RipTide Sports

What RipTide Sports does

RipTide Sports is a niche urethane component manufacturer specializing in skateboard bushings and roller skate cushions, founded in 2010 and headquartered in Westlake, Oregon. The company designs and produces aftermarket tuning parts — bushings, cushions, pivot cups, footstops, and related accessories — that allow riders to customize the feel, responsiveness, and carving characteristics of their setups. Its technical differentiation rests on three proprietary urethane formulations branded as APS, KranK, and WFB, each engineered for distinct hardness, rebound, and durability profiles. The product line is engineered for broad compatibility, fitting more than 30 skateboard truck brands and 15-plus roller skate plate brands, which positions RipTide as a universal-fitment option within its category.

The company operates a dual-channel go-to-market model: a direct-to-consumer e-commerce storefront selling to individual riders, alongside a wholesale distribution channel serving skate shops and retailers. Pricing is positioned at a premium relative to commodity bushings, reflecting the proprietary urethane formulations and the brand's reputation within enthusiast communities. An extensive educational content library covering bushing duro selection, truck setup, and tuning principles functions as a category-authority asset, supporting organic customer acquisition and reinforcing brand credibility in a niche where setup knowledge is highly valued.

RipTide is privately held with 11-50 employees and has not disclosed any external funding rounds, acquisitions, or M&A activity. The company remains a focused specialist within action-sports aftermarket components, with revenue exposure tied to discretionary spending in skateboarding and roller skating — categories that experienced cyclical tailwinds but represent a structurally small addressable market for premium tuning components.

Name

RipTide Sports

Legal name

RipTide Sports, Inc.

Website

https://riptidesports.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

RipTide Sports is a privately held urethane component manufacturer founded in 2010 in Westlake, Oregon, producing proprietary skateboard bushings, roller skate cushions, and tuning accessories sold direct-to-consumer and through wholesale channels to action-sports riders and skate shops.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Santa Barbara

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Direct Product Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of skateboard bushings, roller skate cushions, pivot cups, footstops, and accessories through the company's e-commerce platform. Products sold at fixed unit prices with occasional promotional discounts.
2. Wholesale Distribution: Wholesale program for retailers and skate shops to carry RipTide products, with a formal application process for interested partners.
3. Affiliate Program: Referral-based affiliate program generating revenue through commissions on sales referred by partners.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

RipTide Sports manufactures and sells premium urethane bushings for skateboards and roller skates, along with complementary components such as pivot cups, footstops, washers, and bearing lubricants. Products are built on three proprietary urethane formulas (APS, KranK, WFB) and are offered in multiple heights, shapes, and durometers to match rider weight, style, and specific truck or plate compatibility. Manufacturing is performed in Oregon, USA, and the company sells direct-to-consumer through its own Shopify storefront and via wholesale to skate shops.

Product overview

RipTide Sports is a specialty manufacturer of premium skateboard bushings, roller skate cushions, and related accessories. The product portfolio centers on proprietary urethane formulas (APS, KranK, and WFB) offered across multiple bushing heights and shapes for skateboards, surfskates, and roller skates. Core offerings include skateboard bushings in six height variants (0.4" to 0.75"), roller skate cushion 8-packs compatible with major plate brands (Bont, Jackson, Moxi, Pilot, PowerDyne, Riedell, SureGrip), pivot cups and tubes for various truck brands, footstops, washers, and bearing lubricants. The company operates as a single-product focus manufacturer with complementary accessories rather than a platform architecture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Skateboard Bushings High-performance urethane bushings for skateboard trucks, available in multiple heights (0.4", 0.5", 0.55", 0.6", 0.65", 0.75") and three proprietary formulas (APS, KranK, WFB) to customize truck feel and responsiveness for individual rider weight and style.
• Roller Skate Cushions Premium urethane cushions/bushings designed for quad roller skate plates, compatible with major brands including Bont, Jackson, Moxi, Pilot, PowerDyne, Riedell, and SureGrip. Sold as 8-pack sets such as the Falcon Series and Reactor Series.
• Footstops Urethane footstops including Slab, PSD Inside, PSD I/O Mini, PSD KoMotion, PSD Aer-Out, and PSD Out-Side models, designed to provide consistent foot positioning and balance on longboard and skateboard setups.
• Pivot Cups & Tubes Aftermarket pivot cups and tubes for various skateboard truck brands (Indy, Paris, Caliber, Randal, Kodiak, Carver, Ace, and others). Made from self-lubricating WFB compound for smooth turning and extended durability.
• Cup Washers & Flat Washers Precision machined washers for use with bushings, providing different resistance levels for customizing truck feel.
• Bearing Speed Lubrication Specialized bearing lubricant available in dry weather and wet weather formulas for maintaining skateboard bearing performance.
• Dual Kingpin Bushing Kit (DKP) Complete bushing kit designed for Dual Kingpin truck setups, including compatible bushings and pivot cups.
• Brand Packs Curated bushing packs combining complementary products for specific truck setups or riding styles.
• Apparel Branded clothing and merchandise including team rider apparel and branded items.
• Surfskate Bushings Specialty bushings designed for surfskate trucks including Carver C7 and Carver CX compatible options, sold as a dedicated surfskate product line.
• Stealth Trainer - High Friction Bearing Specialized high-friction bearing designed for training and instructional use.

Quantifiable outcome

• APS provides 10-15% more lean than same durometer of other brands
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• PSD Designs (UK)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPSD Designs, based in the UK, designed the Inside, Outside, Aer-Out, and I/O Mini footstops that are manufactured by RipTide in the USA. This is a product design partnership where PSD provides the intellectual property and RipTide handles manufacturing and distribution.
• Motion Boardshop (Seattle)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMotion Boardshop in Seattle collaborated with RipTide to design the KoMotion footstop. The KoMotion is manufactured by RipTide using APS urethane formula.
• Ambroise Trauet (Team Rider)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerTeam rider Ambroise Traulet designed the Slab footstop, which is now part of RipTide's product line. This represents a product co-development relationship with a sponsored athlete.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Orangatang Wheels: Orangatang specializes in urethane skateboard and longboard components (wheels, bushings, accessories) and targets the same longboard/downhill/cruising rider as RipTide, with parallel premium-urethane positioning.
• Sure-Grip International: Sure-Grip manufactures roller skate plates and complete skates for which RipTide explicitly makes branded cushions, while also selling its own cushions — making it both a channel partner and a direct competitor in the roller-skate cushion category.
• Khiro Skate Hardware: Khiro produces skateboard hardware including bushings, pivot cups, risers and hardware — overlapping RipTide's core SKU set and serving the same skate-shop wholesale channel with comparable price points.
• Bont: Bont produces roller skate plates and complete skates used in derby, speed and quad skating; RipTide produces Bont-compatible cushions, so Bont is both a customer/OEM partner and a competitor in the same cushion segment.
• Riedell Shoes: Riedell is a heritage roller skate and plate manufacturer that supplies the derby/jam/artistic segments where RipTide cushions compete; RipTide explicitly offers Riedell-compatible cushion 8-packs, putting them in direct cushion-level competition.
• Moxi Roller Skates: Moxi sells roller skates and accessories; RipTide makes cushions tailored to Moxi's Lolly/Beach Bunny plates, so Moxi sits at the intersection of customer, OEM partner and adjacent competitor in roller skate cushions.
• Venom Bushings: Venom is a urethane-bushing brand sold into the skateboard aftermarket; it competes head-to-head with RipTide on the same truck-fitment shelves and the same rider base, and is one of the most-cited alternatives to RipTide's APS/KranK/WFB lineup.

Broad incumbents

• Bones (Powell-Peralta): Bones, the components arm of Powell-Peralta, sells wheels, bearings, hardware and bushings into the same skateboard channel as RipTide, with far greater scale, distribution and marketing — making it both a direct competitor and the dominant incumbent.
• Paris Trucks: Paris is a leading longboard truck brand whose trucks (and bushings) are a reference platform for RipTide's 0.6" longboard bushing lineup; Paris competes indirectly via its stock bushings while RipTide sells the aftermarket upgrade.

Emerging players

• Carver Skateboards: Carver makes surfskate trucks (C7, CX) for which RipTide explicitly sells replacement bushings; Carver's brand reaches the same surfskate rider, making Carver a complementary OEM partner and a potential vertical-integration threat.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@RipTide-Sports
• Facebookfacebook.com/RipTideSportsInc
• Instagraminstagram.com/riptidesports

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RipTide Sports