In our Meet the Maker series, we're pulling back the curtain and revealing the secret sauce of the Flowfold brand ... our team! Take a seat and read on as we introduce members of our production team—the gifted folks whose hands, hearts, and minds form the foundation of all Flowfold products. 

When you walk into Flowfold headquarters you can’t miss Jonathan's custom duffle bag sitting squarely on the table. Every panel, down to the shoulder strap additions, is in neon orange x-pac. This colorway practically glows, paling any hunter orange you could imagine. This bag begs for adventure.  

Which is exactly the intent of this duffles design; to create the ultimate adventure bag for photography trips and explorations around Maine. Jonathan is an avid artist, photographer, and musician, and this custom project has also illuminated his tinkering side. Every week the bag reemerges with alterations, additions, straps, bungees, and survival pack attachments. Jonathan has been on quite a few adventures out west, and by the looks of this bag, he’s got packing for them, and MacGyvering, down to a science.

His trips have led him on long expeditions through the desert wilderness, out rockhounding for gemstones, on Sasquatch treks, and to guided explorations of haunted spaces. One of his most recent adventures was a big move across the country, from Tucson, Arizona, to Portland, Maine with his partner Brooke. He grew up in northeast Georgia, near one end of the Appalachian trail, in a town in a town he notes, “Would have been easy to get stuck in.” With a move out west and now to the northeast, he’s made it to the other end of that proverbial trail.  

For Jonathan, creativity is a throughway, “It’s a conduit, it’s a way to move emotion and energy.”

Jonathan likes to laugh and always finds the good in things. He lives by the mantra “A-OK” which became the symbol for his first album, and a tattoo on his forearm. He describes it as a moniker for positive thinking. It’s a suitable symbol for him. His mellow, happy, and curious vibe is contagious around the shop. His creative projects have ranged from designing a traditional kimono in denim, to crocheting an 8-pound bedspread, but he says his first creative love was music.

Music is where he learned to process grief, and to make sense of difficult things. “Songwriting was my escape, my medicine. Taking a bad situation and turning it into something good through art gave me an opportunity to organize my thoughts in a creative way, and to come up with an outcome. That happened, this is why it happened.” He goes on to say that for him creativity is a throughway, “It’s a conduit, it’s a way to move emotion and energy.”

LIGHTNING ROUND! 3 Questions with Jonathan

1. Jonathan, What is your favorite Flowfold product?  

I am a big fan of the duffle bags, the Conductor and the Nomad. I love that they are both water resistant and have waterproof zippers. I’m really into preparedness, so love the custom Nomad I built and the ability to have everything I need with me at all times! It’s my EDC Bag (Every Day Carry)

2. What is your favorite product to make?  

I enjoy making fanny packs the most because although they are small they are quite technical to construct. There are certain steps that if not completed accurately, it throws off the assembly of the whole bag! I enjoy problem solving and the challenge of making it fit perfectly!

3. What do you love most about Flowfold product design? 

100%, our durability. The thing I enjoy most about the design is that it’s durable, and water resistant. If you set it down on dewy wet grass, your things will stay nice and dry. I really like the reverse zippers. Because they are reverse (teeth on the inside) they keep dirt out better and protect the teeth from abrasion and wear.