The two GOT BAG founders had been closely connected to the ocean since childhood and actively wanted to do something about the increasing amounts of plastic they saw entering the oceans. Symbolically, a backpack fits well with this theme, as it stands for the fact that we all have to shoulder the great task of preserving the water quality for the future of flora and fauna.

The idea originated by chance, but it made sense because backpacks are a particularly durable, robust and easy-to-clean product. In the meantime, the employees as well as the customers of GOT BAG have become convinced not only of the original idea, but also of the functional backpacks with their minimalistic, timeless design. The ROLLTOP is established as an ideal all-rounder.

We want to contribute to making the oceans free of plastic waste. That's why, in our clean-up programs, we collect plastic in all shapes and forms instead of just the parts that are easy to recycle – such as PET bottles. We have set up our own clean-up program in Indonesia, where local fishers, collectors and organizations collect plastic actively from the ocean and environment. This means mangrove areas and delta regions with their rivers and nearshore waters. As we collect plastic on land and the fisher villages, we prevent it from entering the ocean in the first place, and we are able to access larger areas with our collection points, starting from the coast. 

By giving locals a direct opportunity to recycle and by creating basic waste management structures, we are taking preventive action to ensure that improperly disposed plastic waste does not pose a threat to the ocean over the long run. Thus, we create tangible impact: beaches get much cleaner, waste becomes a recyclable material, and the environmental awareness of all people involved changes for the better. This is one of the reasons why we are in close touch with local authorities, who support our work and cooperate with us in finding long-term solutions for waste reduction and disposal. 

Most importantly, our work shows ways how organizations can produce high-quality products using recycled materials and make a contribution to improving our environmental situation by doing so. It is a start that we hope will contribute to political and social change and inspire many others to join in. In order to achieve this new way of thinking, we need many actors such as politicians, laws, NGOs and lots and lots of people who are aware of the challenge and are willing to take the necessary steps.

We believe that sustainable development and an innovative, strong economy are mutually dependent. We are using our reach as a platform to gather supporters for our mission. While we can't eliminate the massive amounts of plastic waste already littering the ocean beds, and each cleanup project might appear tiny compared to the millions of tons of new waste entering the ocean each year, for us every plastic cup and bottle collected represents a chance to preserve maritime habitats and wildlife. 

Research on the topic of ocean plastic is only in its infancy – and in parallel, our work and the technical progress of production are steadily advancing. The structure of our clean-up program is also based on scientific findings, such as those of oceanologist Erik Van Sebille, who documents movements of ocean plastic over a longer period of time. Among other things, he shows that it moves near the coast, circulates from beach to beach and from mangrove to mangrove, and equally threatens the ocean at these different stages: http://erik.vansebille.com.

We consider it difficult to make general assumptions about the profitability of recycled plastic, as both the scientific community and organizations working in this field are still in the early stages of developing their findings and their work. Also in our case, much depends on local conditions and fluctuating influencing factors such as weather, time of year, and the social situation. Based on experience, we would agree insofar as it is likely to be challenging for large-scale productions requiring consistent quality to supply the value chain purely with ocean plastic.

In processing the Ocean Impact Plastic, we therefore calculate that the quality of the yarn will fluctuate resulting in a greater failure rate. We deliberately avoid using additives such as new plastics or chemical additives to alter the mechanical qualities of the recycled plastic. Instead, the plastic is cleaned particularly thoroughly, pre-sorted and process parameters are continuously optimized so that the quality of the yarn remains as constant as possible. Nevertheless, it can obviously not be completely prevented that the textile for our products differs slightly and that material structure shows small defects.

Our GOT BAG main location is in Mainz, in the southwest of Germany. In mid-2020 we founded another location to open up the North American market. Our office there is in Portland, Oregon with two branch offices in Denver, Colorado and Toronto, Ontario.

Even if we do not (yet) have our own stores, the products can be viewed and purchased from one of the official trading partners. For exact locations, go to the store locator here

A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) enables the capture of the environmental impacts of a product, such as all greenhouse gases emitted from the extraction of raw materials to disposal. It serves not only as transparent information for consumers but also forms the basis for strategic measures to minimize a company's environmental impacts. We wanted to determine the impacts of the new ROLLTOP 2.0 in black and how they would compare if we produced it without any recycled content, using only new plastics. To this end, we collaborated with ConClimate GmbH to work on such an assessment  in style of ISO 14044. Due to the material savings, the overall assessment for our ROLLTOP 2.0 is significantly lower by approximately 22% compared to the hypothetical backpack without recycled content. More information on the results can be found here on our blog.

You can find all our recent collaborations here. There we also further explain why we have chosen to collaborate with each one of them and how the collaboration looks like.

More than three million tons of plastic waste are produced in Indonesia every year1. About a third of it ends up in the ocean at some point. With up to 1.29 million tons of new ocean plastic entering the oceans every year, it is the second most plastic-emitting country in the world after China2. Tackling plastic waste issues right here is key to creating clearly noticeable, positive change. 

Additionally, in Indonesia we quickly found partners who are able to process the plastic into pellets during a technologically demanding process. We were also able to identify organizations there that use all the plastics that we cannot yet use to produce our products to make other new items or to generate thermal energy. 

1. B Corp™ Certification

As a B Corp™, we're part of a global community of businesses that meet high standards of social and environmental impact. The B Corp movement strives to change our economic system to positively impact all stakeholders – workers, communities, customers, and our planet. You can view our score here.

1. PETA-Approved Vegan

Our products are certified as PETA-Approved Vegan. We are committed to not using any animals or animal products as components in the production and processes of our products.

Our first self-built clean-up program is located on the Indonesian island of Java in Demak, Jepara and Bantul. The base of the clean-up program is located at the mouth of several rivers carrying large amounts of plastic waste from the inland into the ocean, adding up to the plastic carried into the ocean through winds and rainfalls. The plastic waste recovered there tends to be less contaminated and decomposed.

Ocean Impact Plastic, by our definition, is plastic waste that has been improperly disposed due to a lack of waste management systems and is therefore either already drifting in the ocean or is to be found in coastal nature and therefore at risk of entering the oceans. Our team collects this plastic before it continues to threaten the environment, especially the oceans, and can destroy important habitats. Since all plastics are collected manually and among others are subject to tides and currents in the region of the clean-up program, the Ocean Impact Plastic composition varies significantly. 

Ocean Impact Plastic is composed of actively collected plastic from the ocean, including mangrove regions and from coastal areas. The latter is mainly collected in the delta region of local rivers, coastal waters and villages. As the local people usually do not have access to a functioning waste management system, they can also hand in their plastic waste directly after use at our collection points.

With our clean-up program in Demak, our start-up was the first backpack manufacturer in the world to begin actively collecting and processing plastic from the ocean in 2018. Based on our clean-up experiences on the ground and current calculations, we see at least as much leverage against plastic in the sea in preventing improperly disposed plastic waste in the first place. 

By giving local people a direct opportunity to recycle and by creating basic waste management structures, we take preventive action against improperly disposed plastic waste threatening the ocean in the long term. This way, we create tangible added value: the beaches become cleaner, the waste becomes a recyclable resource, and the environmental awareness of everyone involved changes for the better. Not least for this reason, we are in close exchange with the local authorities, who support our work and cooperate with us in finding long-term solutions for waste reduction and disposal. 

As we continue to expand our production and thus our clean-up program, we are now able to collect even more plastic than just what we can use for our own products - although collection is a very time-consuming and costly process. 

We have been documenting the progress of our clean-up program in Indonesia together with the Berlin-based start-up “Cleanhub" in order to transparently disclose the amount of plastic collected as well as its composition and to be able to report its exact origin in a timely manner. 

So far, we have been able to collect and recycle over 1000 tonnes of Ocean Impact Plastic.

PET (e.g. plastic bottles): 10-15% -can be used for the textile of our products

PP (e.g. packaging film) : just under 5%

HDPE (e.g. plastic bags): significantly less than 5% - but difficult to identify

LDPE/LLDPE (e.g. plastic bags): 15-20%

Mixed: about 55% (foil and plastic bag residues, various polyethylene variants, polycarbonates, polystyrene, polypropylene and containers without marking, as well as only about 20% composite materials – for example sachets for shampoo or ketchup – which are particularly difficult to recycle due to the aluminum coating)

Buckets and pipes: about 5% (probably PVC, but also without marking)

The core of our philosophy is to address the ocean plastic problem holistically: All types of Ocean Impact Plastic gathered at our collection points are fed to individual recycling solutions. From the very beginning, we were looking for innovative ways to reuse not only the valuable PET, but also all other materials. In Indonesia, we found partners who are able to identify customers for all types of plastic recovered beyond PET, which they use to produce further new items or to generate heat. 

Materials made of PP, HDPE, LDPE, PS and PVC are conveyed to local companies, who provide them with appropriate recycling solutions. Mechanical processing is used to process them back up to produce new items. 

Composite materials make up a large proportion of so-called residual materials, which are particularly difficult to recycle due to coatings and adhesives. Up to now, we have therefore used them as a fuel to generate energy from them – as an alternative to burning fossil fuels. 

For the production of the textile of our products we recycle PET plastics, which make up about 10 – 15% of the collected Ocean Impact Plastics. By now, we have also been able to find recyclers for the other types of plastic, who use them for new products or to generate heat. However, this is a particular challenge for composites, i.e. mixtures containing coatings or adhesives. According to our current state of knowledge, the so-called 'residual materials' can only be stored or used for heat and energy generation – in which case they are used as an alternative for fossil fuels:

For this reason, we are cooperating with the Berlin-based start-up Cleanhub to sell the residual materials from our Ocean Impact Plastics to Indocement, a subsidiary of the German Heidelberg Cement AG. This means that film and plastic bag remnants, sachets for shampoo or ketchup, and other composite materials that cannot currently be processed into other products due to their aluminum coating, for example, are used to generate energy. Cleanhub, in turn, sells certificates to third-party companies that use them to finance thermal recycling with Indocement and offset their plastic consumption. In return, Cleanhub supports us by precisely documenting the amount of recovered plastic, thus transparently mapping our clean-up performance.

Our partner organization and foundation GOT BAG Indonesia coordinates all our plastic collection activities in Demak, Indonesia. In our own on-site warehouse, the plastic waste is sorted, processed and pressed. All recyclable plastic is sent to GOT BAG Indonesia's recycling partners in the region. In addition, the foundation coordinates educational projects and educates schools about the dangers of plastic waste. Since September 2022, the foundation has continued all the activities previously undertaken by the Rumah Ilham organization. We are in daily exchange with the six permanent employees of GOT BAG Indonesia. Our Clean-up Manager Leonie is also on site several times a year to personally exchange ideas with our Indonesian team and plan further projects.

Symbolically, our products stand for clean oceans and a responsible use of plastic. That's why we not only collect the Ocean Impact Plastic that we recycle for the production of our travel and everyday companions, but also ensure that the plastics that cannot be used are recycled appropriately if possible. Together with our customers, we ensure that they will not end up in the ocean (again). 

With the goal of a circular economy, our backpacks are made of mostly recycled materials and are particularly durable. They consciously pursue a timeless, minimalist design language. In addition to our two-year warranty, we offer you a spare parts service. We also take back GOT BAGs and replace them if the functionality is no longer guaranteed. For some cases we are already testing a sewing service and expect to be able to offer a welding service in the near future. In this way, we want to guarantee each GOT BAG the longest possible life.

We want to create awareness - both through our clean-up program and our work with local authorities in Indonesia, but also by encouraging people to think and work together to bring about change. Create an Impact.

Yes, our products are now officially certified as PETA-Approved Vegan. We are committed to not using any animals or animal products as components in the production and processes of our products. 

In addition to the textile made of Ocean Impact Plastic, we mainly use recycled plastics to produce the bags and backpacks. For zippers, buttons and some elements for padding, we have not yet been able to find alternatives made from recycled materials that meet our quality and ecological requirements. We are currently still using virgin plastics – but are pushing ahead with the search for alternatives made from recycled plastic in cooperation with local partners. For our bags and backpacks, the following materials are currently used: 

Mesh fabric – rPET & PET (Recycled Polyester & Polyester).

Padding (depending on model) – PE (polyethylene), EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) or PU (polyurethane)

Straps – rPET (Recycled Polyester)

The entire textile for our GOT BAGs is made of Ocean Impact Plastic. However, the percentage of the total product varies depending on the model. This is due to the other ingredients like buckles, zippers, straps and foams for padding. These parts weigh quite a bit depending on their design – you can see their exact weight share in relation to the product in this table or the corresponding product page of our web shop. 

For these parts, we choose recycled polyester (rPET) whenever possible, but are working on making or having them made of Ocean Impact Plastic as well. Since our specialty is mainly the production of the yarn, we look for partners for this and work on it.

In our clean-up program, we don't differentiate between different types of plastics. Our holistic approach involves collecting all types of plastic, whether recyclable or not. With Ocean Impact Plastic, we have a term that expresses our comprehensive collection concept. We have registered this term as a trademark in Europe to prevent its misuse. Are you part of a company interested in collaborating on the collection or recycling of Ocean Impact Plastic? Feel free to send us an inquiry at hello@got-bag.com.

All GOT BAGs are made of a fabric woven with extremely robust 600D recycled polyester yarns from 100 % Ocean Impact Plastic. All fabrics are coated on the backside with a waterproof PU or TPU coating and on the outside either PU-coated or treated with a DWR (Durable Water Repellency) for additional water repellency and stain resistance. All materials used are PVC and PFC free. Our fabric is manufactured using two different techniques: 

1. We make all ROLLTOPS and WEEKENDER custom-made from TPU and PU coated material with high frequency welding. This sealing process creates seams which are waterproof and have the same tear resistance as the fabric. So the entire product is super robust and all seams are 100% waterproof. The water column of the fabric is over 20,000 mm. The contents are thus protected against rain and other weather conditions – provided that the opening is tightly rolled up and closed. 
2. All our other products such as DAYPACKs and HIP BAGs are stitched with special sewing machines. The material is PU coated on the backside and equipped with an DWR (Durable Water Repellency) on the face side. The water column is at least 1,500 mm. Due to a DWR treatment, products of this line are permanently water-repellent. Rain is kept out by the PU coating, but would get inside through the seams in heavy weather. However, light rain, short showers or splashing water can usually not harm what is inside the products. 

All GOT BAGs are made of a fabric made from extremely robust 600D recycled polyester yarn made from 100% Ocean Impact Plastic. All fabrics have a waterproof PU or TPU coating on the inside and are additionally water- and dirt-repellent on the outside with a PU coating or DWR (durable water repellency) impregnation. All materials used are PVC and PFC-free. We process our fabric into products using two different techniques:

1. All ROLLTOPS and WEEKENDERs are made to measure from a TPU and PU-coated material with high-frequency welding. This welding process creates seams that are waterproof and have the same tear strength as the fabric. The entire product is super robust and all seams are waterproof. The water column of the fabric is over 20,000 mm. The contents are thus protected against rain and other weather conditions – provided that the opening is tightly rolled up and closed. Our ROLLTOP 2.0 and ROLLTOP LITE 2.0 have been laboratory tested and are certified to IP54: protected against dust and water splashes from all directions. Click here for the certificate.
2. All other products such as DAYPACKs and HIP BAGs are sewn with special sewing machines. The material is PU-coated on the back and has a DWR (durable water repellency) on the front. The water column is at least 1,500 mm. Thanks to a DWR treatment, our products in this line are permanently water-repellent. Rain is kept out by the PU coating, but would get inside through the seams in heavy weather. However, light rain, short showers or splashing water usually have no effect on the inside of the products.

To avoid damaging the coating of the products in any way, the backpacks should not be washed in a washing machine. Instead, it's best to simply wipe or rub them with warm water, neutral soap, a soft sponge or a microfiber cloth.

All textiles should be washed and cleaned according to the care instructions inside the product. Products that have not been cleaned according to it are excluded from the two-year warranty. 

Our ROLLTOP that has made us a well-known brand is produced in China. We made this decision because of the country's expertise in textile production and because of China's geographical proximity to the collection and cleaning activities in Indonesia. In addition, producers located there have the specific know-how to equip textile products with a coating or impregnation free of PCV and PVC, making our products water- and weatherproof. The production is located in Quanzhou, Fujian province. Meanwhile, we also produce other products in Vietnam in Ho Chi Min City.

Since prices for yarn vary significantly and depend on the quantity sold, these figures can only provide a very rough indication. Additionally, we do not use new yarn and accordingly have few comparative values available. We assume approximately double to triple the price compared to regular polyester yarn of the same thickness. At this point, it is important to emphasize that while conventional PET yarns are a highly competitive mass market, yarns made from elaborately recycled material remain a niche market, so the price differences tend to be even more significant.

In addition, we must always calculate with a fluctuating quality of the yarn and thus a greater failure rate. We consciously avoid using additives such as new plastics or chemical additives to alter the mechanical qualities of the recycled plastic.

The people who work for GOT BAG in Indonesia are paid according to the amount of plastic waste collected. To ensure their safety at work, we train on site and provide work clothing. We are currently working on assigning ID numbers in order not only to work with them on a long-term basis, but also to be able to offer other rewards such as insurance and school fees.

When selecting our partners in our supply chain, we pay attention to the relevant certifications and standards such as BSCI, SMETA, GRS, Oeko-Tex, Fair Wear, Bluesign, ISO or TÜV.

All of our suppliers undertake to comply with our Code of Conduct. In this we ensure that none of our partners use child labour, forced labor or discrimination

To ensure compliance with our standards, we employ an employee in China who regularly visits our suppliers on site. We also regularly travel to our clean-up locations to inspect them. You can read our Code of Conduct here .

We keep the CO2 footprint of our transports as small as possible: We transport the pellets made of Ocean Impact Plastic by ship from Indonesia to China for further processing. We are still dependent on truck transport there, but we are examining more environmentally friendly alternatives. The finished goods are transported from China to Germany and the USA by ship.

We offer a 2-year warranty for all our products made of Ocean Impact Plastic.

Everyone who has bought a GOT BAG in our online store in the last two years. If you did not buy your product in our online store, please contact your GOT BAG dealer in case of warranty claim.

We guarantee that your GOT BAG can be used for two years without the product being limited in function. If you find a defect during this time, you can claim your warranty, if there is a warranty case. Please submit a repair request to have your claim verified.

Contact us by email and send us a photo of the damage to repair@got-bag.com or use our contact form for this purpose. Our Customer Happiness Team will check if there is a warranty claim and contact you with all further steps.

You can purchase our GOT BAG products through our online shop or from one of our trade partners. With the Store Locator, you can find a dealer near you: https://got-bag.com/pages/store-locator .

We deliver exclusively to the specified countries with DHL GoGreen. Please understand that we can not currently deliver to countries that are not listed. For shipping we charge a shipping fee, which includes all costs within the EU. Depending on the country and order value, we also offer free shipping.

Deliveries to Germany and Austria:
Free shipping for orders over 100 EUR.
For orders below 100 EUR: 4.99 EUR shipping costs

Deliveries to Belgium, Netherlands (except non-European territories), Luxembourg, Liechtenstein:
Free shipping for orders over 150 EUR order value.
For orders below 150 EUR: 4.99 EUR shipping costs

Deliveries to France (except non-European territories & islands):
4.99 EUR shipping costs

Deliveries to Switzerland*:
Free shipping for orders over 200 EUR.
For orders below 200 EUR: 7.99 EUR shipping costs

Deliveries to Italy (except Livigno), Ireland, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia:
9.99 EUR shipping costs

Deliveries to United Kingdom (except islands)*, Denmark (except Greenland & Faro), Sweden, Finland (except islands), Spain (except islands), Portugal (except islands), Greece (except islands):
14.99 EUR shipping costs

Shipping costs Norway*: 19.99 EUR

*For deliveries of goods outside the European Union, additional import duties (VAT, customs duties) and fees (customs clearance, import handling) may be incurred. We are not responsible for additional import duties or fees.

For our products, we use DHL Go Green’s CO2-neutral shipping worldwide and our partner’s packing is made from recycled and reusable materials. Returns are carried out with 8Returns, and utilize the same methods as our standard shipping procedures, which offsets transport-related emissions through CO2 certificates. These certificates are then used to support climate protection projects around the world. For more information on this and on DHL GoGreen, please click here.

You can easily register your return directly via our returns portal using your order number. The purchase amount, minus the return fee, will be refunded to you as soon as the return has been received. The return period ends 14 days after receipt of the goods.
If you have redeemed a GIFT CARD for an order, the purchase amount will also be refunded by reactivating it on your GIFT CARD.
It is not possible to cash out a GIFT CARD.

Our return fee is a small charge starting at 3.99€ that will help us cover the cost of processing and handling your returned items. You can return your ordered goods easily from within the country and from other European countries for a return fee. The return fee will be automatically deducted from the refund amount. The amount of the fee varies depending on the country:

Return fee for Germany and Austria: 3.99 EUR

Return fee for Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, and France (except islands): 3.99 EUR

Return fee for Italy (except Livigno), Switzerland and Ireland: 4.99 EUR 

Return fee for rest of Europe (without islands): 4.99 EUR 

Once an order is placed, it is automatically transmitted to our shipping partner. However, if you send us an email requesting to cancel your order straight away, we will do our best to process it before the product is shipped.

If you would like to change your shipping or billing address after placing your order, please send a message to hello@got-bag.com. If the order hasn’t been shipped yet, we will change the address.

You are welcome to have your order sent to a Packstation in Germany. Only the packaging of the WEEKENDER and RE:SHELL CABIN is a bit too big for this. In order to avoid delays, we would therefore ask you to only order these products to a private address. In individual cases, of course, it can also happen with our product shipments that the corresponding compartment is not free and they are sent back to us. Of course, we will then send you the goods you have ordered again.

Once your order is handed to our shipping partner, you will receive an email with the tracking data of your order. Usually, this takes about 2 – 3 business days after the order is confirmed.

You can individually choose the payment method for your purchase in our store.