Established: 1996
Years in Operation: 15
US Headquarters: Cerritos, California
Canadian Headquarters: London, Ontario
Exclusive Distributors: Parts Unlimited,
Drag Specialties
AFX North America Inc. is a family-owned and operated manufacturer of motorcycle, ATV, scooter and snowmobile helmets. Established in 1996, the Cerritos (CA, USA) and London (ON, Canada) based company has enjoyed exceptional growth and currently stands as one of the top helmet suppliers for the North American market.
Beginnings
AFX was born from a growing dissatisfaction with the state of the motorcycle helmet industry. During the mid-90s, the company's founders felt that consumers were receiving less helmet for the dollar than ever before as prices inflated annually without any tangible innovations or improvements to justify them.
Starting from a "clean-sheet" approach, AFX entered the North American marketplace in the fall of 1996 with a product line of 8 reasonably priced, fully featured models. While providing customers with maximum 'bang for the buck' is simple in concept, this approach to product design demands continuous refinements and innovations in helmet design, and improvements in manufacturing capabilities. Over the past dozen years, AFX has proven to be up to the challenge, always staying one step (if not more) ahead of the competition.
Advantageous Structure
Unlike helmet manufacturers who work with agents and resellers, AFX sells its products exclusively to distributors, and only to one per country. In turn, these exclusive distributors sell directly to retail dealers.
By conducting business in this manner, AFX has been able to eliminate additional tiers in the supply chain which only contribute to inflated prices and a wider disconnect between the company and its customers. Avoiding needless middlemen allows AFX to provide leading edge helmets at surprisingly affordable prices.
Since that first year, AFX has excelled at finding the right balance between helmet stylishness, functionality and affordability as the product line has expanded to include dozens of offerings. As such, the company has enjoyed strong and consistent growth, thanks in part to a strong distribution network in the United States and Canada, as well as to the enthusiastic response the company has received from dealers who've found that AFX helmets are not only quality products, but hot sellers.
