The episode in detail
WOOM, the brand rethinking bikes for children
For a long time, the market for children’s bikes offered heavy products, poorly suited to younger riders’ bodies. WOOM, an Austrian company founded in 2013 in Vienna by two cyclist fathers, Marcus and Christian, tackled the problem the other way round. Starting from a blank page in a garage, they designed bikes specifically sized for children. The brand now employs more than 200 staff. Mathieu Wohlgemuth, head of WOOM’s development in France, an elite triathlete and former mountain biker, explains the brand’s philosophy and its link with bike commuting.
“Their starting conviction was this: are there bikes on the market today that are really suited to children? The answer was no.”
Children’s bikes 40% lighter than average
The main difference between a WOOM and a standard children’s bike is weight. On average, a WOOM is 40% lighter than the common models on the French market. This weight saving makes learning easier and makes riding more intuitive for a child. The range covers every size, from balance bikes from age 1 up to 26-inch bikes for 14 to 15-year-olds (around 1.60m tall). WOOM refuses stabiliser wheels: learning balance starts from the balance bike. The bikes are unisex, only the colours vary.
“At WOOM, you won’t find stabiliser wheels. We want children to learn to find their balance from the start.”
WOOM upcycling: a virtuous trade-in programme
WOOM has set up an upcycling programme that lets parents send back the bike once it’s become too small. In exchange, they get a 40% discount on the next size up. The bikes collected are refurbished at the Vienna headquarters: wear parts are replaced (tyres, drivetrain, cables, brakes) and cosmetic touch-ups are made. They are then redistributed through a second-hand channel or donated to charities. The goal is that no bike ends up at the tip, and that each frame serves several children in succession.
“The idea does not stop at building and throwing away. The bike that comes back to WOOM will be reused.”
The WOOM Now: an urban bike designed for children’s bike commuting
The WOOM range extends beyond leisure bikes. The brand offers children’s mountain bikes with an air fork or a rigid carbon fork, an electric mountain bike in 24 and 26-inch sizes for mountainous regions, and above all the WOOM Now. This urban bike, launched recently, comes with a front rack (10 kg load), a frame-mounted attachment system and an optional rear rack. It is designed so that the child can carry their school bag and sports gear and get around independently. A bike commuting bike for the youngest riders.
“It’s really a bike designed so that a young child rides almost like on a cargo bike, with its everyday constraints.”
Bike commuting as a school of freedom and health
Mathieu started bike commuting in primary school. He describes cycling to school as a founding feeling of freedom: being able to go and see his friends, get around on his own, gain independence. Today an elite triathlete in XTERRA (the off-road version of triathlon, with mountain biking and trail running), he uses a bike every day for short trips. He travels across France for his job at WOOM, parks in city centres and does his client rounds by bike. On the question of infrastructure, he notes that in Vienna, protected cycle tracks massively encourage bike commuting. In France, the lack of secure parking remains the main barrier.
“Taking the bike every day isn’t much in itself, but it can bring a lot. It does not stop at you, it also reaches the environment.”
Encouraging cycling from childhood to change habits
WOOM’s conviction rests on a simple line of reasoning: a child who learns to love the bike will become a cycling adult. Mathieu points out that if 50% of trips under 5 km were made by bike, transport-related CO2 emissions would fall by around 25%. Bike culture at WOOM is also lived out internally: at the Vienna headquarters, staff arrive in cycling gear and store their bikes upstairs. For those hesitant to invest in a quality children’s bike, the upcycling programme reduces the cost over time. WOOM is currently looking for retailers across France.
