TriMech’s Product Development Team Helps HN Premium Fingerboards Bring a New Design to the Marketplace

Remi Gardiner adopted fingerboarding as a teenager to visualize tricks and understand the physics of skateboarding. Today, decades later, Remi has founded HN Premium Fingerboards, a supplier of statement fingerboards designed with both aesthetics and high performance in mind.

High-Flying Design of Miniature Skateboard Gives Fingerboarding Enthusiasts Different Grip Options

“In those early days, I used a fingerboard to learn tricks,” Remi explained. “I quickly realized that as a skill toy, it had its own value. It keeps you coming back. That’s when I got the idea of creating my own brand of fingerboards. You can call fingerboarding a hobby, but understand that it’s a lifelong hobby that inspires people around the world.”

Fingerboarding in action

A fingerboard is a miniature replica skateboard. With your index and middle fingers on the board, you can simulate skateboarding moves and tricks. What began as a way to visualize and prep for traditional skateboarding evolved into a combination of art and precision skill with a global community of enthusiasts.

Bringing a Long-Held Idea to Life

Remi toyed with various creations over the years, using different designs and materials. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic presented a unique opportunity for him to devote time to turning his vision of the perfect fingerboard into reality. He got in touch with MAKO Design + Invent (now TriMech Design Solutions), known for supporting inventors in their product development journey.

A photorealistic render of the product

With the goal of transforming fingerboard design to suit a high-flying style, Remi went for a non-traditional grip with a totally new feel against the user’s fingers. The result is a Gloss Top Series and a Chrome Grip Series. The change in grip is a complete shift from the norm established in the marketplace, and Remi is all-in on the transformational approach.

“The market is full of foam grip and sandpaper grip fingerboards. My grip feels more functional, sticking just enough to get the high-flying pop, but not too much so that I can’t flip the board in all the ways I want to. There’s room for every style of board and user. I have my style, my vision, and my product and I’m very proud of that.”

Finding the Best-Suited Support Team

Remi found the MAKO team through online research. He searched for experts who turn ideas into products for the startup community. MAKO’s model for supporting inventors who are at an early stage, combined with their understanding of what Remi needed to accomplish, made them the best fit.

“I had been curating a vision in my mind for 30 years. I had a prototype from years ago and some specs on paper. Paul Davis, the industrial engineer I worked closely with, channeled my vision. And MAKO’s process helped me manage costs over time. They really allow people like me to be able to fund their dreams.”

Product development is a journey and not a straight line. Remi said he entered the process knowing that.

“I came in with a calm attitude and I wasn’t in a rush. I was ready to rely on MAKO to help me navigate ups and downs and get me to a manufactured product. MAKO has been around long enough to have fine-tuned their process. Even when they matched me with Paul, I think they knew he would fit with my personality. By the end, MAKO is just as invested in the product as I am.”

Design Iteration for Best Results

By evaluating early-stage, 3D-printed prototypes of just the board and deck, Remi had a chance to give feedback and request changes, even if that meant changing a dimension by less than a millimeter.

“I know what I want and MAKO gave me the freedom to verify every little detail. Each stage is an opportunity to collaborate, learn, and improve the design.”

Design choices had to take into account the small dimensions, the materials, and how those materials affix to each other, tooling capabilities and limitations, and inventory and availability of certain materials.

Close-up shots of the fingerboards

“When it was time to add the trucks and wheels, a low-profile design was essential. We also wanted to avoid a lock nut fastener, which is difficult to find with our micro-sized requirements. Paul engineered snap-on end caps instead, and we did one more stage of prototyping to ensure functionality. It was a design challenge we had to work through that ended up adding a nice aesthetic element to the look and feel.”

MAKO’s support doesn’t end with product design. The team’s network (now even larger as part of TriMech Group) allows them to source and select the right local and overseas suppliers and manufacturers to get clients to the finish line. In Remi’s case, that’s a beautifully packaged product now selling through his online store.

A Path to Realizing Your Vision

Remi talked about how satisfying it is to build your own brand.

“When you channel your vision and set your path, you can build your own product and brand from a hobby, from a passion. I think that resonates universally. Even better, I’m helping people find enjoyment and a lifelong dedication to mastering their skills.”

HN Premium Fingerboards

Check out existing products and stay in tune with the evolution of Remi’s HN Premium Fingerboards at hnpremiumfingerboards.com and join his thousands of followers on YouTube at youtube.com/@hnpremiumfingerboards.

Do you have a product you want help bringing to market? Schedule a complimentary consultation about your design here.