About Us
EVERY GREAT STORY HAS A BEGINNING…WHICH IS WHERE WE MIGHT AS WELL START...
… A great start
Ace Vagas (who founded the first Roller Derby shop in Australia) came up with the idea for Better Bearings not long after going to The 2014 Great Southern Slam in Adelaide. Because Ace used to own a skate shop, skaters were approaching her and complaining about their bearings. Having serviced hundreds of skates, Ace knew that she could develop a bearing that was stronger and superior…
…So one week later…
Ace teamed up with Narsty and got a bunch of samples sent from a whole bunch of different bearing companies. She then asked her friends and Skaters from across Australia to try to break them and report what they thought.
The bearings we use now at Better Bearings were the highest performing from many, many trials……put through rigorous testing by some of Australia’s best skaters including the boys from Brisbane City Rollers ...and when they stopped breaking, they knew they had the right combination.
However, with Better Bearings growing and Ace and Narsty both working full-time, maintaining Better Bearings at the high quality that built the brand was becoming taxing…and they decided to close Better Bearings.
September 2017 Enter Kerryn...
A passionate Skater and business owner who founded Skatescool Australia, couldn’t let Better Bearings go. As soon as she found out Better Bearings was closing down, she knew that she wanted to continue the amazing Brand and grow it further.
Kerryn’s completely committed to maintaining the reputation that Better Bearings earned by providing high quality, handcrafted, super tough bearings. She is also striving to make Better Bearings an ethical & environmentally sustainable company. Giving back to the community is a top priority.
Our Products
Better Bearings are not only crafted to withstand the rigours of roller derby, park, street and inline hockey, they're priced competitively - so that we can all afford them...…and they’re tough!
All Better Bearings are above an ABEC 7 rating (ABEC rating...it's a thing), not so much for the speed, but for the level of attention and quality during manufacture...which as it turns out, means they'll go faster too!
They're reliable and longer lasting...which means you spend more time skating, and less time mucking around with your gear.
Easy to clean and maintain, Better Bearings have really easy to remove shields, which makes cleaning easier! You can get everything you need to keep your bearings spinning in our complete bearing packs, or buy bearing maintenance and cleaning gear separately. Our packaging makes transporting and sorting your bearings, easier and well...…just better really. Need to know more? Click here
USING BUSINESS AS A FORCE FOR GOOD
In 2018 Better Bearings started on their BCorp journey and one of our goals for 2021 is to become a BCorp Certified company.
Certified B Companies are a new kind of business that balances purpose and profit. They are legally required to consider the impact of their decisions on their workers, customers, suppliers, community, and the environment. This is a community of leaders, driving of a global movement of people using businesses as a force for good.
In May 2019 Better Bearings launched their Better Parks Initiative which we hope will help skaters all over the world clean up their skate parks and make our parks a safe and enjoyable place to skate. To find out more about this initiative click here.
In June 2019 Better Bearings joined the Buy One Give One #B1G1 movement and announced with every product sold we will help someone somewhere have a better life.
#betterbearingsbetterworld
The United Nations released 17 Sustainable Development Goals which are a blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all. They address the global challenges we face, including those related to poverty, inequality, climate, environmental degradation, prosperity, and peace and justice. The Goals interconnect and in order to leave no one behind, it ís important that we achieve each Goal and target by 2030. See below to see Better Bearings contribution towards these goals to date.