A few weeks ago, the ABUS UK team took over Innerleithen in the Scottish borders. They had ABUS branding throughout the area, and even their own IPA on tap in a local pub. Why? To launch their new modular full-face mountain bike helmet, the Targon, into the UK market. It was by no means a traditional press launch event, and rather suited the non-traditional helmet they were launching.
To find out how it went and what exactly the weekend entailed, we spoke to Sam Andrews, Marketing Manager at ABUS.
The Targon helmet is breaking boundaries, so it makes sense that the launch into the UK was anything but traditional. How did you decide on the premise for the launch?
The TARGON isn’t a traditional helmet, so we didn’t want a traditional product launch. Rather than hiring a venue or something and asking people to come look at our new helmet, we wanted to take the product directly into the environment it was designed for and put it in front of real riders.
Innerleithen felt like the perfect location. It’s one of the UK’s most iconic mountain bike spots, with a strong riding culture and community. The idea was simple: create a weekend that celebrated mountain biking first, with the helmet naturally at the centre of it, rather than making the product the sole focus.
Tell us about the details of the weekend, you took over Innerleithen, but what did that actually entail?We had demo helmets available across multiple spots including No.55 Bikes, Adrenalin Uplift and Golfie Car Park, giving riders plenty of opportunities to get their hands on the TARGON and try it where it belongs, on the trails…
Rather than centering everything around a single venue, we wanted the whole town to feel part of the launch. We worked with local businesses, had ABUS branding throughout Innerleithen, partnered with the local cafe and pub, and even had our own ABUS IPA on tap complete with branded beer mats.
The atmosphere was what really made the weekend. Riders spent the day out on the trails, then came together in the evening for a free BBQ, retro mountain bike films, and a few beers. One of the highlights was Duncan Shaw putting on an impromptu trials display in the pub, hopping between tables and generally blowing people’s minds.
The goal was simple: create a weekend that felt like a celebration of mountain biking and the local riding community, with the TARGON naturally at the centre of it, rather than feeling like a traditional product launch.
From a trade perspective, would you use your experience of this launch to do similar and invite dealers in the future?
Absolutely. One of the biggest takeaways was the value of allowing people to experience products in a proper riding environment. For retailers and dealers, seeing how riders interact with a product, hearing feedback firsthand and understanding the story behind it can be far more powerful than an online presentation.
It’s also something we pride ourselves on at ABUS globally. We like to be good hosts and create experiences that people genuinely enjoy being part of. Great riding, good food, a few beers and good company all help create an atmosphere where people can connect with the product, the brand and each other in a much more natural way.
There’s definitely an opportunity to evolve this format in the future by bringing more trade partners into the experience. It creates stronger relationships, better product understanding and leaves people with something memorable long after the weekend has finished.
How did the weekend go down? Not just in tangible visitor numbers/people spoken to, but the overall feeling – was it positive etc.
The overall feeling was positive. Of course, we’d always like to get more helmets on heads, and the weekend did clash with a few major mountain bike events across the UK, including the iXS European Downhill Cup at Fort William, so riders were naturally spread across different locations. That said, the people who did come along were engaged, genuinely interested in the product, and really got behind what we were trying to do (especially after a few ABUS beers).
It kind of felt less like a launch event and more like a community gathering, which was what we wanted to achieve. The weekend generated some great conversations, strong media coverage and most importantly, helped push TARGON in the right direction.
For us, this wasn’t just about launching a new helmet. It was about showing how ABUS is investing in mountain biking and supporting the communities that make the sport special. We wanted to create an experience that riders would remember.
The support from the Innerleithen community, athletes and media partners was fantastic, and it proved that when brands work closely with the people at the heart of the sport, everyone benefits. It’s a model we’d love to continue building on in the future.