by Kennedy Carter

Eight years ago, Nick Stockton made a bag out of necessity. Then life happened — he applied to grad schools, ran several different art galleries, worked as an art consultant and even managed an onsite screen-printing business. Four years ago, the opportunity for a booth at Renegade Craft fair in Chicago brought back his bag-making idea. 

Then, Stockton and his longtime business partner Nick Stygstra got a group of people together together and made bags out of sails of boats. The group made 11 and sold nine at the fair. After the first batch sold, the duo reinvested his earned money into making another set bags made out of salvaged sails and tire tubes. After selling out again, the team continued to expand to meet growing demand and officially formed Teamwork Bags.

Now, Stockton, works 40 plus hours a week doing art consulting for businesses and collectors in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Stockton and his original bag partner Nick Stygstra along with a small, but motivated team of collaborators have successfully launched Teamwork Bags while maintaining their full-time posts. They have a nationwide presence, and are well on their way to leaving their day jobs in the dust. 

In the mean time, Teamwork Bags’ customers have to catch one of their pop-up shops, like I stumbled upon at ArtPrize in Grand Rapids or visit their exclusive online boutique. I had the unique opportunity to interview Nick [Stockton] and see just how the team is able to do it all: 

Kennedy Carter: So first, I have to ask if you have a sailing background? How did you choose sails as your material?

Nick Stockton: No, I don’t have a sailing background. I wish! We [ Stygstra and Stockton] both grew up on the lakeshore around sailboats. But the sails grew out of brainstorming what resource Michigan would have a lot of and what would be a good material to make a bag out of. There are other companies making bags out of salvaged sailboat sails, we’re not the first ones to do it. The other [companies] have a different feel and vibe to them, brand and identity. Where our brand and identity is a lot hipper, another identity might be ‘yacht club.’ So we were thinking about what we could get our hands on and we were surprised with what we found. Then we were looking for any materials. We take all material. We have a surplus of vinyl billboards right now that we’ve been putting inside of the bags to make them more weatherproof. 

KC:How long does it take to make one bag?

NS: An hour-ish. We don’t really sit down and make one bag. So it’s one of those things where we have to see how the processes work and how we can work from there. We’ll sit down and make a batch of pockets and then see what our next step should be.

KC: Is your process done with hand stitching or with a machine?

NS:  It’s with a machine. We’ve got three machines that we use. They are all industrial machines that can go through just about anything. It’s pretty amazing how thick they can sew through.

KC:  I bet. I saw the bags have different names, like C-Scow?

NS: C-scow, E-scow, Drifter. They are all types of sailboats. A type of scow sailboat is typically a smaller inland lake boat that is wider and used for more utility type things.

KC: Are the bags placed in any shops around the country right now? Or is it exclusively online based shopping?

NS: We’ve investigated  retail, but we can’t even keep up with our own demand. So if we committed to a retail location, then they’d want x amount and how that would look if we’d be able to supply them or not. And its one of those things, where we both work 40 hours a week. So, this not being our full-time gig as we hope and wish it to be someday.

KC: I understand. That’s the wish for all of us here at flaw. too.  I’ve read your mission about being green. So do you see the future of fashion being more about functionality and going green?

NS: Yes and no. I’d like to believe that it will eventually, but it all starts to go down to price points . And green and  mass fashion aren’t really going to catch on until price points are really good. And There is a lot of ‘green fashion’ that isn’t well designed at all.  I’m not into baggy hemp pants. Laughs.

KC: Me either.  So, what’s more important to you: functionality or being green?

NS: For us, green isn’t a choice, we feel if you’re making a product, you should [be green]. It should come out of necessity. We feel [in order] to be viably  responsible for what were making, we know that we’re contributing in some way to helping [the environment].

KC: That’s great to take responsibility.

NS: You know we feel it’s like hey- we’re a green company, but that’s because you should be green right now. Foam sourcing, for instance, is a big pain for us. We use foam as  padding in our straps and the back of the bag, but foam production is not an environmentally friendly thing.

KC: Very true. At least you’re aware of it. Are you guys participating with any other outside environmental organizations or causes?

NS: No but it would be sweet to one day.,But we hardly have the time to do what we do right now you know. We’re swamped.

KC: I can imagine. How many Teamwork bags do you own?

NS: Do I own? Oh I don’t know… a lot…

KC: Or do you make them out of necessity, like in the beginning?

NS: Well I own all the prototypes because I test them all first.  I use them all before we release them . So I end up with a closet full of ones that might not work. You know we made [a bag] one certain size and that one seems like not the right size. Then we won’t produce it and I’ll just end up with it. I was sorting out my closet and I found 5 in my closet yesterday.

KC: That’s not too bad of a deal. So what’s next for Teamwork?

NS: In the spring we’re launching a canvas travel series, that is a little bit upper-end. We got a bunch of material from one of our old manufacturers that we were testing out . So we’ve got a bunch old military equipment, straps and buckles that were from an old account  [the manufacturer] no longer had. So it was just sitting in their warehouse basically rotting and getting destroyed by the elements and rodents. So we took it and cleaned it and are turning it into product for a spring launch.

KC: That’s very cool. So are travel series going to be like weekend bags and things similar to that?

NS: Yeah, they’ll be a week to weekend, a week to two-week plus, a travel dop kit and a limited run of adventure bags that will be a cross between a duffle and a backpack kind of thing. That will definitely be a by-order situation.

KC: Where do you see the company five years from now?

NS: Hopefully sustaining a full-time job for myself and my partner and the rest of the team. Being able to make a product, design a product and getting paid to do what we do and not have to work other jobs.

KC: If you could choose any celebrity or big name to be the face of your brand, who would you choose and why?

NS: Would Obama count? Laughs.

KC: Sure!

NS: Maybe Jason Schwartzman.

KC: Any particular reason?

NS: He’s funny.

KC: Perfect. Do you have anything else for flaw. and our readers?

NS: Basically, teamwork makes the dream work. Laughs. But if anybody ever wants an internship or to come see our studio and hang out or anything like that, just feel free to shoot us an email. We love bartering for labor too. And if there are people really talented at sewing send us an email.

Teamworkbags.com

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by Mark Navarro

Last year, I lived with a dear friend of mine who was famous for his tattoos. He had ten tattoos total—an astronaut on his forearm, stars on his wrists, a raven on his calf, and more—and he said no end to his inking was in sight.

However, if anyone ever asked him the story behind any one of his tattoos, he simply said that it was too personal and that he would never talk about it.

I am the only one in my immediate family without a tattoo. My mother and father both have crosses with their grandchildren’s names, my middle sister has her children’s names on a rosary on her foot, and my oldest sister has the name of her deceased friend on her back. With that kind of pressure, my family and friends say that it’s only a matter of time before I face the needle.

But I never will.

I don’t have anything against tattoos, per se—I think a tattoo can be a great way to show love or honor to someone or something that one holds dear. It’s also a great form of self-expression and individuality. However, I have come up with four distinct reasons why I will never get a tattoo, and whenever I walk by a tattoo parlor and begin to think about it, I’ll have these to snap me back into reality.

One: Corporate America Hates Tattoos

Rather, most of Corporate America.

The sad truth is that employers do use professional appearance as grounds for hiring a person, and, unless you’re applying to work at your local bar or a tattoo shop, a lot of employers don’t think tattoos are very professional.

Some of you are probably thinking, Then why doesn’t he just get a tattoo where no one can see it when he’s at work? To you I ask: What’s the point of going through the pain getting a tattoo if no one’s going to see it?

Two: I Tend to Make Rash Decisions

Because I am a twenty-two-year-old male, I tend to make decisions without thinking about them. These decisions sometimes involve a bottle of bourbon, but they most often involve things like drastic haircuts and shaving off year-old facial hair. Things like that are never really problems because hair grows back.

But a tattoo never goes away.

My fear is that I would get a tattoo of something that would seem cool or meaningful at the time, but would turn out to be something disastrous. I don’t want to have to explain to my future children how Daddy got hammered one night and decided to get a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken tattooed on his chest.

Along those lines…

Three: I Have Nothing Worth Getting A Tattoo Of

As I previously mentioned, my family all have tattoos that are important to them. My old roommate has personal stories behind all of his ink. My current housemate has “HOMES” tattooed on her wrist because she loves Michigan and the Great Lakes (“HOMES” being a common acronym for Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior).

At age twenty-two, I have no children; no personal stories worth writing in permanent ink on my body; no real connection to a particular place; nothing really worth putting permanently on my body.

I don’t feel connected enough to something to put it somewhere on me—but that does not mean that everyone should feel sad for me. I’m a drifter at my age, still trying to find out what I want to do with my life and with no real ties to anything. I’m sure that I will have something worth tattooing on myself someday, but, until then, my body is an open canvas, waiting for that one thing that may make its way on my forearm, chest, or back.

Number Four: I am Terrified of Needles

Really the deciding factor in all of this—enough said.

Mark Navarro is an aspiring writer, amateur chef, wannabe comedian, and budding music journalist. He is in his final semester at the University of Michigan, where he studies English, Creative Writing, and People. He looks forward to contributing various perspectives to flaw

by Katrina Lewis

It’s a new year and there is plenty to be celebrated! Here’s what flaw. is celebrating in 2011.

Orchids

Bring a little brightness into the dreary winter. They are easy to care for, long- lasting, and always a touch of sophistication.

Vintage Shops

Often overlooked, but always worthwhile. Browsing through a local vintage shop is a great way to find little fashion treasures and spruce up a typical shopping day.

Lace-up Boots

I’m in love.  With a 3-inch heel or none at all, lace-ups boots are definitely my fave until we can bust out our sandals again this spring.

Bikram Yoga

This unique workout will leave you feeling nimble, relaxed, and refreshed. Make sure to drink lots of water before and after to avoid dehydration.

Get-Aways

“Get-Away” doesn’t have to mean taking a vacation, just simple “get-away” from the world and embrace la joie de vivre. Spend a day or a weekend doing what you want to do: play hooky, catch up on some reading, discover a new place and just forget about your worries.