FEATURE
PHOTO BY ROO FOWLER
View cycling through a global lens Because Leatt is a South African company, it was obvious that they would have to think about global marketing in a different way compared to an American or European company, where the continent alone could provide plenty of growth opportunities. Even Leatt’s online footprint is different depending on the country you’re shopping from. Many brands this size cut corners on their websites, hosting everything in one place with a widget that adjusts pricing, but Leatt gets granular—and makes it easy to create a worldwide fanbase.
Get your fans to advertise for you—on a budget One of Leatt’s most popular pieces isn’t a helmet or a neck brace: It’s a branded long-sleeve and pants set. Their Gravity Ride Kit is durable, simple, and most importantly, it’s around £79. “Some of Leatt’s biggest brand drivers have a really strong value proposition,” Zaffke says. Our margin on the Ride Kit is not great, but it gets Leatt out there. It’s a big volume piece for us, and a really great value proposition—riders
Szymon Godziek in the Signature Ride Kit
are getting used to seeing things like that from Leatt, and we’ve earned a reputation for creating cool gear that’s not outrageously expensive.”
Keep innovating, but without the ego Zaffke reads the comments: Pinkbike in particular is one of his main ways of learning what customers really think about Leatt products, and this information helps them develop new products and tweak the existing line-up. “That’s what drives a lot of our innovation: we’re listening to, and addressing, riders’ needs,” he says. “I think a major mistake of a lot of companies is that they come from a place of arrogance, where they feel like they know better than the end user. A lot of brands want to drive trends and tell riders what they need. Leatt’s perspective in general is to listen.”
Build a company people want to work for Zaffke isn’t just a public relations guy for Leatt; he’s a success story about how the brand has treated its staff. It was only a few months after joining the company that he began a battle with lung cancer, and he says that Leatt was supportive throughout his journey, and after. “It’s not a faceless corporation, they’re real people,” he says. “Part of it might be the culture in South Africa. But more than anything, I think it’s the company culture set by the CEO, Sean Macdonald. He’s just such a great guy and such a kind human being. He cares about the company’s success, but it’s clear he cares about the employees and our customers, too. That trickles down throughout the company.” “One of our sales guys recently summed up our ethos by
PHOTO BY ROO FOWLER
saying, ‘don’t be an asshole,’” he laughs. “It seems like so many of the missteps by Leatt’s competitors – the big legacy brands that seem like they’re going backwards – are driven by ego and greed. We’ve seen steady, sustainable growth by not letting greed or ego dictate our decisions.” ●
22 | August 2026
www.bikebiz.com
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