HE was a swimming teacher who took to inventing his own teaching aids when he couldn't find the right equipment to help youngsters develop their skills in the pool.
It led to him developing the Turtle Pack and now product creator Michael Harkins could be set to expand in American with a new range based on four green superheroes.
The 28-year-old entrepreneur and his company Turtle Pack have joined forces with entertainment brand Nickelodeon, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) and ViacomCBS Consumer Products to launch a new swimming aid.
While the new product will provide in-pool support like the award-winning original, it will also give kids the chance to play dress-up as Raphael, Michelangelo, Donatello or Leonardo while swimming.
Mr Harkins created the original Turtle Pack Swimming Aid – a turtle-shell shaped float which keeps the child’s arms free to learn proper swimming technique – whilst still at university.
Now, a new Ninja Turtles-themed swim float is expected to be hit both in the US and UK.
Mr Harkins said: “Having become a parent for the first time earlier this year, this deal is a ‘dream come true.’
“I’ve loved Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles since I was a wee boy and it really feels like we’ve come full circle with this new product.
“As a swimming teacher and now a new parent, I hope the connection with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will encourage more young children to enjoy spending time in the pool and having fun while learning a lifelong skill for both their future health and safety, especially as so many children have missed out on lessons due to the pandemic.”
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The deal will help Turtle Pack, which has already sold thousands of its original product, make a splash on both sides of the Atlantic as it taps into the growing trend of nostalgia. The appeal of Ninja Turtles spans generations, with many of the first TMNT fans now parents.
Experts have warned against a ‘lost generation’ of swimmers due to more than one million children missing out on swimming lessons throughout the past year due to COVID-19 restrictions. Designed to address the huge numbers of children in the UK unable to swim by the time they leave primary school, it’s hoped the new TMNT Turtle Pack design will encourage even more children into the pool.
Among Turtle Pack’s fans is Sir Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, whose grandchildren learned to swim using the original Turtle Pack Swimming Aid.
Mr Harkins was supported by Heriot-Watt University’s enterprise team, including entrepreneurial training through the Santander Universities Initiative. He was awarded one of the highest cash awards of £110,000 from Scottish EDGE and was a Royal Society of Edinburgh Enterprise Fellow.
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