I am currently sitting next to my Swiss Gear backpack that I’ve owned for 15 years now? It was used when I got it - my parent’s work place was moving, and in cleaning the offices to prep a lot of people were getting rid of stuff, they all decided to put together a “free to good home” pile. High school me thought it was dorky and didn’t look brand new but free is free and my parent insisted I’d appreciate the quality someday.

Highschool, University, Grad School, months of field work, personal use, bad weather, multiple cross-continent moves, exclusive status as my go-to airline carryon, weekend trips, road trips, and it’s now my “work bag”. It still basically looks EXACTLY like it did when I got it, too - clearly used but by no means old or in bad repair.

My employer offered to replace it “with something a little less bulky” but all I can think is… Why? Love it.

Edit: Its previous owner’s line of work is also notoriously hard on luggage, and I’m guessing it had been through several years of abuse as a go-bag before I got to it even - probably worth a decade of any other circumstance’s use.