Table of Contents
About Pakt
Let’s admit it, most of us love to travel but aren’t so keen on the hassles with luggage: lugging them around, baggage check, going through security and spilling travel mugs/water bottles. That’s why Pakt designs its products to make the most enjoyable travel experience possible, and with its minimalist approach, the brand really speaks to the eco-conscious crowd.
Mainstream media like Forbes, Business Insider, and GQ have covered Pakt products. Pakt has more than 34K followers on Instagram and a 5-star rating on their Facebook retail page, which was definitely enough to get our attention.
Using customer feedback, promotions on offer, and media coverage, this Pakt review looks at whether or not this brand is worth your money.
Overview of Pakt
In 2016, the Minimalism TV documentary featured Malcolm Fontier’s out-of-production Getaway Bag, the travel bag of choice for the show’s hosts, Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemu. The bag wowed audiences, with many requesting the bag’s triumphant return.
Malcolm answered the call, but not before redesigning the bag entirely using input from the show’s hosts and running a successful crowdfunding campaign to source the money needed to create the bag.
Now known as The One, the newly redesigned travel bag is the flagship product in the Pakt line, which set sail in 2018, but Malcolm wasn’t done yet. He also ended up designing a travel mug, a backpack, and even a portable coffee kit. All materials used are durable, modern, BPA-free, and 100% animal-friendly.
Continuing with his minimalist vision, Pakt tries to make the least impact with its carbon footprint. It uses 100% plastic-free shipping materials and, as previously mentioned, 100% animal-friendly materials. Their transparency report is also free to read on their company website.
Pakt produces all of its items in Asia, where they also source most of their materials. Many of their suppliers and manufacturers are in Vietnam, where they’ve proven to provide safe, fair, and humane workplaces and halves the price of what they would be if made in America.
The company also ships to the US via boat rather than air to be more environmentally friendly. Before this Pakt review deep-dives into Pakt’s products, let’s look at some of the basic features of the brand.
Highlights
- High-quality, durable, sustainable bags and accessories deigned for travel
- Lifetime warranty on bags for any defect or excessive damage during everyday use
- Plastic-free shipping
- 100% animal-friendly materials
- Thoughtful and technically advanced designs
- Contributes to your worry-free travel
- Ideal for business and pleasure travel
- Products are not inexpensive
- Items not made in America
Pakt Review
Along with the Pakt Backpack and its accessories (see review below), Pakt has three advanced and helpful travel must-haves covered in this Pakt review.
While the travel mug is a newer item, the coffee kit is one of the brand’s bestsellers, and, of course, The Pakt One is the brand’s premier product and bestseller.
Pakt The Pakt One Review
The Pakt One is the next generation of the original minimalist travel bag from Malcolm Fontier. This bag launched the Pakt brand and continues to be its bestseller. With a 35L capacity, this bag neatly stashes a week’s worth of travel clothes and gear while being small enough to skip the baggage check.
For an easier time dealing with security, The One added a TSA pocket. It’s a mesh pocket that you can easily pull out. Just drop your keys and other personal items into it instead of those plastic trays, and away you go while everyone else is still fumbling through their pockets.
The middle zipper allows you to quickly access the padded pocket holding your laptop when you get to your gate. Once in the plane, The Pakt One stows easily in the overhead compartment.
It comes in grey/pewter, black/black and navy/bronze with a day/laundry bag included, all for $275.
Pakt Travel Mug Review
Although a new product for Pakt, the Pakt Travel Mug is already winning over customers. Imagine being able to throw a full mug of coffee into your bag and not worry about spillage, no matter how much it flips around. You can even sip from any direction without spilling as you try to maneuver the sippy hole because there is none!
To create the best travel mug possible, Pakt collaborated with Impel Studio for their expertise in product development and innovation. The Pakt Travel Mug is made from scratch-resistant stainless steel with silicone rubber to keep hot liquids warm for 8 hours and cold beverages frosty for up to 24 hours. Able to fit into most cup holders, this travel mug is ideal for road and rail travel.
The Pakt Travel Mug comes in a choice of five colors: oat, black, green, orange, or stainless steel (no color coating) and currently goes for $35.
Pakt The Pakt Coffee Kit Review
The Pakt Coffee Kit is everything you need to make a professional tasting cup of coffee anywhere there is water and electricity available. One of the worst things about traveling is not finding a great-tasting coffee in your hotel during off-service hours. Many offer coffee makers and drink dispensers, which is great…if you like the taste of dirt.
That’s why this Pakt review loves this pour-over coffee maker, so you don’t have to settle for less. Everything comes in a compact, airline carry-on friendly case with the components below:
- Dual-voltage electric kettle
- Reusable steel mesh filter, mug, and lid
- Container for the coffee grounds
- Scoop for the grounds
All you need to bring are your favorite ground beans.
The Pakt Coffee Kit gives you your quality caffeine fix on the go for $189.
Pakt Backpack Review
While The Pakt One is a combination of duffle and suitcase, the Pakt Backpack is a mix of suitcase and backpack. Keeping in mind that backpackers tend to be pretty nomadic while traveling, this backpack is made with even more durable materials than The One and is water-resistant.
This Pakt review will take an in-depth look at this popular travel backpack and two of its accessories, the protective rain cover, and the ultra-handy packing cubes.
Pakt Travel Backpack Review
Made for comfort, even when it’s on your back all day, the Pakt Travel Backpack is a group effort from Pakt, designer Chase Reeves, and the input from hundreds of travelers from the Pakt community, to make a product that truly fits the needs of the consumer.
The backpack is water-resistant, sturdy, and features plenty of cool pockets, like a TSA pocket, a waterproof pocket, and a hidden pocket for safely stashing essential items close to your back.
One of this Pakt review’s favorite functions of this backpack is that the load-distributing waist strap removes to become a separate sling bag.
The exterior of the Pakt Travel Backpack is made from repurposed single-use plastic, making the backpack durable and environmentally friendly. It opens into two compartments like a suitcase but has top zippers for quick access without opening the whole backpack. Its 30L capacity is compact enough to stow under the airplane seat in front of you.
The Pakt Travel Backpack comes in black or green and retails for $295.
Pakt Travel Backpack Rain Cover Review
The nature of backpacking means that you will, at some point, come into bad weather and not be able to find cover. Although the Pakt Travel Backpack is water-resistant, the Pakt Rain Cover makes doubly sure that your bag and its contents stay dry.
Made from 80D with a complete, zip-around design, this cover snugly fits over your Pakt Backpack. It also adds an extra layer of security from pickpockets and dirt protection, which means you’re covered, no matter what harsh elements you’re exposed to on your journey.
It comes in red or black and costs $35.
Pakt Travel Backpack Packing Cube Set Review
Even though the Pakt Backpack divides into two neat compartments, the Pakt Travel Backpack Packing Cube Set maximizes that space to keep your backpack really well organized.
The translucent mesh lets you see what’s in each cube, so no more rummaging through your luggage to find that one thing you’re looking for. It comes in a set of five with three different sizes: the large cubes are 6.5L, the small cubes are 3L, and the stuff stack is 2.75L.
Keep your stuff nice and sorted in three different nylon colors, black, grey, or red, for $59
Who Is Pakt For?
This Pakt review discovered that each Pakt product, from their bags to their coffee kit, is made for travelers to make their trips as easy and enjoyable as possible. The brand teamed with designers, travel pros, and polled travelers to take travel gear to the next level.
On top of being ideal for any trip that isn’t luggage burdened, the Pakt products are environmentally conscious, which most people strive for these days.
Is Pakt Sustainable?
One of Pakt’s goals is to be as environmentally sustainable as possible. This is across the board for Pakt, from its materials to its shipping practices.
To start, all Pakt products are made from 100% animal-friendly materials. The Pakt Travel Backpack’s exterior material is made from recycled single-use plastic, one of the Earth’s worst producers of non-biodegradable waste.
When shipping its products from Asia to the US, Pakt ships by water. This is because boats produce fewer carbon emissions. Your shipment also uses plastic-free packing materials. Pakt always strives to make as small an impact on the carbon footprint.
Pakt Reviews: What Do Customers Think?
Before this Pakt review looks at what people have been saying, let’s take a look at the ratings for the Pakt products reviewed in this article:
- Pakt Travel Mug: 4.8/5 stars, from 12 reviews
- The Pakt One: 4.8/5 stars, from 254 reviews
- Pakt Coffee Kit: 4.5/5 stars, from 85 reviews
- Pakt Travel Backpack: 4.6/5 stars, from 109 reviews
- Pakt Travel Backpack Rain Cover: 3.8/5 stars, from 8 reviews
- Pakt Backpack Packing Cube Set: 4.5/5 stars, from 2 reviews
The ten reviews on Facebook all ranked Pakt products at 5 stars. All this adds up to a bunch of happy customers, but what really tells the brand’s story is what the Pakt reviews say.
One reviewer on Facebook is an older lady enjoying the ease of using The One travel bag: “My third trip using Pakt. This time to South Africa for two weeks. I highly recommend Pakt as my only travel bag: travelling light with a carry on only bag (that’s 7kgs or 15.5 pounds) is the best way to go.”
She also added, “Pakt support light travel as it weighs only 1.5 kgs. I love the configuration (the clam-shell style opening) and the carefully thought through zipped pockets. I especially like the additional little black bag, which doubles up as a day-bag or as a clothes bag.”
One customer putting the Pakt Coffee Kit to the test was also completely satisfied:
“Tested, tried, true. Finally got an opportunity to travel the past few weeks and put this purchase to use… After 3 hotels in 2 weeks all of which had varying types of coffee/espresso makers in room I can tell you i ended up using it everywhere… Designed brilliantly and functioned perfectly. KHighly recommend”
This customer is using the Pakt Travel Mug as a water bottle that can be thrown into a bag without the worry of leakage: “No Spills! I am a fan of reusable water bottles, but ever since one that was supposedly leak proof spilled in the inside of my bag and wrecked my new laptop, I’ve been very hyper vigilant about making sure my water bottles don’t spill again.”
She went on to say, “Sadly, most still leak a little, some leak a lot. Not this new one from Pakt though! Its seal is so tight! No leaks so far! My stuff is safe and my body is hydrated! I love how it looks too! I got the one in all stainless steel. It looks great with my Pakt backpack!”
Is Pakt Worth It?
So, the big question and summing up of this article: is Pakt worth it? If you are on a budget or need a lot of luggage space, like a large family traveling together, then probably not, but for everyone else? Yes, yes, yes!
There are so many pluses to this brand’s products. This Pakt review had difficulty finding any downside to them.
The ease of use and carry-on features of the Pakt bags make traveling a more enjoyable experience. On top of all that, the environmental consciousness of the products and the brand makes you feel even better about supporting them.
Pakt Promotions & Discounts
Currently, Pakt isn’t offering any sales or promo codes, though we recommend signing up for notifications for a discount on your next order. Bonus tip: if you’ve got the Honey extension on Chrome, you may be eligible for a bit of cashback!
Where to Buy Pakt
Pakt can only be found on the brand’s website.
FAQ
Who owns Pakt?
Pakt founder, designer Malcolm Fontier, continues to own the brand. Since it is his passion and aligns with his environmentally and socially conscious ideals, he’s unlikely to sell any time soon.
Where is Pakt made?
Since most of the materials used to make Pakt products come from Asia and cost half the price to make there, they also manufacture in Asia. They are then shipped to Pakt, in the US, by water.
Does Pakt ship internationally?
Pakt ships internationally. If it doesn’t already ship to your country, it will do its best to accommodate.
What is Pakt’s Shipping Policy?
Once an order is confirmed, it gets processed and shipped by Pakt within one to two business days. For orders in the US, there are three shipping options.
- Economy: 5-10 business days, $5 for orders $70 and under, $10 for $71 and over
- UPS Ground: 3-7 business days, $7 for orders $70 and under, $12 for $71 and over
- Expedited: 2nd business day shipping, speak to customer support for prices
What is Pakt’s Return Policy?
You can return any unused product to Pakt within 30 days of receipt. Shipping with a label from Pakt takes $15 off your refund, or you can ship with your preferred carrier.
It can take up to ten business days to process the return. Right now, Pakt does not do exchanges, but with their lifetime guarantee, we don’t anticipate that to be much of an issue.
How to Contact Pakt
If you’ve got any extra questions this Pakt review didn’t cover, we recommend you check in with their highly responsive customer support using one of the following methods:
- Phone: 1-888-241-0250
- Email: [email protected]
You can find the online support form by clicking a button in the bottom right corner of the Pakt site.
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