Production speed, Fulfillment, and Wallets
about 9 years ago – Tue, Jan 24, 2017 at 11:16:02 PM

Hi folks!

Well, several of you have received your bags and I’m thrilled by the response!

• Just received my bag. Just...wow. The quality of this bag is just like everything else Dave has done...exceeds expectations. Cannot wait for the looks I'm going to get rocking this thing. Congrats Dave! -Jeff
• Just got my backpack (black/black) in NY! Exactly what I was hoping for, Dave could not have done a better job. -Dov
• This is an aesthetically pleasing bag that is well designed and built to last. Thank you for designing this Dave. Glad to have been a part. -Fae
• Just got my Charcoal/Orange backpack. It is beautiful. Also, I weighed it: 620g/1.37lb. Fantastic. Great work, Dave! -Chris

The only problem? Not enough of them have been produced to get them out to everyone yet. Overall, about 1/4 of the Slim Packs have been delivered. We also have about 50 more completed and they’ll be going out this week. If you’ve been following along, you know that we’ve met a number of challenges including production speed, issues with fulfillment, and setbacks cutting wallets. 

Here’s an update on each item and what I’m doing to address them...

Production speed 

We implemented every measure we could to set ourselves up to increase production speed as the project went on- While the prototypes and first batches were completely hand cut, the use of dies for cutting the material, creating components, and doing larger batches never really improved output. In an odd way, the batching also made it very difficult for us to gauge progress. A spurt of bags would reach completion, but this was because they were leveraging portions that had already been completed beforehand… then the team had to turn back to producing components instead of continuing with assembly.

As we see bags coming being completed and the days ticking off on the calendar, the overall output plateaued. The consequences of this are: 

1) The actual cost of the bags is MUCH more than originally projected 

2) You’re seeing the delivery delays that have come up 

3) Output has become less predictable

#3 has been particularly problematic because it’s put me in a position not to easily be able to answer the question- “When will my bag be complete?” It’s a totally reasonable question and I truly hate not being in a position to not to be able to answer it.

So what we did was to closely track production for a week and see how many could be produced. When I went up to SF to pick them up, the rain was absolutely nuts, and I came back with 50 in my car.

So that’s our benchmark we’re working with… and my plan is to make the trip each week and bring 50 bags back.

Fulfillment 

Ok, so how are we going to ship those packs? As you’ll recall from my search for a fulfillment house, my initial plan to use a larger one in the LA area didn’t work out that well. Therefore, I’m going to try using the local fulfillment house to ship both backpacks and wallets. It’s the same company I’ve been using for over 5 years so they're definitely familiar with all the ins and outs of shipping wallets all over the world. We’re currently working through the details of how best to ship the backpacks using their systems.

This batch of bags will go out to international folks in the FIRST MOVER wallet only tier as colors as quantities allow. Please note, none of these latest batch are Charcoal so that’s going to be a limiting factor at the moment. We hope to catch up on Charcoal in the next couple of batches.

The immediate next steps are to sort out the details of moving fulfillment houses. There’s a physical element to this, like having all of the special order mailing envelopes and the balance of the sternum straps returned to me… but the greater challenge is actually digital. I need to make sure I’ve accounted for which items have already shipped, identify who out of those shipments are still waiting for wallets, and prepare new spreadsheets for shipping out the balance of the FIRST MOVER wallet only international folks. Basically, all the stuff I spent several weeks ramping up with the previous fulfillment house while the first batch of backpacks were being produced.

Wallets 

Speaking of wallets, what the heck is going on with those anyway? I’m glad you asked- the issues with the die that were mentioned earlier have been resolved and production is underway. Due to that setback, we’ve still got some ground to make up, but we’re seeing some pretty good progress.

Some of the wallets are complete and will be shipping as early as this week, but things are limited by the same production and fulfillment issues as described above. I'm currently preparing the logistics for shipping the wallets which means the wallet only tiers will go through the process of address lock down soon... don’t worry- you’ll get a notification before that happens.

I’m really sorry to those of you who haven’t received your rewards yet, but I do feel like some of the last kinks are starting to get worked out. If this next round of shipping goes smoothly and we start to see more consistent output, I’ll feel a lot better about things! That will at least mean we’re marching towards our goal and we can then again look for opportunities to streamline things.

Thanks for your patience and support! 
Dave Z

Seeking fulfillment in the New Year
about 9 years ago – Tue, Jan 03, 2017 at 08:50:48 PM

Greetings Backers!

I hope you had a fantastic holiday and New Year! While I was able to spend time with family, much of the time was spent adding one more thing to the Slim Pack as well as trying to handle a pretty major shipping issue that came up.

Slim Pack Shipping

As you may recall from this post, shipping a large quantity of items like this gets pretty complicated, especially if what you’re shipping is large and some of the items are going abroad. So I decided to hire a professional fulfillment house to help with the effort. This meant I had to send the inventory of completed Slim Packs to LA before they could be sent along to individual backers.

 

I made a big push the week before Christmas to pack up all the boxes and send them off, even opening up each package to inspect it and attach one more new component I had added (more on that later). Unfortunately, we then hit two issues: 

1) The shipping house didn’t process the inventory for the entire following week, despite being contractually obligated to process it within 24 hours. Granted, these are the holidays so it’s not an ideal time to be ramping up at a warehouse, but it was still pretty frustrating. 

2) I learned that the LA location is not actually able to ship the international orders from their location.

To address the first issue, I’m going to send all of the inventory that’s in LA to FIRST MOVER backpack only domestic backers. Therefore, I’m also going to ship SOME of the EARLY ADOPTER domestic backpack only rewards from there as well.

I’m going to lock down the addresses for the EARLY ADOPTER backpack only tier in 24 hours so please make any last-minute changes you need to. Again, the international ones from this tier won’t ship yet and there’s not enough inventory to cover the whole tier so Slim Packs will be sent out according to availability.

Wallet Production 

With all that’s happening with the Slim Pack, you may be wondering- what the heck is going on with the wallets?!? As you may recall from this update, there was an issue with the dies we use to cut the wallets. Cutting the Soft Shell material is very difficult so in addition to lots of little trade secrets about how exactly we do it, the blades obviously need to be sharp. So I sent the dies back to Texas for sharpening. I also had them make several small tweaks to the pattern.

When the dies came back, they just weren’t cutting. It took a lot of troubleshooting, but finally we identified the issue, sent the dies back to Texas to be fixed, and only just received the Original size one back. The MICRO one is also completed and in transit. We’ve confirmed that the Original one now cuts well so I expect the MICRO one to work once we receive it. On the plus side, you’ll be the first to be getting the ones made with the updated pattern so I’d love to hear your feedback.

Wallet production with the Originals resumed last week and MICRO production will resume this week. I’m meeting with the sewing house tomorrow and will have an idea of when they may be able to complete them given that the same crew is juggling sewing for the Slim Pack and wallets.

Strap Keeper 

Based on feedback from our #1 Beta tester (my wife), I added an additional component to the pack which I think you’ll really like. It’s a little clip which keeps the ends of the straps from flapping around but it’s completely adjustable and even removable.

 

The challenge was, several hundred Slim Packs were already complete, individually packaged, and boxed up ready to be sent to LA. So with her help, we opened each package and attached the clips, which took the better part of 3 days. I think you’ll appreciate this final touch. Here’s a behind the scenes post with details about why I added it and the details of the component.

 

Projects like this are full of ups and downs so I probably should have known that even though I sent the packages off to LA, I shouldn’t have been too excited until they were actually in the hands of backers. I’m especially sorry to the international folks who’ll have to wait a bit longer. It’ve got a few options for how to ship the next batch to you guys so hang tight and I’ll let you know the plan as soon as I’ve decided on the best course of action.

Thanks for your support and patience.

Dave

Surveys locking & shipping logistics
about 9 years ago – Sat, Dec 17, 2016 at 08:17:07 PM

Yesterday I picked up the first batch of completed Slim Packs! This definitely marks a milestone in this project and I’m super excited about the progress!

 

I’ll touch on the shipping process below as well as in this detailed behind the scenes post, but first a bit of housekeeping…

1) I’m going to lock the survey responses for everyone tomorrow morning. This is basically just for add-on items and color choices, not the addresses. So if you want to add anything to your pledge like sternum straps, a wallet, or another Slim Pack, this is your last chance to do so with Kickstarter discounts and without going to the back of the pre-order line.

I also want to let you know that I probably won’t bring all of the Kickstarter Slim Pack color options to the market. Black/Orange was the most popular so I may start with that one and then judge which others to add… potentially one at a time. Charcoal/Gold will likely NOT make it to general production so if you want one of those, this may be your last chance for both the wallet and Slim Pack of that color.

To modify your pledge just follow the link in the initial survey email you received and make the adjustment. If you can’t track it down, follow this link to have a new one sent you you, or reach out to me and I can send you your customized link again.

2) For those of you in the First Mover backpack only tier, I’m also locking your addresses tomorrow. If there are any changes you’d like to make, please go to your survey again and make the adjustments.

3) If you chose add-on items, your cards will also be charged once the surveys are locked… you’ll either receive a confirmation receipt or an email offering you the ability to update your payment information if it doesn’t go through.

Shipping logistics

I’ve spent the last month or so doing a deep dive to figure out every last detail of how best to ship these. During that process, I’ve decided to use a professional shipping house instead of attempting to ship them myself. Their services are not cheap and in some ways it’s as much work for me to set everything up correctly to have them send it as it would be to just send them myself, but in the end I’ve found a great partner that I feel can add a lot of value.

First, they’re able to process the packages and ship them out more quickly than I can. Second, they have a lot of experience shipping internationally and can automate the process to make sure all of the paperwork is in place and correctly done.

The world of commercial shipping is strangely fascinating the more I learn about it and I wrote up this behind the scenes post if you’re interested in learning more. It also touches on how I’m handling customs and duties in case you’re interested in that aspect of things.

It’s so exciting seeing these be completed and I’m looking forward to seeing how you like them! 

Dave Z

PS- Just a handful of you haven't filled out your surveys... I've just sent a reminder which includes your customized link. If you didn't get it, follow this link or contact me directly.

Final design, production update, and shipping estimates
about 9 years ago – Sun, Dec 04, 2016 at 11:25:40 PM

Hi Folks!

December is upon us so I wanted to give you some details about the final pack design, production progress, and shipping estimates...

Final Design 

We’re starting to see final bags be completed and it’s been fantastic to see how they look now that all of the special order parts are being incorporated. In addition to the changes and upgrades we made during the campaign, I added several additional improvements as we finalized things.

The most significant upgrade was to integrate pieces of Soft Shell into the top of the shoulder straps. This helps improve the water resistance by shedding water away from the zipper. Then a I attached the molded rubber handles to the opposite side to improve their function as well as provide a nice design detail.

The next upgrade was to add pull tabs at the bottom the main zippers. This makes them easier to zip up by providing a little something to grab on to.

Lastly, the sternum strap was upgraded to use seatbelt style webbing and a very cool special order center buckle. The innovative male piece has prongs that attach to the outside of the female piece and the center piece serves to self-align it as they go together. You’ll get the idea once you play with it, but the bottom line is that it’s much easier to clip than traditional buckles and looks way cooler!

Production progress

Our first strategy for producing the packs efficiently was to break them up into individual components. This allowed us to shuffle around some of the production schedule to accommodate for longer lead times on some of the special order pieces. While we were able to make progress without everything being on hand, there were points where some components couldn’t be made because we were waiting on material. And final assembly had to wait until everything had arrived, which was just a couple weeks ago.

 

Our second strategy was to utilize efficient production techniques ordinarily reserved for much larger production runs. For example, we produced cutting dies for every single one of the backpack’s patterns and special ordered pre-cut pieces for all the webbing. There is more up-front work and cost to do things this way, but eventually it improves quality, consistency, and speed.

 

The third strategy was to do increasingly larger batches to improve efficiency while maintaining quality. We essentially hand-made the first 50 packs, including cutting to make sure the design was 100% dialed in. Once we felt comfortable with the final design, we ordered the dies and pre-cut webbing. While we waited for those to arrive, we produced another 100 packs as well as pre-made more components to have more pieces ready for final assembly.

 

On one hand I’m very happy with the final design, components, and quality of the bag. But unfortunately we’re not seeing the in efficiency gains I had hoped for. We’ll have a better idea of overall timing once this next batch is completed, but at the current rates it’s not looking like all of the packs are going to be completed in December as was planned.

Finalizing the new design, adding improvements, delays in receiving special order material, and slower than anticipated production are all contributing factors which have eaten away at the buffer time I had built in. I list these reasons to be transparent about the process- not as excuses. I’m very sorry to those of you who won’t receive your pack in December.

We also had a setback with the wallet production. Cutting the Soft Shell material is very difficult and we discovered we were no longer able to cut them without having the dies sharpened. When I sent them back to the die maker, I also had them make slight improvements to the pattern. When we received them back, the dies were somehow warped and could not cut. I sent them back and waiting to hear whether they can be repaired or if they need to be replaced. Once we receive the dies, wallet production will resume.

Shipping estimates

As of now, we have about 200 packs completed awaiting final packaging and shipping. Ideally, everything would have been produced by now and we would ship it all in one batch. But in order to get things into your hands as quickly as possible, I’m changing the shipping strategy…

1) Wallets and backpacks will ship separately. Whether you’re in a combo pack or have chosen to add on a wallet in BackerKit, I’m not going to wait for complete orders to be ready before shipping. If you backed for a backpack and it’s ready, that will ship out to you. Likewise with the wallets. 

2) I’m going to ship in waves as batches are complete.

I’m aiming to ship the first batch of Slim Packs the week of December 19th and they’ll go to folks in the First Mover tier. It will consist of the 200 completed packs as well as however many are completed up until that point.

Taking a step back, the execution of the project is actually going very well considering how complex it is and the number of changes. In order for any packs to be completed, every component had to be on site and every small detail of how to produce the pack had to be nailed down. 

Though we’re a bit behind schedule, the product itself is coming to life and is that much better because of your feedback. Thank you for all of your input along the way to help make it happen. I appreciate your patience and will continue to do my best to speed up production and keep you up to date about the process along the way.

Dave

Product Development
over 9 years ago – Mon, Nov 21, 2016 at 11:09:36 PM

Greetings!

As the holidays approach, vacations begin, and out of office replies start to pile up in your inbox, I hope you can spend some of the holiday with family, or at least take a few days off to relax.

For anyone in retail or e-commerce, you know that the next few weeks are the busiest time of year. With production of the Slim Pack in full swing, that’s even more the case for SlimFold. We normally would be ramping up wallet production around this time to prepare for the holidays but this year we’re focusing on producing the Slim Pack instead in order to deliver it to you as soon as we can.

Lately, I’ve been spending a lot of my time on logistics… what I’ve come to learn is the job of a Product Developer in a larger company. In case you’re curious about how that part of the process is going, I put together this behind the scenes post.

 

Thanks to everyone who has responded to the survey. Over 93% of you have replied, which is fantastic. If you haven’t yet filled it out, you should have received a reminder to fill it out. If you don’t see that, you can retrieve your survey by following this link and entering your Kickstarter email address. 

If you have any issues, just email us at [email protected] and we can manually send you the survey link.

The survey isn’t locked down yet but I’ll send out a notification before I do so you’ll have a chance to update any information you want before your particular reward level is sent out.

In case you missed it, my last behind the scenes update was about how we’re breaking the production into components in order to make it more efficient. Now the first batch from that process is reaching the assembly stage. 

 

These were done without die cutting (as described in this update) so they went a lot more slowly. Now that all of the dies are on hand, I’m hoping we begin to see efficiency gains in the next batch.

Thanks for your support and have a great Thanksgiving! 

Dave