Before it was home to Florida’s state government and the Florida State Seminoles, Tallahassee was Anhaica, capital of the Apalachee tribe. It’s here that Marina Mertz hand stitches bicycle bags hardy enough to endure long rides in the rain but with a refined enough look for off the trail. A DIY-er with a penchant for sewing, Mertz embraced cycling while volunteering at a bike collective after college. Once she became a distance rider, she identified an overlooked niche in the equipment. “I didn’t see my style reflected in any of the commercial offerings,” she says of the overtly atheletic fashions.

In 2013, she launched Anhaica Bag Works, and has sold approximately 3,000 pieces. Her designs include clever details such as detachable straps that convert panniers into messenger bags. For protection from Florida showers, Mertz coats the canvas bags with beeswax. “They smell delicious, like fresh Tupelo honey,” she says. A nylon liner provides extra waterproofing. Mertz sends her products on a five-week bicycle tour to test their durability.

The bags are sold online and in a handful of shops around the country, including Camp Folks, in Tallahassee. anhaicabagworks.com