Shopify experience for a lifestyle helmet brand
We partnered with Headfirst, a pioneering Dutch helmet brand, to craft an eCommerce experience that reflects their modern, design-driven identity. The result: a distinct digital presence that reinforces their innovative positioning and sets them apart in a competitive market.
Client: Headfirst
Timespan: Oct '24 - present
Key Focus: Shopify eCommerce
Scope: Web Design, Shopify Development
Revolutionizing helmet safety with style, comfort and durability
Headfirst is a startup redefining what it means to wear a bike helmet. As a bold innovator in the industry, the brand sets itself apart by creating helmets people actually want to wear—aiming not only to improve safety but also to drive meaningful societal change.
With conventional helmets, riders often have to compromise on at least one key parameter: aesthetics, comfort, or durability. Headfirst takes a different stance. Their philosophy is simple—design comes first. If it doesn’t look good, nothing else matters.
Beyond aesthetics, Headfirst’s patented FlexFit technology ensures a precise, adaptive fit that reduces injury risk and enhances comfort. Built for modern urban mobility, the helmet features a flexible, multi-impact shell, integrated rear and brake lights, and is constructed from 90% recycled, eco-conscious materials.
With a mission to prevent 50,000 traumatic brain injuries and save 5,000 lives within a decade, Headfirst isn’t just launching a product—it’s starting a movement. One grounded in bold design, lasting performance, and a vision for safer, more conscious cycling for the next generation.
Designing a lifestyle-driven shopping experience
Seeking an ecommerce setup on Shopify to sell their new product direct-to-consumer, Headfirst turned to Nethart for a partner capable of translating their bold vision into a compelling digital experience. They needed more than just a development agency—they sought a team that could handle the heavy lifting across design, branding, and Shopify implementation. A partner who could match their meticulous attention to detail and elevate the aesthetics to meet the standards set by their polished, design-first identity.
At the heart of Headfirst’s philosophy is a simple truth: if you want people to wear helmets, they need to look exceptional.
While most helmet brands focus on technical specs and utilitarian design, Headfirst takes a different stance. This isn’t just a product—it’s a lifestyle statement.
The challenge was to design a brand and eCommerce experience that reflected this mindset. One that didn’t follow industry norms but instead drew inspiration from fashion and lifestyle. The goal: to build a visually rich, emotionally engaging platform that repositions the helmet as a design object—distinct from the conventional, feature-led presentation of the competition.
A native Shopify experience—laying the foundation for a bold new brand
Through a close and collaborative design process, we created a shopping experience grounded in Headfirst’s visual identity—blending lifestyle storytelling with product-focused clarity. The result is a refined eCommerce platform that balances clean, modern layouts with immersive imagery, presenting features and details with purpose, not excess.
We built a custom native Shopify implementation that enables effortless management of both the commerce and content layers—supporting Headfirst’s ambition to scale their brand with flexibility and control.
The website launched in May 2025. Following a successful Kickstarter campaign, full eCommerce capabilities will go live in July 2025.