FAQ's

Company
- Facts & figures about FREITAG
- Can I sell FREITAG products in my shop?
- Do you sponsor events?
- Can I visit FREITAG?

Products
- Why is every bag unique?
- Why are you using recycled materials?
- Which is the best bag for school (ring binder)?
- My bag smells, is that normal?
- How do I clean my bag?
- Do the Mac® Sleeves only fit Mac’s?
- Does FREITAG have different seasonal collections?
- Where does FREITAG get all its old truck tarps from?
- Can I propose a product idea?

FREITAG Online Store
- What payment methods do you accept?
- Why haven’t I received a confirmation for my order?
- Do you sell gift vouchers, online?


Company
FREITAG Facts & Figures
Headquarters: FREITAG lab. ag / NŒRD, Zurich-Oerlikon, Switzerland
Year founded: 1993
Propietors: Markus and Daniel Freitag
Number of staff: over 150

Production: Around 400,000 products per year

Number of stores: Nine F-Stores owned by the company in Berlin, Cologne, Davos, Hamburg, New York, Tokyo, Vienna and two in Zurich, over 450 retail partners worldwide and one online store based in Zurich

Materials used (per year): 440 tons of truck tarpaulins (equivalent to a 68-mile-long line queue of transport trucks) 35,000 bicycle inner tubes and 288,000 car seatbelts

Products: FREITAG FUNDAMENTALS: around 40 models, FREITAG REFERENCE: around 10 models

Distinctions Awarded

2013 “SwissAward” 2012 in the Business category
2012 GfM marketing prize – Annual prize from the Foundation for Marketing in Corporate Management
2012 Gold EDI for the F60 JOAN Movie in the Corporate Film category
2012 From 4th of april to 29th of july 2012, the Museum of Design in Zurich dedicates FREITAG the exhibition «FREITAG – Out of the Bag»
2011 Des MERIT for continuous services in the field of design of Daniel and Markus Freitag
2011 6th Zurich entrepreneur award for innovative, sustainable and commercially successful work of Daniel and Markus Freitag
2011 Silver EDI for F48 Hazzard Backpack Movie in the category corporate movie
2010 Silver for FREITAG REFERENCE from the magazine Hochparterre in the category Design
2009 Distinction, Design Preis Schweiz for the rack model «V30 FREITAG SKID»
2009 Design Prize of the Federal Republic of Germany: Gold for the F-Shop in Zurich in the
Product Design category
2008 Gold for the F-Shop in Zurich at the 8th International contractworld.award
- 1. Award for Marketing and Architecture for the F-Shop in Zurich
- Best of Swiss Web: Gold seal in the Business Efficiency category, Silver seal in the Creation category, Bronze seal in the Technology Quality category
2007 D&AD Global Awards, Golden Pencil for Environmental Design / Retail & Services
2006 Gold for the F-Shop Hamburg at the 7th architecture award contractworld.award 2006
2006 Bronze for the photo series «FREITAG RENEGADE» by the Art Directors Club Switzerland in the category Photography / Illustration
2005 Dragnet was presented at the Who’s Next Fashion trade show in Paris as one of the milestones of «urban fashion»
2003 Master of Swiss Web for the F-CUT as best Swiss Website
2003 Gold for the F-CUT by the Art Directors Club Europe in the category of New & Mixed
Media / Interactive Media
2003 Gold for the F-CUT by the Art Directors Club Switzerland in the category of Electronic Publishing
2003 Top Cat model is accepted into the design collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA)
1999 Distinction awarded in the Trade Competition for Applied Arts, Switzerland
1997 1993 prototype is accepted in the collection of the Zurich Museum of Design
1997 Distinction, Design Prize Switzerland

Publications

2012 The second FREITAG book published by Lars Müller Verlag bears the title “FREITAG – Out of
the Bag”. The editor is the Museum of Design in Zurich
2010 During the launch of their new FREITAG REFERENCE the company issues a compilation of their experimental newspaper «THE DAILY REFERENCE»
2001 FREITAG book published by Lars Müller Verlag

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Can I sell FREITAG products in my shop?
Please contact FREITAG by providing already some basic information about your shop (location, type of shop, brands, pictures, etc.) by using the contact form. We will then get in touch with you.
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Do you sponsor events?
FREITAG only does product sponsoring, no exceptions. We are very selective in choosing the events.
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Can I visit FREITAG?
Unfortunately we don’t offer regular guided tours in our factory.
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Products
Why is every bag unique?
Our bags are not “artificially” unique; they are that way right from the beginning on. They are truly unique items, because they are made from used truck tarps. Every tarp has its own story, its own look and its own state of use. Furthermore each bag is still cut by hand in Zurich, Switzerland, and gets its individual look depending on the color, the writing and design of the tarp. That’s why every single product will be one of a kind.
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Why are you using recycled materials?
The basic idea was to make something useful from waste. Then, we started looking into truck tarpaulins because we didn’t know of any other material that was as tough. It was a mixture of intent and coincidence. The recycling idea is very important to us. But, we also want to offer functional, robust and stylish products — a bag that is fun to use in everyday life. The recycling gives it its unique character.
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Which is the best bag for school (ring binder)?
If you look for a school bag, we recommend our Dragnet (F12). The Dragnet fits 1-2 ring binders.
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My bag smells, is that normal?
Yes it’s true, FREITAG bags smell. Some more, some less. The odor will disappear after a few weeks. Our hint: Place your bag on the fresh air, this will help.
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How do I clean my bag?
Machine wash at low temperature, gentle cycle, do not bleach, do not tumble dry, do not iron.
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Do the Mac® Sleeves only fit Mac’s?
No. They are custom made for Mac’s, but other laptops can be used as well.
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Does FREITAG have different seasonal collections?
For the FREITAG FUNDAMENTALS products we do not have seasonal collections. But the colors vary according to the tarps we are able to buy. Our products are long life design classics.

For the FREITAG REFERENCE line we launch seasonal collections. Every six months we replace and complement some new designs and colors of the existing collection.
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Where does FREITAG get all its old truck tarps from?
As there is no market for old tarps, this is not so easy. We have specialized employees who look for tarps and organize their pick-up. We buy them from forwarding agencies and tarp manufacturers.We solely process used tarps (on an average, they are on a truck for about five years).
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Can I propose a product idea?
FREITAG constantly works on the development of new ideas and products, as a result our archives have become pretty substantial over the years. New products are exclusively created in our internal development-team with Markus and Daniel Freitag. But of course we are always happy to get new inputs. Please visit contact.
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FREITAG Online Store
What payment methods do you accept?
Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Postcard (CH only), Paypal, wire transfer
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Why haven’t I received a confirmation for my order?
There are two reasons either you have entered an invalid email address or your order has not been placed properly. You can get in touch with FREITAG by using the contact form. Please also check your spam folder.
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Do you sell gift vouchers, online?
With our new website, the vouchers are still on the waiting list. They will be available soon again.
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