Last week, as part of my on-going relationship with BRITAX as a member of their Latina Advisory Group, I was given an incredible opportunity to travel to their U.S. headquarters located in Charlotte, NC. BRITAX, a leader in child mobility safety, invited a group of Blogueras Latinas to their headquarters to show us exactly why they are simply the best at what they do.
Before I headed out on my trip, I’ll admit that I was a little nervous. Nervous to leave my family, yet excited to begin my adventure. I already knew that BRITAX was a reputable company and was just a little apprehensive about finally meeting the rest of the group in person. Within minutes of gathering at the airport, I knew that this was going to be a fantastic trip.
After checking in at the hotel, this little bag of goodies was waiting for each of us at the front desk.
NICE! A great-fitting BRITAX t-shirt and a little box of Godiva chocolates. Man, I love chocolate…
Next up, a wonderful dinner with BRITAX executives and the rest of the Blogueras. Don’t they look lovely?! 
Dinner was at Harry’s Grille & Tavern in Charlotte. And I really have to mention Harry’s here and say that their service was EXCELLENT. We had the waiters and waitresses hoppin’ that night and I thought they did a great job. The food was also fantastic, so if you’re in Charlotte, be sure to stop in!
Here are a few of my new friends:
That’s me with Amber of Thrifty Ninja.
And here’s Pattie from Living Mi Vida Loca.
This one is me with Taty from Cool Moms Cool Tips.
We had such a great time, can’t you tell?
Photo courtesy of Divina from DancingHotdogs.com
The next morning we headed to BRITAX’s HQ for an all-day educational session. That part made me nervous because usually after an hour or two in a meeting I’ll be fidgeting and wondering when I can leave. Surprisingly, this time was different (PHEW!).
Jon Chamberlain, President of BRITAX, presented a company overview first. So many interesting facts – for instance, did you know that BRITAX recently acquired the #1 jogging stroller brand, BOB? Those things are awesome! And Jon is also awesome, by the way. He’s really down to earth and I had the pleasure of sitting next to him at dinner the night before!
Here's Jon giving us the full BRITAX overview.
Next we took a tour of the facility. Due to proprietary concerns, photos were not permitted during the tour, but we were overloaded with information:
- Car seats have an expiration date (usually 7 years). Check the back of the seat.
- BRITAX car seats use Safe Cell technology – an engineered piece located in the base of the seat designed to compress in the event of a crash (to reduce movement).
- The tethers on BRITAX seats contain multiple stitches. Those stitches are designed to rip during a crash to lessen the impact on the child and serve the purpose of “breaking the fall”.
- Head injury is the leading cause of death for children up to 12 years old involved in vehicle crashes and comprises 65% of injuries in both frontal and side impact crashes.
- BRITAX performs numerous quality assurance tests in their lab facility. Everything from fabrics to mechanical functions to weighted components are continually checked.
- BRITAX manufactures their products to outperform government-related safety requirements by 20%.
- BRITAX car seats not secured with a tether STILL meet the gov’t requirements for seats that are tethered.
- BRITAX car seats are designed to manage and absorb energy in the event of a crash.
And that is just a fraction of the information I captured at BRITAX’s HQ. (Trust me, I’m a nerd and took pages and pages worth of notes!) Special thanks to our tour guides throughout the day and to the product rep’s that took the time to demonstrate some of BRITAX’s products with us!
WOW…that was a long post! And I could totally write A LOT more, but carpal tunnel will likely set in soon! There’s just SO MUCH to say. For instance, the night I got home my husband and I talked about BRITAX until 2:00 AM! Within minutes he was convinced – BRITAX is the safest brand out there. We even went to the garage and examined our current car seat – feeling totally guilty that we’d strapped our son into that thing each day. So, thank you, BRITAX, for opening our eyes. Now I totally get what the whole “brand loyalty” thing is all about.
Be sure to check back later this week as I’ll have some MOVIE TICKETS to give away! Oh yeah, BRITAX is all over it!
Like BRITAX Los Lleva Seguros on Facebook and follow @SafeconBritax on Twitter to learn more.
Disclosure: The information provided for this post is because I am a Brtiax Latina Advisory Board Member and Blogger. As always, all opinions, ideas, and stories are my own.”
It was an amazing trip! I learned so much of this exceptional brand! It was great meeting you!