KAI VENTURE’S BAG designs draw inspiration from his own adventures. He wanted to bring his four-legged companion on bike rides, for example, so the Blue Dingo Bagwerks founder used his grandma’s sewing machine to stitch a backpack customized for the dog’s size. He invented the Snack Kaddy, which attaches to his handlebars and boasts three pockets for food and a water-bottle pouch, when an injury prevented him from comfortably reaching into his cycling jersey pockets.
“This makes riding even better,” says Venture, an avid cyclist who is rarely seen riding without his Australian cattle dogs. “I can go tour some random town and take a souvenir. It becomes a randonnée. Where is the road going to take us?”
Although Blue Dingo officially launched in April, the Silver City entrepreneur has grown his product line from those early one-off creations to include a range of biking, hiking, disc golf, and everyday bags. He upgraded his sixth-grade home economics skills by studying, then improving on, the work of other bag makers. Venture uses Velcro and military-grade webbing to create versatile options for a variety of tactical bags. “System integration is a big thing for me,” says the Army National Guard veteran.
Knowing each materials’ benefits, Venture strategically places them with a consideration for weight, strength, and abrasion resistance. He hides bias tape for a clean look, double lines pockets for durability, and uses what he calls bombproof stitching to produce products that are built to last—forever.
“Anything I make—look at the quality of it—is designed to put myself out of business,” he says.
Customize a Blue Dingo Bagwerks bag online, or choose a bestseller at Gila Hike and Bike, in Silver City.