Milt Reimer | A Discussion with the Owner of FXR

I was recently invited to the 2024 FXR Dealer Meeting in Prior Lake, Minnesota, to see what's new and coming soon. It's already well documented that FXR make top notch gear and accessories, but to see how much product they had on display was a tad mind boggling. The Dealer Meeting primarily focused on the snow line of product, but the FXR family bleeds moto and were sure to have some motocross gear on display. They even had some great speakers to discuss the line. Jeremy Martin, Phil Nicoletti, Mike Brown and Kris Keefer were all in attendance to speak to the dealers about their experience with the company. Also in attendance was Milt Reimer, the owner of FXR and possibly the biggest fan of supercross/motocross in the group. I grabbed Milt for a few minutes during some downtime.

Vital MX: It's been a couple of years since you have been able to do one of these. How impressed are you with how it's gone? There are a lot of dealers here.

Milt Reimer: Yeah, it is great. It's great to actually get back together with everyone and meet people who we haven't seen in three years, especially from the management team side, and then just building those relationships, understanding what they want and always working to improve ourselves.

Primarily we are here for the snow side of FXR, but you are also presenting some 23.5 model gear. You did a presentation talking about all of the expectations for the year and how well the business is doing, so how does everybody seem to be taking it?

I think it is going really well. Ultimately, it helps us understand what they need and they help us understand what we need to produce. There is a great vibe, just in general. The energy is super positive and so exciting.

Everybody I've talked to seems to be really into it and I am in awe of how much stuff you have on display. I knew FXR had a ton of product, but I cannot even wrap my brain around how much stuff is on display.

Yeah, it's a crazy thing. When we look at the showroom there is 300 feet of grid wall covered, yet that's about a quarter of what we have. It is kind of mind boggling, but at the same time there's product and niche product that we develop for everyone. Our brand is kind of like KTM – we make something for everybody and that's the key.

You have a major passion for moto. When you started this business, you really started on the snow side. From my understanding, the motorcycle side was a passion project that has really taken off over the years. I think you said that FXR is one of the top five or so gear companies in the business, but to me it has grown into a top two or three company. It's really impressive what you have done with what started as a passion project.

It is interesting for us, because it was a long-term goal of mine to dig into moto in a deep way. We started it before 2000, but our snow growth kept us so focused on that [market]. We didn't have the human resources and the capacity to do moto to the extent that we should have. We changed it up around 2015 and said, "We've got to make each collection count!" I have 20 guys who have a motocross background on staff and they all love it. It is something that we all depend on, just for our own sanity. We enjoy the sport. So much so that passion has led us to really dig and use the resources that we have to produce a world-class product and platform. That's always what it’s about, user experience and engagement. Those two connect together really well.

Vital MX: I've been told you still ride a lot. You have qualified for Loretta's a few times and I was told by one of your employees that you are still fast. How much do you get to ride now?

Milt: They are probably being generous, but I enjoy it and love it. I was just battling with a kid who's a quarter of my age here at the weekend. I'm a recreational rider who did it for years, but you have to ride to stay relevant. It's also great for the body, mind and soul.

Vital MX: You're in good shape!

Milt: It helps and it's a commitment to moto that forces those things. When I'm in good shape to ride moto, I can ride my 250 horsepower turbo sleds. I can hang onto everything. It reduces the risk. To do the stuff at the level that we do, you have to have fun with the equipment. You are just enjoying it and really having a passion for both sports – they connect so closely.

Vital MX: FXR is still a relatively small company. It's not owned by a conglomerate, which means that you can do smaller batches of gear sets and special editions. Kris Keefer had his own design. I think that's something that's really special about what you do, and I would assume that's something that you want to hold onto.

Milt: Absolutely. We are niche in our own way and not about monetizing it. If you do a good job at what you do then ultimately the sales will come. The consumer response is there, because they are engaging in it with you. That, to me, is what it's about. It's about relationships and having fun. We're just chasing our passions and dreams. The business, if you run it well, will take care of itself.

Vital MX: Again, the brand has grown significantly in the last five years. You support a lot of privateers. You are on the Muc-Off/FXR/ClubMX Yamaha team, which gets a lot of eyes on the brand. Talk about the business plan of supporting privateers and also being very friendly with veterans, which is something that you're probably passionate about.

Milt: All of those things that we connect with resonate with me. We have a massive rider support program and I was one of those kids at one point, you know? I remember being on a 50% discount gear deal through my dealer, so that's the part where we are trying to give back to the industry. Andy White [FXR Moto Brand Manager] does a fabulous job of connecting with riders, being race director for KTM Canada for ten years and personal friends with so many people like the president of KTM North America. A lot of the OEMs are calling us to say, "Hey, we need a rider here. Who do you know, Andy?" We are inside the loop right now and having a lot of fun with that, because of all this shared passion.

Vital MX: Just as far as the design process, there are a lot of colorways and graphic designs with your gear sets. A lot of the bigger companies say that is difficult and you cannot have that many lines, yet you do it and give a lot of options to people. Where do you draw the line? How do you decide what's cool and what's too much? Do you even have a line?

Milt: That is hard to say, because the line is moving. I think that a lot of the time – and throughout our history whilst making more product than what's needed at times – you are searching. You are looking at where the sales are, where the data falls and how people like to express themselves. It's often quite shocking. I'll put stuff out there and I'll say, "We have got to do these vision pieces like this." They may get a magazine cover, but they don't sell as well. We did our 'Dart Frog' line this year and there were a bunch of older guys wearing 'Dart Frog' at World Vets!. We are just having fun with it, because the sport of motocross is about pure passion and fun. The guys can do what they want with it.

Vital MX: What's next? I know you have some special stuff coming up. Is there anything that you can actually talk about that could be coming down the line? Maybe something that FXR fans can be looking for?

Milt: We have so many irons in the fire right now and we are going to be throwing a few surprises out into the industry very shortly. We'll just continue to evolve. Like a racer, we are looking at what we did last year and how we can be better next year. We are excited about where we are going and just developing different product categories that we are not even involved in right now. I think they will be pretty meaningful. There is definitely product coming down the pipe that will make quite an impact in the industry, I think.