Shark (helmet manufacturer)

Infobox Company
name = Shark Helmets

type = Privately held company
genre =
foundation = 1929
founder =
Head Office =
location_city = flagicon|France Marseille
location_country = France
location =
locations =
origins =
key_people = Robert Teston, CEO Christophe Miravalls, Export Director
area_served =
industry = Motorcycle helmet manufacturing
products =
services =
revenue =
operating_income =
net_income =
num_employees =
parent =
divisions =
subsid =
owner =
slogan =
homepage = [http://www.shark-helmets.com// www.shark-helmets.com/]
dissolved =
footnotes =
intl =

Shark is a French company that produces motorcycle helmets.

Shark competes with brands such as Italy's AGV and Suomy, and Japanese makers Arai and Shoei in the high-end helmet market.

History

Shark Helmets was founded in 1929 in Marseille, France. Since then, their helmets have become some of the leading and most popular helmets in Europe. It was only in 2006, however, that Shark became popular in the United States with the help of Texas-based distributor Tucker Rocky, in a major push to penetrate the American helmet market.

Helmets

Shark places a strong emphasis on safety and quality in their helmets. Their designs concentrate on the dispersion of impact force away from the wearer's head, while utilizing "crumple-zones" like those found on modern automobiles. Because of this, a Shark helmet will appear much more damaged and deformed than a helmet of another make, as it has taken more of the impact to help protect the rider.

Another characteristic of Shark helmets is their thick visors, with the RSX and RSR2 models measuring 3mm thick - the thickest in the industry. According to Shark, their visors use Formula One technology.

Appearances

Shark provides helmets for a number of professional motorcycle riders including Superbike racer Troy Corser and AMA Superbike rider Miguel Duhamel.

References

[http://investing.businessweek.com/businessweek/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=729336 BusinessWeek]

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb4385/is_200702/ai_n18894922

http://www.shark-helmetsus.com

External links

* [http://www.shark-helmetsus.com/ Shark website]