Meet Jedd Rose | Co-Founder & President

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jedd Rose and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jedd, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
I started from the place of wanting to do something that was very tied to my personal interests, my background and the things that I was already constantly researching and engaged with. For me that was outdoor gear, fashion and design/branding. Growing up in Wyoming I spent a ton of time outdoors fishing, camping, hiking so outdoor gear was a big part of that lifestyle and I loved all the things we used while we were outdoors. Even when we weren’t outdoors, the backpacks, clothing and gear that were hanging in the closet always reminded me of the experiences we had and for me tended to be things that not only accompanied us on our outings but were really an encapsulation of the feelings I had when I was outdoors. In addition to outdoor gear I also had this side of me that was really obsessed with design, brands and fashion so even as a kid I was constantly researching brands, trying to keep up with fashion trends and just generally interested in the next new thing.

I had spent most of my career prior to Topo working almost exclusively in the digital world, building brands, content and creative I was still very interested in outdoor gear and fashion but didn’t have the background or experience in the product world to actually get a job doing what I wanted to do and honestly never even considered that as a career path. But,after over a decade of working just on the digital side I really wanted to try my hand at building something physical. Initially I was mostly just interested in learning how to build a product myself, so I bought a sewing machine and some fabric and decided to build a backpack. I quickly realized how difficult patterning, cutting and sewing were but decided to power on and ended up making a bunch of prototypes. Some were horrible, some were passable but the experience was definitely a great one personally for me to build something myself. However, I did realize pretty quickly I probably needed to lean more into my strengths on the design and branding side rather than spend another decade working on my sewing skills. At this point, I had spent so much time on the prototyping and brainstorming around a brand for the bags that I actually had a fairly solid idea and concept for a business. So I switched mindset to start thinking more about building the business and a brand and less about the personal quest to sew my own backpacks. I saw this as a possible way to merge many of the skills that I had learned in the design and branding world and my personal interests and decided to take the plunge and do it for real.

What should our readers know about your business?
Topo Designs, since day one, was really built on the idea of blurring the line between the outdoors and life. We saw an opportunity in the market to have an approach as an outdoor company that was less about highly technical activity specific product and more of a utilitarian approach. We didn’t want to put on an outdoor kit and then have to take that off just as soon as we arrived back in town and vice versa we didn’t want to feel like we were dressing like someone else when we were outdoors and wanted to retain that sense of personal style and identity we had in our daily lives. Seeing this opportunity early on was a big part of how we were able to set ourselves apart from the rest of the industry. It also made for some tough conversations in those early days. The fact that we were positioning ourselves far more on the lifestyle and fashion end of the spectrum but still wanting identify as an outdoor brand was a difficult concept to try and convey to someone unless they already understood this new idea. Luckily the industry has evolved to a place where this is much more of an engrained concept and “outdoor” products are really a staple in most people’s lives. Puffy jackets, technical daypacks and fleece pullovers aren’t something that just exist in the backcountry, they are everywhere now and that has really helped us grow the concept of Topo to a much larger audience. It definitely wasn’t easy to stay the course here, even though we were able to see the opportunity in the future. It took years and years of trying to convince customers and buyers that we had a good idea and there were legs behind the concept. So it wasn’t a quick path to where we are today but overall it is great that we have been able to stay very true to the initial mission and concept around the brand and scale it to where we have today.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
First things first I’d have to take them to the Topo stores of course! While in RiNo would definitely want to hit Cart-Driver & Ponpon for some food and drink. Because I’m a jazz guy, I’d take them to the Cruise Room to start the vibes and then go to see a band at Dazzle. To get outside I would do a Red Rocks morning and definitely spend a day at Rocky Mountain National Park.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I definitely want to thank my parents for always supporting me. They got me outside and were always encouraging me to stay the course with all the creative things I’ve wanted to do in life. I also want to thank my wife Wendy for not only telling me I could do it in the early days but weathering the storm over the past 15 years of being an entrepreneur.

Website: topodesigns.com

Instagram: @topodesigns

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeddrose/