UCLA
Center for East Asian Studies
Japanese Youth and Popular Culture
March 6, 2000
Nikkei Weekly || Japanese Youth Culture || News File Index
Makers rush to cash in on kickboard craze
Call it a toy or transportation, Japanese youths are getting a kick out of a whiz of a scooter known as a kickboard, skate scooter or Stickboard.
Take a scooter, stir in a dash of skateboard and a hint of snowboard and that's the latest rage to hit the streets. The kickboard is a flexible, high-tech board made from several layers of aluminum, carbon and wood, and lightweight alloy, two or three wheels, a brake and a steering rod. Getting going means putting one foot on the board and kicking the pavement with the other foot; steering requires pushing the "joystick" right or left to lean the board; and stopping calls for placing a foot on the brake located over the back wheel.
For many, kickboards are a cool, convenient, cheap and practical mode of transportation, perfect for zipping around the big city, swerving around the crowds and all the while having a ball. Stunned by a sight in a store window? Stopped by the stairs? Gotta train to catch? No problem, as the kickboard is easily and speedily collapsed for carrying under an arm, in a tote bag or on a lap. The kickboard, at about 3kg, hardly requires a muscleman to handle it.
Customized scooters
Among the leading manufacturers of kickboards is the U.S. company K2. K2 Japan Corp., which introduced a kickboard in April, plans to put the Pro Kick on the market this month. It features three wheels - two in the front - comes in silver, red, blue or yellow, and will sell for about 37,000 yen. Individual wheels, boards and other parts will also be available for the personally designed, customized kickboard. The company is aiming at sales of 30,000 units this year, five times the number it sold in 1999.
Other manufacturers are jumping on the board bandwagon. Bandai Co. will debut late this month its product tentatively called Stickboard, featuring larger wheels for improved better balance. It will sell for 9,800 yen. Schikraft Inc., a subsidiary of sporting-goods wholesaler Goldwin Inc., is the maker of the Micro, which saw sales of 9,000 units in 1999. The company plans to procure 20,000 kickboards a month from Taiwan.
For those who want to let the machine do all the work, there's the electric ET-101 Coco from Takara Co., set for release in May. It is to sell for about 100,000 yen.
Copyright 2000 Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Inc.
