Our Story

After many nights wild camping in the Lake District and trekking all over the world, I started to notice a recurring flaw in my sleep setup.

I had always invested in a good sleeping bag and mat to ensure I was warm and comfortable, but I could never find a pillow that matched the same high standards.

Inflatable pillows lacked the comfort I wanted, and compressible pillows flattened into nothing the moment I laid my head down. My small 40L pack never had the room to pack both. Even when I managed to get to sleep, I’d wake up in the middle of the night to find my pillow had slipped off my mat. 

After a terrible night’s sleep while camping on Heron Pike in the Lake District, I figured that if I couldn’t find the perfect pillow, why not make it myself.

With no background in design or manufacturing, I started by trying to sew the first prototype myself using YouTube tutorials. It was rough and held together with some embarrassingly bad stitching, but it worked.

And that's how Akamas Gear was born! A brand focused on creating unique products that I couldn't find myself, but wished existed: gear that delivers the kind of sleep you look forward to whilst you're out camping so you wake up recovered for the next day's adventure. 

Our first product, the Akamas Gear Pillow, is the result of all of those bad nights' sleep. It’s lightweight, supportive, and cleverly designed to combine an inflatable core with a stuff-able pocket, perfect for a down jacket or spare clothing. Its adjustable strap means it doesn’t slide off your mat, and it delivers the kind of comfort that makes you forget you’re not in your own bed.