Hi! Thanks for visiting the website! My name is Bas and I am the face and workforce behind Detour Studio. In essence: Detour Studio is Bas, Bas is Detour Studio.
My bag business came to life when I was cycle touring in South-East Asia. After a big beautiful loop around Malaysia I crossed borders into Thailand. I found myself more and more on empty (dirt) roads seeking a different kind of adventure, but my classic 4 pannier bag set-up was not made to play that game. With all the time in the world I found myself researching a different type of set-up.
When I randomly met Chris and Amanda, an American couple, in a small village in Laos something clicked. Chris had made himself a frame bag using a tutorial on Bikepacking.com. When I got back home months later I bought myself a sturdy domestic sewing machine and got to work.
I just wanted to make a bag for myself to use for commuting to and from work. I love rolltop bags and porteur racks, so I pretty much knew what I wanted to make. After a quite a few sessions of seam ripping and headaches l completed the bag. The bag still gets used all the time on commutes and errand runs. Chances are that if you order something in the webshop your parcel will be transferred in this very bag from the studio to the post office.
When I was getting hooked on sewing I bought my first industrial sewing machine. These machines are built to punch through layers and layers of thick fabric with ease. My work started to progress and my cycling buddies were taking notice. That’s when things started to gain traction. I’m happy, thankful and super humbled to say it hasn’t stopped gaining traction yet.
In hindsight some things make sense, but not when it’s slowly unfolding day by day. With a background in Graphic design and Fine Arts combined with years of work in a bike shop Detour Studio was waiting to happen. I’m so happy it happened.
It probably needs no explaining that I absolutely love bikes, bike gear and riding bikes. I love long and short adventures on a bike. Offroad, for me, is the best way to experience adventure, in the middle of quiet and beautiful nature while having fun times with friends and disconnecting with the rigours of everyday life are the best.
Adventure is easy. Just get lost. Embrace the unknown. Just go on a big Detour! You’ll be surprised about the weird and wonderful places you’ll find in areas you thought you knew inside-out. Not familiar with the concept of getting lost? Scan the horizon and look for something that interests you. Start riding towards that point, but if you find something more interesting along the way go in that direction. You’re basically riding around with the curiosity of a small child. Enjoy!