EP #11 - Daniel & Markus Freitag: The Bootstrapped Startup With No CEO

Timestamps

7:00 - Coming up with an initial marketing strategy

11:45 - Bootstrapping your business

16:06 - Measuring your ecological footprint

24:37 - What they look for in new employees

40:55 - How digitalization influences your business

About Markus and Daniel Freitag:

In 1993, graphic designers Markus and Daniel Freitag were looking for a functional, water-repellent and robust bag to hold their creative work. Inspired by the multicolored heavy traffic that rumbled through the Zurich transit intersection in front of their flat, they developed a messenger bag from used truck tarpaulins, discarded bicycle inner tubes and car seat belts. This is how the first FREITAG bags took shape in the living room of their shared apartment. Today their products are available in 16 F-STORES as well as at over 450 resellers around the world.

FREITAG lab.ag has been headquartered at the Nœrd industrial complex in Zurich-Oerlikon since 2011. In 2014, FREITAG launched a new product, F-ABRIC. These completely compostable textiles are based on bast fibers that are produced using a minimum of resources within a 2500-kilometer radius of headquarters.

FREITAG lab.ag still belongs to the two Freitag brothers, and, as Creative Directors, they still oversee each new model through to series production.

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