It all started with a trip to Germany — and a couple of really good tote bags.
Back in 2006, Rachel Rheingold and Michael Berick were just a young couple in love, exploring the streets of Hamburg and Berlin on a visit to some friends. As they wandered, they couldn’t help but notice something peculiar: everywhere they went, people were carrying these stylish, city-specific tote bags.
“The Germans were way ahead of us in terms of using alternatives to plastic bags,” Rheingold recalled on a recent episode of The Manufacturing Report podcast. “So it was just what they were doing there, and we got them as gifts.”
We bought gifts for our friends there. And so in Berlin, they would have, like, a map of Berlin, very kind of, like, basic drawing. And Hamburg wasn’t a map, but it was, like, a famous statue.
Little did Rheingold and Berick know that those humble totes would soon become the inspiration for their very own Made-in-America empire: Maptote, a Brooklyn-based maker of geographically-inspired bags, clothing, home goods, and stationery.
“Our initial idea was, oh, we’ll go back home and we’ll work with the grocery stores and we’ll work with, you know, small bodegas, things like that,” Rheingold explained. “But it ended up being, you know, something that we wanted for Brooklyn.”
And so, armed with Rheingold’s design chops and Berick’s cartography skills, the couple set to work creating their very first product: a tote bag emblazoned with a map of their beloved borough. They started small, selling the bags to local gift shops on the weekends while still working their day jobs. But it didn’t take long for word to spread — and for Maptote to take off.
Fast forward 19 years, and the accidental empire that Rheingold and Berick built now spans thousands of SKUs, from zippered pouches and baby onesies to tea towels and greeting cards. But through all that growth and change, one thing has remained constant: the company’s commitment to making its products right here in the United States.
“We wanted to have a sustainable purpose, not using a plastic bag and creating a usable bag,” Rheingold said of the decision to manufacture domestically. “Why are we having it shipped across the world back to us, and having this huge carbon footprint? He brought up the idea, well, can you get it made here?”
And I was like, well, I guess I could. So I think we had one order of imported bags was our first round, and then I ended up being able to figure out a factory to work with here.
That commitment to local production has been a key part of Maptote’s DNA from the very beginning — and it’s one that Rheingold and Berick believe has been crucial to their success. By keeping their manufacturing close to home, they’ve been able to ensure the highest level of quality control, while also supporting the local economy and reducing their environmental impact.
But as any entrepreneur knows, building a successful business is about more than just having a great product or a noble mission. It’s about surrounding yourself with the right people, and learning from those who have been there before.
For Rheingold and Berick, that has meant tapping into the vibrant maker community in Brooklyn and beyond — a network of fellow creatives and business owners who have been generous with their time, their knowledge, and their support.
“I feel like we’ve made friends with different businesses over the years, and would talk to them,” Rheingold said. “Some of them we still keep in touch with or email every now and then if something comes up, hey, this situation came up, has this ever happened to you, or I’m having this production issue with this company that I know you’re using.”
It’s that spirit of collaboration and camaraderie that has helped Maptote weather the ups and downs of nearly two decades in business — and that continues to inspire Rheingold and Berick as they look ahead to their 20th anniversary next year.
“I mean, the holidays are, I mean, our main gist of our business is wholesale, so selling to stores,” Rheingold noted of the company’s busiest season. “So stores typically start buying for holiday in August. So pretty much the last half of the year, all the way up through the last quarter, it is really important for us that stores are buying for holiday, and including our products in that.”
But as Maptote gears up for another busy holiday season, Rheingold and Berick are taking a moment to reflect on the journey that brought them here — and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.
“I think we’ve met most people from doing trade shows, like you’re sitting in these booths for three or four days,” Rheingold mused. “You just get to know the people around you after a while, and you hear them doing their spiel about their business, and they hear you.”
It’s a reminder that sometimes the most powerful connections — and the most promising business ideas — can come from the most unexpected places. Even a chance encounter with a really good tote bag in a faraway city.
To shop Maptote’s full collection of geographically-inspired goods, visit maptote.com. And to hear more from Rachel Rheingold and Michael Berick about their entrepreneurial journey, check out their full interview on The Manufacturing Report podcast, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
