Pivoting Your Culture and Taking Flight

On this episode of the Reboot Chronicles, we take a trip down memory lane with Robert Pasin, CEO of Radio Flyer, and explore why brave leaders are needed to reboot their organization's People, Platform and Passion.

Humble Beginnings

Radio Flyer was founded in 1917 by Robert’s grandfather, Antonio, an Italian immigrant who moved to America,  at the age of sixteen, searching for a better life. The young entrepreneur found work in Chicago and eventually opened a shop to continue the family carpentry tradition. His work began with furniture and cabinets and shifted to wagons after Antonio built one  to haul around his tools. This bit of serendipity eventually pivoted the shop into creating the iconic red wagon, which grew in popularity over the decades, and became a part of American history.

Engaging iPhone Kids

Through ethnographic research, Robert's team observed what people like and don’t like about existing  toys and created white-spaces to make them better, like creating longer-lasting battery-operated children's cars. This discovery led them to partner with Tesla to create a lithium-ion battery-powered mini Tesla for kids. This very cool car Platform,  is just like an actual Tesla, and allows for customizing the car's color, license plate, and allows for a phone or mp3 player plugin. Nowadays, children are drawn to devices rather than playing outside. Children spend only ten minutes a day on average compared  to approximately five hours a day using electronic devices. Radio Flyer combats this and brings innovation and fun toys for kids to use their imagination while riding in style.