Madeleen Klaasen, Chief Marketing Officer at Bugaboo, has worked with the brand for 13 years of their 15 year history. We caught up with Madeleen at the launch of the latest Bugaboo pram: The Bugaboo Bee3
Why do you think Bugaboo is such an iconic brand?
I think it is our true focus on design innovation and excellent performance. It takes a long time for us to come up with something that we think is the perfect solution, because we are keen to get it right. We also combine our innovative solutions with beautiful looks.
Max's [Barenbrug, founder of Bugaboo] vision was to design a product for parents, who also want the best for their child, but also to appeal to their sense of style because when you become a parent normal life doesn’t stop and you still want to look cool!
What are the top innovations that you think Bugaboo has brought to the pushchair market?
Firstly, the smooth ride, the experience of putting a pram up and wheeling it around has been transformed from a burden into a blessing. Secondly, our smart design and modular functionality. Bugaboo designs mean that one style can suit all terrains: from city to countryside to beach, and offers a wide variety of seating positions, giving a parent choice. Also, our quality is second to none.
Why do you think parents connect with Bugaboo so well?
Social media works really well for us. It’s strange to think that a few years ago it didn’t even exist! At Bugaboo we make the implicit explicit, telling the design story behind the brand – as we have a good story to tell. Word of mouth between parents is the best endorsement. We can shout about how great we are, but it is seeing people on the streets with our products – that’s what really counts.
Which is your personal favourite of the Bugaboo pushchairs?
I recently became a step grandmother, so because I don’t have children myself, I had to choose between the Bugaboos for the first time! I chose the Bugaboo Donkey in Mono because I think it is such an amazing piece of innovation – it takes just three clicks to go from Mono to the Duo and back. It has lots of luggage space which suits my lifestyle because I always have a lot of bags with me – all black of course, that’s my colour preference. Saying that, I do also love the Andy Warhol for Bugaboo Banana print.
Don't miss… Bugaboo Bee3 pushchair: Junior was at the launch in Amsterdam - SEE ALL THE PICTURES