BRANDS
benefits over traditional rear-mounted child seats. The Shotgun seat allows kids to partcipate in the ride, rather than sitting at the back staring at their parent’s back, is suitable for full suspension bikes, and features handy innovations like a quick release mechanism and full adjustability. Necklen said: “We’re super lucky to have received mostly positive feedback from the industry – any doubts (particularly around the shotgun seat) tend to disappear once people try riding shotgun. The product facilitates an amazing experience which is hard to communicate, but it’s epic once you’ve tried it out.”
Next Steps Necklen and Kids Ride Shotgun believe they’re “just getting started” with their mission to get kids stoked on riding, and the past year of development appears to be testament. The brand recently stepped up its focus on the UK market by partnering with distributor Extra UK (and its subsidiary Cyclex in Ireland).
Kids Ride Shotgun has expanded its product lines to include other unique accessories targeted at families, including a kids’ book, a tow rope, and the newer Shotgun Pro seat. The distribution move also coincides with the brand’s commitment to becoming more than just a child’s seat business, with its recent step into wheeled products - off-road balance bikes for the 2-5 years market. On the move into balance bikes, Necklen said: “We’re obviously keen to provide families with all the tools they need to raise mountain bike kids from 0-5, and we see balance bikes as a critical step in that progression. There are plenty of great lightweight balance bikes on the market that are suitable for the pavement, but we noticed that most runner bikes aren’t designed for the dirt. The Dirt Hero is about unlocking the trails for mountain bike families, and by creating a bike that’s up for the task, we feel we’re giving parents and kids the best chance of having a great time, which will make them want to keep riding.” The Dirt Hero balance bike is designed for children aged two to five and features a sealed headset, thru axles, removable footpad, and progressive geometry. The bike effectively grows with the rider thanks to the replaceable drop- outs that extend the reach of the bike for the larger 14” wheel size. It can also run as a mullet. The bike weighs in at 4kg for the 12” unbraked
Kids Ride Shotgun has now branched into wheeled products, with its first balance bike
Kids Ride Shotgun founders Tom Hayward (left) and Dan Necklen
version, and is priced at £290 – with the 14” wheelset and Magura MT4 brake as optional extras.
Retail focus
Kids Ride Shotgun is also committed to retail, both because it’s the brand’s biggest sales channel, and also because the founders believe families will choose bike shops to help make informed purchases. Necklen said: “What makes us unique in retail, is that we’re the only brand focused purely on 0-5, and providing parents with everything they need. Retail is our biggest sales channel, and we think that’s because many families still prefer to pop into their local bike shop. We’re stoked to now have Trev and Alex in our UK office, who are charged with supporting our UK and European distributor and retailer network.” “We’ve noticed that retailers that do well in the kids category are those who have either have kids themselves, or have a long term view of the customer relationship – the lifetime value of a family customer and their kids is considerable when you look at the different bikes, parts and accessories needed over time.” On the overall aims for Kids Ride Shotgun, Necklen said: “We’re on a mission to raise the next generation of mountain bikers, and we feel like we’re just getting started. We have a couple of
exciting products in development too, but outside of that – we have plenty of work to do with our existing network of retailers and their
customers. “We’re keen to create a mini mountain biker movement,
and we have a bunch of crazy ideas to help make that happen over time.”
May 2023 | 49
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