Fjallraven made Kanken a global gateway to its outdoor brand

Kanken began as a 1978 Swedish school backpack and kept almost the same form for decades. Fortune reported that Fjallraven sold 400 in its first year, 30,000 the next, and later made the bag the best-selling product in Fenix Outdoor's catalog.

The revival came from selective global exposure, not a full reinvention. The bag reached US trend stores in 2007, spread through campuses, travel and social media, and gave a practical outdoor brand a recognizable urban object.

Modern Retail reported that Kanken sales grew tenfold between 2010 and 2017, but executives did not want a one-hit product. Fjallraven used North American stores to pull shoppers past Kanken into outerwear, trousers and the wider heritage outdoor range.

Fenix net sales reached EUR563M in 2020; Fjallraven now makes about $700M annually and the US is its largest market.

The company kept the product's boxy identity intact, so new buyers felt they were discovering an original.

Selective retail made Kanken visible in culture before the brand tried to explain its technical outdoor range.

Owned stores reduced dependence on one viral backpack by teaching customers the rest of the assortment.

Do not over-redesign an icon; use it as the entry product, then build channels that expose customers to the whole brand.

Fjallraven became a global heritage outdoor brand rather than only a Scandinavian backpack maker. By 2026, Modern Retail reported roughly $700 million in annual revenue, more than 30 North American stores and the US as the brand's largest market by revenue.