JanSport recently introduced the
Liminal Collection, unzipping new pockets of opportunity in the backpack world. The 56-year-old company says the new bags are based on the changing needs of college-aged consumers, often eager to take
the on-campus backpack to festivals or on gap-year adventures.
“Liminal has a slightly elevated, more mature aesthetic,” says Alex Reveles, JanSport’s vice president of
global brand management. “We see some usage opportunities with students looking to travel for gap years, and so we’ve done a lot of research on that opportunity.”
Besides
having more room and better backpack protection, the bags have travel features like a pass-through trolley handle.
The point is that JansSport is eager to stay up-to-date with the movements of
its Gen Z core, Reveles tells Marketing Daily.
It competes with companies like LL Bean, Nike, Adidas, Herschel, Fjallraven and the North Face, and its young consumers are
inundated with social-media advertising.
That means that in addition to communicating the right product features, JanSport has to reach people through the brand lens, sharing values like
inclusivity, mental health, sustainability, self-expression and trust. Recent efforts, she says, include mental-health initiatives around March Madness.
The company also wants to stay close to
pop culture. “If you’ve watched a Netflix show or movie recently that happens on a campus, nine out of 10 times you're going to see a JanSport backpack there,” she says.
It
also works closely with influencers like Emma Rogue and skateboarder Eunice Chang.
Sustainability messages are also increasingly important. Some collections are made from factory scraps,
others from textile waste.
Reveles expects that environmental interest to continue to build, especially as Generation Alpha, with the oldest turning 13, enters the brand’s orbit.
JanSport currently repairs bags through a limited lifetime warranty, and while it doesn’t yet sell used backpacks, that’s a move under consideration.
“For us, Gen Z is still
the pulse of youth culture and culture in general,” she says. “Our bags are beloved by all ages, from elementary school to beyond. We want to be the bag for everyone. But Gen Z is that
generation of changemakers, and we're hoping to stay with them as they enter the real world and for the rest of their lives.”
VF Corp., which owns JanSport, Kiplinger and Eastpak, has
recently begun exploring a sale of the backpack division.