Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful with our Maine-made canvas tote bag

Our tote bag measures 21 inches long, 6.5 wide, and 13 inches tall.

When my son, Jack, played high school baseball, I had an equipment bag custom made for him in the orange and blue of the Hershey Trojans.

The bag was made in Maine by Rogue Wear. I grew up not four miles from Rogue Wear, which began as an awards and engraving operation in 1969. Its products and services evolved into screen printing, embroidery, chenille letters and felt banners.

In the 1970s, Rogue Wear started making duffel bags. Rogue Wear has become a supplier to the University of Maine athletic program, among many other schools and teams. Jack’s bag represented great quality and value.

Starting Stay Apparel Co. in 2017, with our focus on U.S.-made clothing and accessories, we wanted to work with Rogue Wear. We reached out to the company and soon heard back from Mark Rodrigue, who assumed ownership from his parents.

Mark suggested a small zippered bag (made from the same rugged cordura nylon as Jack’s bag) as an affordable option for a startup such as ours. When we launched our website in October 2017, we offered the zippered bags in Vegas gold and Carolina blue.

‘I use it everywhere’

In 2020, Maine celebrated the 150th birthday of its original flag. Rogue Wear developed a canvas tote bag (trimmed in cordura nylon) featuring the flag design. I bought one for my wife, Sara, for Christmas.

We loved it so much that I asked Mark if he could develop a similar one for Stay featuring our popular Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful design.

Rogue Wear’s quality stands out, but so does Mark’s customer service. He again worked with us and required a low minimum-quantity purchase. We received the bags in a little more than three weeks.

Whether you’re going to work, running errands or getting away, this bag will be your faithful companion. It measures approximately 21 inches long, 6.5 inches wide, and 13 inches tall.

The early response to it has been great. We doubled the quantity for our second order from Rogue Wear and expect to include the bag in our lineup for a long time to come.

One customer commented on our Instagram page, “I love mine! I use it everywhere and get non-stop compliments!”

We love the bag, too. It’s a beautiful thing.