Mile High Mountaineering innovating backpacks, looking to urban market

Eric Peterson | Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Based in southeast Denver, Mile High Mountaineering (MHM) has been bringing innovative designs to the staid backpack market since its founding in 2009.

"You don't see backpack startups too often," says Founder Jeff Popp. Most of today's leading brands "were startups 30 years ago," he adds. "I saw an opportunity to up the game of the market."

Taking cues from the snowboarding world, MHM has done just that with its market-first "snake-loading" Salute 34 backpack. The S-shaped route the zipper takes down the pack allows much better access, says Popp. "Literally, you have an access point at any point on the backpack," he explains. "You don't have to dig things out from the top."

MHM's catalog is now eight models deep, including 80-liter backpacking packs, smaller packs for day hikes and winter models as well as the bestselling 34-liter Salute. The packs are manufactured in Vietnam.

Now with two full-time employees as well as several contractors and interns, MHM is setting its sights on the "urbaneering" market with a sister brand, Coalition, says Popp. As an example of what to expect, he points to MHM's Colfax pack, featuring an iPad sleeve and convertible straps that allow it to be carried like a backpack or a messenger bag.

Contact Confluence Denver Innovation & Jobs News Editor Eric Peterson with tips and leads for future stories at eric@confluence-denver.com.
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Eric is a Denver-based tech writer and guidebook wiz. Contact him here.

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