Åke Nordin (17 March 1936 – 27 December 2013) was a Swedish entrepreneur. He was the founder of
Fjällräven
Fjällräven (, Swedish for 'The Arctic Fox') is a Swedish brand specialising in outdoor equipment—mostly upscale clothing and luggage. It was founded in 1960 by Åke Nordin (1936–2013). The company went public in 1983 with an over-the-c ...
, a company that specializes in outdoor equipment, mainly clothing and the parent company
Fenix outdoors
Fenix, Fénix (Spanish and Portuguese) and Fênix (Brazilian Portuguese) all mean phoenix and may refer to:
Business
* Fenix Automotive, a British supercar manufacturer founded by Lee Noble in 2009
* Fénix Directo, a Spanish insurance company
...
.
In 1950, at the age of 14, Nordin went
hiking
Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
in the mountains of
Västerbotten
Västerbotten (), known in English as West Bothnia or Westrobothnia, is a province (''landskap'') in the north of Sweden, bordering Ångermanland, Lapland, North Bothnia, and the Gulf of Bothnia. It is known for the cheese named after the p ...
and was not pleased with the design of his uncomfortable
backpack
A backpack—also called knapsack, schoolbag, rucksack, rucksac, pack, sackpack, booksack, bookbag or backsack—is, in its simplest frameless form, a fabric sack carried on one's back and secured with two straps that go over the shoulders ...
. After doing some research, he learned that a pack's weight should be positioned high and close to the wearer's spine. Using his mother's
treadle
A treadle (from oe, tredan, "to tread") is a mechanism operated with a pedal for converting reciprocating motion into rotating motion. Along with cranks, treadmills, and treadwheels, treadles allow human and animal machine power in the absen ...
sewing machine
A sewing machine is a machine used to sew fabric and materials together with thread. Sewing machines were invented during the first Industrial Revolution to decrease the amount of manual sewing work performed in clothing companies. Since the inv ...
, he made a bag out of strong cotton material. He fastened it to a wooden frame using leather straps. The frame distributed the load better across his back and increased the ventilation between him and the pack. In addition, he could carry a heavier pack.
[
Ten years later, his invention formed the basis of his company, Fjällräven, which he began out of the cellar of his home in ]Örnsköldsvik
Örnsköldsvik (, ) is a locality and the seat of Örnsköldsvik Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden, with 32,953 inhabitants in 2017.
Its natural harbour and archipelago is in the Gulf of Bothnia and the northern boundaries of the Hig ...
. During those ten years, he completed his military service at the Swedish Army Paratroop School in Karlsborg
Karlsborg (, outdatedly ) is a locality and the seat of Karlsborg Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 3,551 inhabitants in 2010. This garrison town lies at the shore of lake Vättern in Västergötland.
History
The town of Karl ...
, where he saw the need for functional and durable outdoor equipment.[About Fjällräven]
Retrieved 1 January 2014.
In the summer of 2013, Nordin was diagnosed with an undisclosed terminal illness. He died on 27 December at the age of 77.Åke Nordin avliden
References
1936 births
2013 deaths
People from Örnsköldsvik Municipality
Swedish company founders
20th-century Swedish inventors
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