Don't you wish you could laze in your tent on a rainy zero day and binge watch YouTube videos without having to hold your phone out in front of you, constantly swapping hands when one gets tired or your arm goes numb?
It's exactly these kinds of questions that led Canadian-based creatives, Jeremy and Laura Corneil to answer with their problem solving line of innovative, ultralight camp goods under the name Adotec Gear.
“Adotec meets the needs of hikers by solving everyday hiker problems,” says Laura, “our gear is creative and relatable - everyone who sees our products has had the problem it solves on trail at some point.”
In fact, all of the gear Jeremy and Laura have created and innovated has been a direct result of other gear not meeting all of their needs, so they decided to pick up the slack.
“Jeremy is the mastermind behind most of our inventions,” admits Laura, “We mostly just talk while we're hiking and start by asking 'Don't you wish you had a....' or 'Don't you wish a thing did this action?' Then we talk things through until we come up with something we can make and test.”
In less than one year since their launch in October 2023, Adotec has used this organic problem solving process to create a laundry list of brilliant products like the Caveman TV smart phone holder that hangs from the ceiling of any tent for a hands free viewing experience, their dual purpose rain mitt/stuff sacks, a trekking pole massage roller, the Dyneema fold flat funnel, and a revolutionary bear resistant Food Locker bag that had to pass a grueling bear test - and that's just a small sampling of their full offerings.
What's equally impressive is that each wise invention they come up with is also crafted from a concept to a concrete piece of gear by the two of them in their home in Woodstock, Ontario. With such a wide range of designs, it's clear these two have put in immense amounts of time and energy scheming and iterating, tweeking things to get them just right.
“Jeremy's background is in technical sales, so he has lots of experience with mechanical problem solving,” explains Laura, “My background is teaching, which is a completely different type of problem-solving. However, both of our jobs require a certain amount of creativity, so I think that helps us in this area as well.”
What has also helped is Jeremy and Laura's willingness to be students of their own start-up: taking on loads of new challenges they could have never foreseen when they first began dabbling in product development and creation.
“We've had to learn a lot about not just making the products, but web design and maintenance, social media and marketing, accounting, and more,” acknowledges Laura. “I feel like sometimes I must mess something up at least four times before I figure out the right way to do it.”
But the challenges and curve balls of running a Canadian cottage company on top of holding down full-time jobs and squeezing in outdoor adventures like hiking, camping, and backpacking whenever they can, has had lots of great payoffs that keep the team motivated to keep creating.
“I think we both agree that seeing the business grow and people liking our products has been one of the most rewarding parts,” says Laura, “I think the other part is the creative outlet that this provides us — we feel like we are leaving the backpacking world a better place than when we found it.”
Not only do Adotec's gear offerings add value to the user experience in terms of comfort, convenience, and safety, but also items like their Dyneema bear-resistant Food Locker bag are proving their durability and dependability through some of the toughest tests in the industry and setting a new standard for what users expect from their gear.
“The bag has to survive 60 minutes of grizzly bear contact (not just in the cage, but teeth/claws on the bag) and come away with no tears or punctures larger than ¼ inch,” explains Laura, “Unfortunately, our first design failed, but our re-design has just passed (hooray!) and we are preparing to launch it into the market.”
It's this kind of enthusiasm for learning, iterating, and improving on their innovations that allows companies like Adotec Gear to achieve their goals and improve the quality of life for themselves and other adventurers for years to come.
Looking ahead, Jeremy and Laura hope that Adotec can continue to help a lot of people find gear that is not just "ultralight" but is the right gear for them.
Ali Becker is a freelance writer and adventure storyteller who spends half the year backpacking and bikepacking and the other half sleeping in strangers' beds as a professional house sitter. She and her partner, Mathieu, share their ups and downs on their IG channel at @trip.longer and hope to inspire others to get outside, adventure in nature and find their own freedom. You can learn more about them here: triplonger.ca.
