ORTLIEB

After returning home from a miserable, wet cycle tour of South England in 1981, Hartmut, the founder of Ortlieb, started making a pannier out of red truck tarp on his mother’s sewing machine. He fixed the lid with a piece of webbing strap and used hooks from the hardware store to fix the pack to the bike rack.

The rear pannier was followed by a handle bar bag, and very soon after, the demand was too high for a one man operation so family members and friends were roped in and ORTLIEB was founded in 1982.

Today, Ortlieb is synonymous with cycle travel for making 100% waterproof, practical, and functional luggage and touring accessories. Ortlieb manufacture all of their waterproof products at their production facility in Heilsbronn, Germany. High product quality, durability and their own repair service are integral to Ortlieb’s philosophy.