One of our most interesting partners in design is a brilliant startup called CO.ALITION — a company whose founders have devoted their lives to finding the best ways for people to carry what’s important to them. That’s right, they make bags and backpacks — what’s so brilliant about that? How about a backpack with an integrated 2TB Seagate Wireless hard drive, a built-in rechargeable power supply, and an elegant system to channel your device cords through neat, accessible ports.
“As our lifestyles, needs and technology have changed over time, so have the means in which we carry,” says CO.ALITION co-founder Jeff Popp. “We integrate smart mobile technology into functional lifestyle bag designs that work with and empower the rest of your devices.”
It’s a city backpack, a school backpack, a commuter backpack, a phone charging backpack, an upload your photos backpack — but most of all, it’s a work backpack for everywhere you work and everything you need.
Get a personal CO.ALITION demo on “Shark Tank”
You can watch CO.ALITION’s Jeff Popp and Casey Lorenzen show off some of their killer tech on today’s episode of ABC’s popular show “Shark Tank” — see it on ABC Tonight at 9pm (8pm Central), or look for Season 7 Episode 15 and watch on demand on YouTube here.
CO.ALITION’s amazingly well-planned backpack features a Seagate Wireless hard drive — onboard storage that works wirelessly with phones and tablets so you can view and upload files, no matter where you are. Now you can make sure your smartphone and tablet will never run out of memory by keeping large digital files in your backpack — on the drive — and off your devices.
“Today, we need to carry more than just physical objects. Our tech backpacks are the first ever to address true digital carry and storage,” says Popp. “The fully integrated wireless hard drive works with phones and tablets to give you the ultimate mobile work station. When you have quick wireless access to all your files and media without an internet connection, it’s a personal cloud service that goes everywhere you do.”
The company’s designs are a real breakthrough — yet once you think about it, CO.ALITION’s clever approach fits perfectly the way we interact today with both the real and digital worlds. As Fast Company magazine said, “Having files and power integrated into the bag you carry your headphones and other personal items in only makes sense.”
Experienced in the outdoors, pioneers in smart wearable tech
Popp explains CO.ALITION is different than other lifestyle brands on the market, because of their extensive background in pack design, mostly from the technical, outdoor world — which means they know their stuff when it comes to bags. “However, what really differentiates the brand is the fact we’re pioneering the smart bag market in the wearable technology realm, says Popp. “We’re the first brand to deliver a smart bag to market and the only brand to have an integrated wireless hard drive in a bag.”
Besides having up to 2TB of digital storage integrated in your backpack, CO.ALITION’s many other features make powered living simple and elegant, including:
- INTEGRATED POWER CABLE — All included and seamlessly integrated into the pack for no-fuss charging of the pack and your devices.
- POWER — Computerized smart charging power system charges your devices as fast and safely as possible.
- PASS-THROUGH CHARGING — The only charging system that can charge BOTH the pack’s power supply AND your device at the same time from one single wall outlet cord.
- MAGNETIC BUCKLES — Tamper proof, yet they’re the easiest and most secure buckles you’ve ever used
- ROUTE CABLES TO ANY POCKET — Don’t limit yourself to where you can charge your devices. Route your cable through ports to any pocket in the bag.
- INTEGRATED RAINFLY — Keep all your gear dry when the weather turns for the worse with the included water-proof rainfly.
- BAG DESIGN — Simple, clean, versatile. Great for commuters, travelers, and for every environment from the office to the streets.
Why bring the product into the Shark Tank? “We thought it made sense for CO.ALITION because our smart backpacks are such a new concept and market that it would a great opportunity to partner up with a proven investor that could help us establish market leadership right out of the gate,” says Popp.
Shark Tank is a critically-acclaimed reality show that aims to promote entrepreneurship. And an award-winning one — in 2014 and 2015 it won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Structured Reality Program. In the show, entrepreneurs get the chance to bring their ideas to fruition by presenting their ideas to the “sharks” in the tank — five titans of industry who made their own dreams a reality and turned their ideas into lucrative empires. The contestants try to convince any one of the sharks to invest money in their idea.
