About
It all started in February 2023, somewhere deep in the Groot Winterhoek wilderness. The idea for embroidered trail badges came up mid-hike, in one of those “we could totally do that” trail chats that happen when your legs are tired but your imagination’s on fire. I mean, if you can hike mountains, you can start a business…right?
This is one of my best things about long stretches in nature. When your only tasks for the day are to walk (and snack!), your mind finally has space to wander beyond to-do lists and daily admin. And while it can sometimes wander into the shadows, it can also dance into ideas that feel lighter, braver, and somehow more possible out in the wild. It’s where all the “what ifs,” “why nots,” and “if not now, when?s” come out to play.
Since that glorious Groot Winterhoek trip, there have been many nights learning, unlearning, and relearning to get trekpatch off the ground. It’s been a proper team effort. From friends giving encouragement and voting on the name, to my mom providing valuable design feedback to Sukey and Babalwa for being creative and strategic thinking partners and the Gals Gone Hiking group for filling a jar with ideas and love!
Coming up with a mission and vision for a patch business might sound a bit over the top, but the thing I keep coming back to is celebration. And honestly, couldn’t we all use more reasons to celebrate these days? Am I right?? And I love the idea of people stitching their outdoor stories onto backpacks, hats, or jackets...like little badges of pride that say, "I did that!" or "We did that, Team Otter Trail group!"
I’d love to see where your badges end up - you can either tag @trekpatch in your pics on socials or email or WhatsApp them to me direct (details below).
If you’d like to collaborate, design a patch, stock your shop, or just share an idea, I'm all ears. Because starting / running a small business can be isolating at times and working in community with others is much more fun!
— Anna
Email: anna@trekpatch.com / WhatsApp: +27 74 174 9901