Get Your GoGo ON! Hot

Get your GoGo ON!

Who would have ever thought of making safety gear for women that is actually stylish? ScooterGirls founder/CEO Arlene Battishill, that's who.

Battishill, working in the LA housing market in a plummeting economy, found herself with a shaky foundation and an uncertain future. She knew she had to start looking at another source of income that could financially support both her and her nieces. She came up with the idea of ScooterGirls, a mobile advertising company that sent beautiful women out on scooters brandishing a company's logo or advertisement. It was a brilliant idea; who wouldn't notice a posse of gorgeous girls on bikes? She jokingly refers to it as "Hooters on Scooters".

Out of this, and out of the need to dress her ScooterGirls for both style and safety, the concept of GoGo Gear was born.  

Battishill, with the creation of GOGO Gear, is breaking new ground that will hopefully forever change the 'motorcycle gear for women' industry.  GoGo Gear is the first fashionable, fully-armored, abrasion-resistant coat for any woman that needs to go from her bike to a business meeting without needing to worry about changing.

Battishill says, "The main reason women do not wear protective clothing when riding is they don't like the way traditional gear looks or fits." ScooterGirls new line will give women riders the option of fashionable, feminine coats that can be worn for business, social occasions and recreation while providing the protection they need while riding."

Although you would never guess these GoGo Gear jackets to be protective by looking at them, (Arlene has to prove it to people all of the time by making them feel the armor), it's comparable to any armored gear out there.  She described the intense research that went in to creating it. "Getting waterproof fabric and/or a stretch material and a stiff material to play nicely is not easy!" Arlene commented.

The outside material is handpicked by Arlene, which is then sewn over a layer of abrasion resistant material. The inside of the jacket, a rayon that you would see in almost any dress jacket, is then sewn to the inside. From the outside or inside, you would never guess the GoGo Gear jackets were anything but a nice, stylish dress coat.

The inside rayon lining contains Velcro-access panels that access the armor contained within the jacket. The elbows, shoulders and back have the same armor in it as any other protective jacket in the market.

That’s not all.  No more size small, medium or large, as women are made in more sizes than those three. They are available in women’s sizes from 2 to 22!  When ordering the GoGo Gear jackets from her directly, she even sends a sizing chart for you to measure your bust, waist, hips and sleeves to make sure you receive the correct size. And because women come in even more sizes than that, the bottom of the jacket allows for a 2-inch difference in each size.  

Battishill mentioned a conversation she had with a dealer of motorcycle gear. “I was contacted by a dealer who now wants to make plus-size apparel for women motorcycle riders. The funny thing is, he talked to me about it as if this were a truly novel concept! It was funny and bless his heart for thinking about it, but what's sad about it is that it's completely indicative of the way that women's apparel and gear has been treated.”  Plus- size women have been riding motorcycles for as long as women have been riding motorcycles, but they are just beginning to think this way?

Apart from the many sizes available, she also realized that women had other specific needs depending on the bikes they ride. One female rider in particular sparked another great idea and alteration in a jacket. She explained to Battishill that she rides a chopper and although the jacket fit great off the bike, when she stretched her arms to reach the bars, the jacket sleeves slid up her forearms. Battishill went to work and created a jacket with French Cuffs that can be buttoned at different lengths depending on a rider’s needs.  

GoGo Gear first made its debut at the LA Fashion Show in October of this year.  Not only was that the first time protective gear took part in a fashion show, Battishill and GoGo Gear walked away with first place!  

GoGo Gear will be available to Australia and other European countries first, as the market is stronger there, but they can be ordered directly from her when they are officially released, hopefully in early January. Eventually, she will sell them through certain boutiques in the U.S. also, but only to those stores that “get” the concept of GoGo Gear and are willing to handle the GoGo Gear as it should be, in a true boutique style.

You may all be thinking the same as I was when I spoke to Battishill. This idea is amazing, the GoGo Gear jackets are gorgeous; I can only imagine how much of my savings I will have to deplete to get my hands on one of these! Here's the other shocker, the prices will range between $199 and $399, depending on the jacket. Ok, so it's the same price as the gear we’ve been buying, the same protection, and it looks great? It's almost too good to be true.

Battishill wants feedback from her target audience, women riders, and is creating the jackets to meet their wants and needs.  She asked women what they wanted, designed, and then went back to ask again.  She is actually designing the jackets according to what women want instead of just adjusting men’s jackets to fit women.

Imagine this ladies: you can get off of your bike or scooter and walk into any restaurant or meeting, wearing a fashion-forward, highly-styled jacket that looks nothing like your typical bulky motorcycle gear!  

If you can’t tell from this article, I’m beyond excited for the release of GoGo Gear!  I already have my sizing chart from Battishill and am not-so-patiently waiting for the final styles to be decided and released. As soon as the GoGo Gear jackets are released, I’ll be getting my GoGo ON, that’s for sure!

Now, all we need is a real solution for our helmet hair.  Battishill?

Arlene is currently launching the GoGo Gear line in Italy at the Milan Motorcycle Show November 10-15.  From there, she will be heading to International Motorcycle shows in LA Dec 4-6, New York Jan 22-24 and at the Dealer Expo in Indianapolis Feb 12-15.

Want to Get your GoGo ON?

You can follow her on Twitter to see what’s happening there!

Contact Details:
Arlene Battishill
President & CEO
ScooterGirls, Inc.
www.scooter-girls.com
info@scooter-girls.com