When you’re running a business, it helps to know your products well.
This is something that Tom Gale, founder of Atom Packs, can definitely claim, having thoroughly road-tested his equipment on thousands of miles of hikes across the UK and the world.
Originally from Plymouth, Gale worked as an outdoor instructor in the Lakes, spending all the spare time he could completing long distance trails, including the Appalachian, Pacific Crest and Alta Via trails in the United States, and the Te Araroa Trail in New Zealand.
‘Part of the reason my outdoor career never took off was because I was always going off every other summer to do a trip,’ says Gale.
However, at a lofty six foot, seven inches tall, he struggled to find backpacks which were a comfortable fit for his long frame.
Determined to find a solution, he sat down at the kitchen table with a borrowed sewing machine to try and design his own. More than 10 years later, Atom Packs has sold over 14,000 backpacks, with its staff of 18 producing around 60 a week at its workshop, offices and storage units in Braithwaite, just outside Keswick.
The company sells a core range of four backpack designs, from 30 litre up to 50 litre, with the emphasis on being lightweight, durable, straightforward, and comfortable for use on everything from day walks to remote, multi-week treks.
Backpacks are purchased ‘off-the-shelf’ from the company’s website or can be customised depending on users’ requirements.
‘There’s a customiser on our website and so if you want to go away from these core models you can go crazy,’ says Gale.
‘If you’re tall and thin or wide, short or broad we can find a way to make it.’
Atom Packs’ more heavy duty designs use removable mouldable frames which adapt to the individual shape of the wearer’s back, while the smaller bags have carbon fibre hoops which achieve the same effect.
Waist and shoulder straps can also be customised to order to provide the perfect fit for many miles in the hills.
The various forms of textured nylon which make up the bulk of the packs is sourced from suppliers in the United States and Korea, with as much as possible made from recycled materials with minimal use of chemicals.
Atom Packs does not rush to release a new range of products every year, focusing on simplicity and functionality and making a few products exceptionally well.
‘What was a good design last year is still a good design this year,’ says Gale.
‘If it was never broken then why fix it?
‘There’s definitely something zen about ultralight backpack design. Just because you could make it more complicated does that mean you should?
‘They are simple, but they do everything they need to do and function well and there’s a beauty in that.’
As part of his informal apprenticeship in textile design and production, Gale worked part-time for Aiguille Alpine Equipment, in Staveley, which manufactures famously durable kit for mountaineers.
He says Aiguille’s founder, Adrian Moore, taught him the value of listening to feedback and using this to improve designs.
‘Something Adrian always used to say to me at Aiguille was that the great thing about running your own company is that you can design something in the morning, test it in the afternoon and sell it that evening,’ says Gale.
‘It definitely works like that with product improvements. As soon as someone points something out, we can set about making it right.’
Over the years, Atom Packs’ designs have been incrementally adapted and improved based on the feedback of customers who have put the backpacks through their paces over thousands of hours and miles in rugged terrain and uncompromising environments.
Although the company is focused on producing and honing its core range, Gale admits he will often end up spending his weekends in the workshop tinkering with new designs.
‘The great thing about having the workshop is that it is so full of potential,’ he says.
‘I do a lot of the prototyping and designing, but that’s getting harder and harder, so I think the next step would be to employ a product designer.’
In recent years, Gale has been working on developing a backpack for runners, taking up running himself as part of the process.
‘I had to become a runner so I could test it properly. Now, I just love running. It's just something I do now.’
The company has quickly gained a reputation for making products that will last in tough conditions, with around 100 of its packs heading along the United States’ 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail each year.
Cockermouth Mountain Rescue also commissioned Atom Packs to make a special rucksack to help its team carry vacuum mattresses, a design which has proved so successful it is now in use by MRTs around the UK.
Approximately a third of the company’s sales have occurred in the last three months, with its team growing to meet demand, and incorporating customer service, operations directors, marketing and, of course, a pool of seamstresses. These include Gale’s wife, who he met while walking the Continental Divide Trail between the Canadian and Mexican borders.
As well as learning the skills to manufacture backpacks, Gale - who describes himself as a ‘reluctant businessman’ - has also taught himself to run a business over the last 10 years, with all the admin, operations and management that requires.
However, he says it has been vital to learn to delegate and find the correct people to put in the right roles, allowing him the time to work on the business rather than in it.
‘I think it’s important to realise what you can and can’t do and surround yourself with clever people,’ he says.
‘One thing I’ve always stuck to is to be honest with people, whether that’s customers or the team. If things are going well, let them know, if you’ve got a problem, let them know. I think people appreciate that.’
Although the potential for the company seems as wide open as the spaces so beloved by its devotees, Gale says one of his main concerns is balancing growth with the impact on his own lifestyle and the working environment for his team, while also delivering consistent quality and service for customers.
‘You have to ask yourself 'why do I want to grow? Is this a ‘me’ decision?'’ he says.
‘At the moment we’re all very collaborative in the way we work. We have fun, there is a good balance of work and play, and that’s as important to me as anything.’
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