Everything starts with a reason: a question that needs a solution. It’s never simply about creating protection that works, the question is how to ensure a user stays as safe as possible while having the freedom to perform at their best.

At the start of the design process for every new product, that’s the question we set out to answer, everything else comes afterwards. The design, the form, of every product flows naturally from the function of each individual item.

Whether a helmet, sunglasses or a piece of apparel or body armor, the process is always the same, and always stems from the challenge to create protection that works for safety and performance.

For the Kortal, our latest trail and enduro MTB helmet, the goal was to create a helmet to match the development in mountain bikes in recent years and give riders the protection they need at higher speeds, on increasingly demanding terrain.

The limits and boundaries of the sports are forever changing, as demonstrated by the rise of the e-MTB, which maker longer rides and higher speeds over more varied terrain well within the reach of a wider group of people. This necessarily asks new questions of their protection; questions we considered from the very start in the development of the Kortal.

Building on the belief that the safest cycling helmet is the one you wear, the Kortal is built around the features that make it easier to always put the helmet on. Optimised ventilation keeps air flowing through the helmet at all speeds for extra comfort, and the positioning of the vents ensures they are never covered by a goggle strap.

Our belief that every aspect of a kit should work together to enhance protection; our desire to build a kit that makes a difference, shapes every stage of the design process.

It’s why we work, and have always worked, to find new approaches to existing problems. From creating the exoskeleton of the Octal helmet to give what, at its launch, was an entirely different and new approach to helmet ventilation, to re-designing the helmet inner on our ski race helmets to introduce Race Lock technology, an entirely new approach to fit adjustment systems in order to give extra security to ski racers, we always lead with a design to meet users’ needs.

Vital at every stage of the process is feedback from users. Over the years, we’ve built a strong bond with the athletes using our products. Getting their input, and combining it with continuous product testing and feedback, ensures we can understand every intricate detail of what matters most when creating protection, so performance and safety can always be truly complementary.

This is how we always work to be different by design.