Timbuk2 is the brainchild of Rob Honeycutt, a bicycle messenger in San Francisco whose goal was to make a messenger bag rugged enough for real bicycle messengers, yet stylish to appeal to a broader market or young, hip urbanites as an alternative to the traditional two-strap daypack and the formal black suitcase. Conceived in 1989, Timbuk2 was officially born in 1990, the same year the company received its first wholesale order for messenger bags and Rob conceived his "one-at a-time" build to order production system where each bag was made-to-order by Rob himself.
As the production grew in 1994; Rob Honeycutt became a student of mass customization. Inspired by the lean manufacturing philosophy of Toyota Motor Corp., he perfected the three-panel bag design for production. Timbuk2 debuted its signature three-panel, tri-color messenger bag design, and encouraged bike shops and consumers to design custom bag with the "Build Your Own Bag" order form.
The company launched its website in 2000 and incorporated an award-winning on-line bag builder. Timbuk2 continued to pay attention to their messenger roots; as designing for such rugged individualists always proved a challenge.
The unwavering passion for designing and manufacturing functional, rugged, stylish bags has made Timbuk2 popular among the authentic bicycle messenger bag brands. Today, the tri-color design is an icon on the streets of San Francisco and a common sight in many other cities worldwide.
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