YKRA (pronounced eek-rah) was founded by designer Balázs Lakatos from the basement of a bar in downtown Budapest in 2011, with the goal of creating a  vintage style hiking backpack for everyday use. 

We make long-lasting quality products that have the look and feel of a bygone era using a thick and durable cotton canvas originally made for tents. Inspired by the hiking culture of 1970’s eastern Europe, our canvases come in a variety of vivid colors. 

Our mission is to inspire people to spend more time in nature and enjoy everyday adventures.

HOW IT’S MADE

We are proud that all YKRA products are handcrafted in Hungary, in Europe, supporting local businesses and creating meaningful jobs. 

We use natural materials that will decompose at the end of their life cycle, without harming the planet. We source high-quality leather from Italy, cotton canvas from the Czech Republic, and our metal accessories and webbing is made in Hungary. 

We use traditional manufacturing methods. The combination of high-quality materials and attention to detail lead to long-lasting products that age beautifully and acquire a patina. For our limited editions we use silkscreen printing, which allows for lasting, high quality prints that are fixed to the fibres of the cotton canvas. 

We are a responsible company: we will always repair any product that has defects in materials or workmanship, regardless of the age of the product. We encourage you to use them for as long as possible, to minimize your environmental footprint.

BEHIND THE BRAND

Designer Balázs Lakatos was inspired to make a vintage style backpack for himself. After meeting his wife, Judit Balogh, a design manager, and showing off the first prototype, they co-founded the brand in 2011.

The brand name YKRA comes from a graffiti pseudonym used by Balázs during his student years in Paris, while the logo was inspired by Japanese woodcuts from the Edo period and the silhouette of Mt. Fujiyama. 

In the beginning, Balázs designed the backpacks, and then sewed and assembled them one by one in a workshop located in the basement of Telep, a trendy bar in downtown Budapest. 

YKRA is known for its unique limited edition collections.  Over the years we’ve collaborated with fashion designers Henrik Vibskov, LF Markey and Tomcsanyi, and popular brands like Bobochoses, and Maisonette. 

Today YKRA is run by Eszter Lebó, CEO, who first joined YKRA in its early days, and has helped to grow it to its current form. Our office is located in Budapest, in the quiet and charming residential XIth district on the Buda side, where we design our products and run the day to day operations, while our production takes place in eastern Hungary.