During my first week of college, a mere ten-ish weeks ago, I was struck with the usual conundrums; is the dining hall coffee always this watery, are Cleveland Hall and Shattuck Hall the same place, and where do my shower shoes keep disappearing to? I did have one question, however, which I did not expect: Why are there more Fjallraven Kanken Backpacks than students?
Ok, that was a huge over exaggeration. Needless to say, I have never seen that many Kankens in my life, and the sheer number, color and size variety was simply fascinating to me. Maybe the extent of this trend was average everywhere except for the miniscule town where I grew up. I wanted to figure out what was so important about these backpacks that I saw in abundance as I walked through campus. I get the initial allure, their simplistic design is pretty cute and works with almost anything. Yet I still wonder how a Swedish school children’s bag, with a design relatively unchanged since it’s conception, has become so intensely popular with people from my generation (according to my observations).
I will admit that I follow trends (my HydroFlask is staring accusingly at me across the table), but while we get excited about the new teddy coat or, in this case, Fjallraven Kanken backpack that we want, I think it is just as important to consider why we want these things. Speaking specifically about Kankens, I do think that they are cute, stylish, and well-made, factors which add to their popularity, yet the incredible success of this square Swedish backpack is still impressive. I don’t have the answers to how this generation forms and follows trends (although I would like to find out, maybe in graduate school?) but I hope you can take a moment to think about why you have (or don’t have) a popular item.
XOXO, Bella
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