About us

When Nikki and Taylor Strout started Rugged Seas—a Maine company that makes tote bags, wallets, backpacks, and other items out of recycled fishermen’s “bibs” (hauling pants)—they thought it would be a small sideline, a way to help raise money for fisherman’s causes.

Now they work hard to keep up with demand and sell all over the world.

“Our brand is as tough as the people who fish our oceans and live in our coastal communities,” says the company’s website. “Rugged Seas isn’t just for the fishermen who work year-round and through all kinds of weather to bring seafood to the table—it’s for all of us who love and respect the ocean and what it does for us.”

Many steps go into making a Rugged Seas product, such as collecting the old, used bibs that get donated to the company’s drop sites or mailed in, taking them to a local dry cleaner, and delivering them to a family-owned manufacturer in Lewiston, where a range of sturdy designs get implemented.

For Nikki, the success of Rugged Seas has meant she’s taken on more and different responsibilities than she ever expected. With Taylor often gone on long fishing trips, she puts the “busy” in “business.” Plus, the couple has three young sons, aged seven, five, and two. And the oldest and youngest have a rare genetic condition that causes blindness in children.

Nikki Strout is an amazing Maine woman—for all she does and for the positive, resilient way she approaches challenges. I was so glad for the chance to talk with her and to learn more about Rugged Seas and her great family.

Read the full interview conducted by Marie Frances Barstow published on Maine Women Magazine.