing.”
With the Pappeal bag that isn’t a concern. Women can pull out the bag and pack their new memories that they acquired during the trip and board a plan with it as a carry-on or check it without worrying about it, she says.
“You have this sweet little thing in your bag. You take it out and unfold it and you have a big bag,” says Madeleine, who is particularly fond of the duffle bag. “It’s really big to fit many things … either you can check it in or bring it as hand luggage.”
She also pointed out that with each trip she tends to evaluate what she’s packing.
“You want to pack smart. You want to pack as light as possible. You become really clever on what type of outfits and types of bags that you should bring,” says Madeleine, who always wants to pack a second bag to bring things home from her travels.
The Pappeal bags fold up into the size of a “napkin,” she says and are very light, so they don’t add to the weight of your luggage unlike other bags.
The bags can also be used while backpacking on excursions through rainforests, on urban adventures or out to the beach.
She couldn’t say how much the bag could hold weight-wise, but she insists that, “It can handle a lot. It can carry a lot more than you probably think.”
The bags are designed to appeal to a variety of people “depending on the style and their activities for daily life,” says Madeleine.
Aside from functionality and recyclability, the bags can also be a fashion statement. While there are plans to make the bags colorful and have different designs, the white bags are an artist’s delight. Creative types and travelers can individualize the bags using them as their canvas to express themselves or remind them of where they’ve traveled.
To get your own Pappeal, visit Pappeal.com.
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