If you've been a fan of Remote Equipment since the early days, you're likely aware of a bag called BRAVO 18. There were several iterations of the BRAVO – an 18-liter tote bag that received rave reviews from Carryology and other bag-reviewing websites when it was initially released five years ago.

If you're just becoming familiar with the brand, we're taking this opportunity to introduce you to a bag called BRAVO. Because, well, the BRAVO is back in a big way.

We're taking a detailed look at the 2024 version of the BRAVO, now available on our website. We’ll explain some of its features, the materials we use, and provide background on why we're making the bag a cornerstone of our emerging brand.

But before that, let's take a quick look at the BRAVO bags that came previously. 

THE 2019 VERSIONS

The Remote Equipment brand started in 2018 with the introduction of the ALPHA 31. It was launched after a small, but successful, Kickstarter campaign. Even with its small production run, the ALPHA became a darling, thanks to its unique design and high-end materials.

Those materials would serve as a backbone for company founder Phil de los Reyes' next project: The BRAVO 18.

In 2019, Remote Equipment released just 30 prototype BRAVO bags that used Dimension Polyant fabric and sold for $299. After the prototypes sold out, there was a small production run of BRAVOs that hit the market later in 2019,  selling for $199.

Those early versions of the BRAVO were hits. Reviewers, like Wandering Dots, loved them. Consumers did, too. Take Jonas Hannah, for instance. A big fan of Remote Equipment bags from the early days, he appreciated the early versions of the BRAVO 18 so much he bought three in 2019. Yes, three. Two of them were prototypes, one of them came from the production line later in the year.

"I love the look and utility of the bag," Hannah said.  "There aren't many as versatile as the BRAVO."
 Hannah still uses those bags in myriad ways.
 "I use them primarily as daypacks, especially when I travel," he said. "They flat pack down to nothing and are very easy to pack. I usually pack my rain jacket like a frame sheet, and it makes it super comfortable in backpack mode. It also works well as a personal item with a carry-on backpack since you can use it in tote mode."

One of the first decisions made by the new Remote Equipment team as they looked forward to re-envisioning the BRAVO 18 was to maintain the versatility that end-users like Hannah valued in the original version, but also keep costs down.

THE PRICE IS RIGHT

The use of best-in-class materials, small production runs, and prototypes stitched together by hand all drove up costs of the early BRAVOs. For the new era of Remote Equipment, one of the goals of the product development team was to find a way to construct a well-made bag while bringing the cost to a more competitive level. To do that, Remote Equipment product designers began developing a proprietary fabric.      

The result is lightweight and durable C3 Tech® – a tri-layered laminated fabric providing a balanced blend of durability and water-repellency. At C3 Tech's core is a 500-denier nylon CORDURA® fabric with excellent resistance to fading, abrasion, rot, and mildew. The inner layer has a thin TPU white coating, while the top layer is a clear TPU coating lightly spritz on the CORDURA fabric to enhance toughness and reinforce protection from the elements. C3 Tech is also PFAS-free, an important callout as more states move towards banning these forever chemicals.

FUTURE-FORWARD OF FEATURES

Our design team made a few tweaks to the latest version of the bag. There's 800 D CORDURA on the bottom of the bag for added durability, a small internal pocket specifically designed to fit an AirTag so you won't lose the bag, and an open cinch-top designed to keep items securely inside.

Chief among the BRAVO's features is its customizable carrying system. By rearranging the adjustable webbing straps, users can transform the bag into four distinct carrying styles:

  • Short carry handles: Ideal for quick carrying.
  • Shoulder sling tote: Perfect for comfortable over-the-shoulder carrying.
  • Backpack straps: For hands-free transport.
  • Cross-body shoulder bag: Created by removing one backpack strap and feeding it through to the opposite side.

Like the original bag released five years ago, the versatile BRAVO is purposefully made to be a hard-use, do-it-all haul bag. Its interior is simple enough to be easily rinsed out with a hose after a day at the beach, while it's spacious enough for the weekly trek to the farmer's market.

                And maybe, just maybe, you need three of them. Or four. The new bag is available in Black, Birch, and Pomegranate colors with a fourth – Multi-Cam Black – arriving soon.
                BRAVO super fan Hannah said he was eagerly awaiting new colors. When we told him the options available he didn't hesitate.
                "I guess I'll have to grab all three," he said in text, sending a laughing emoji with his response. We are not so sure he's joking.

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