Bag It

R.E.Load celebrates 10 years

by Ryan Creed

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Neon lunar landscapes, appliquéed James Brown portraits, X-rayed flamingos: R.E.Load has stitched itself a prominent position in Philly style. The all-weather bags were originally built for bike couriers, but their playful, colorful graphics have made them popular with everyone from art students to design-conscious businessmen to crafty moms. Founded by Roland Burns and Ellie Lum (the "R" and "E," respectively), the company has grown from a one-sewing-machine operation to stocking merchandise in stores from Seattle (where they've had a second retail location since 2003) to Denmark. In celebration of their 10th anniversary, the R.E.Load crew is throwing a little birthday bash complete with entertainment by DJs Rock Tits, Immediate and Strawberry Mansion. I caught up with Roland about his decade of bag-making, surprise success in Japan and predictions for the next 10 years.

City Paper: How did R.E.Load grow to be a full-time company?

Roland Burns: One, as messengers we could tailor our schedules to free up time. Two, Philadelphia happens to be an easy place to live — the cost of living here is just so much lower than most other major cities. It really allowed us to scrape by for a long time. Three, the city happens to be an incredibly nurturing place, in terms of the artist community. I'm originally from New York, and I always think about how this might have never happened if I had gone back there after school. People in Philly are so excited to welcome new things and help out when they hear somebody is trying to do something.

CP: Does bike messaging still have a place in R.E.Load?

RB: It's really what this company was founded on — we started this because we were messengers. Everything we wanted our bags to be was based on what we wanted as messengers, even though at this point we're pretty much known for our design and graphics.

CP: I heard your bags are big in Japan.

RB: Yeah, our stuff is kinda crazy out there. Japan probably represents a good third of our market, which is great, because I get to travel there a few times every year.

CP: I was recently stopped in New York by a stranger who recognized my R.E.Load bag and knew I was from Philly. Do you like being so closely associated with the city?

RB: I love the fact that people can associate R.E.Load bags with Philadelphia. I hear a lot of stories about people being in other cities — or even other countries — and running into somebody with a R.E.Load, and they'll start talking about their bags and Philly and find they have a lot in common. I feel like, in some sense, this is a way in which we are expanding the Philly community throughout the world.

CP: Where do you see R.E.Load in the future?

RB: What we are really working on now is taking advantage of our experience and starting to promote ourselves more as designers. We're making collections of our own and collaborating with other artists we know and respect to release bags and accessories that showcase the skills of everybody involved with the company.

R.E.Load 10th Anniversary Party Fri., March 7, 9 p.m., $5, Mad Decent Mausoleum, 531 N. 12th St., 215-922-2018, reloadbags.com