Kathmandu, May 13 -- In late 2016, Ujjwal Gurung was trekking to Mardi Himal when a sudden downpour left him scrambling to save his camera gear. His backpack wasn't waterproof, and Gurung ended up wrapping his camera and lenses in plastic bags. While most of us would promise ourselves a waterproof backpack the next time around, Gurung, an avid traveller, began to wonder if he could craft a waterproof backpack himself, one that travellers like him could trust to do its job in the wilderness. This experience set the foundation for Yatri Supply, a company that Gurung would go on to co-found--one geared towards travellers.

Back from the trek, in Kathmandu, Gurung, along with his friend Nigel Shrestha, started Yatri Supply in December 2016. T...