The company was formed in 1993 by Jeff Sacree’ who, when making custom surfboards for local surfers in Devon and Cornwall, developed a lightweight heat-retaining helmet for himself to prevent “ice-cream headaches”. The surf helmet proved even more popular than his surfboards and so, the Gecko Head Gear story began.
Following the success of the Gecko surf helmet, in 1995 the RNLI came to Gecko Head Gear for a head protection solution to replace the motorcycle helmets that were being worn by lifeboat crews at the time. Jeff Sacree’ worked closely with the RNLI to develop an open face marine safety helmet that would meet their specific requirements. Today, this open face design continues to be the helmet worn by RNLI lifeboat crews across the UK.