I love what Dom says in the clip about taking time to enjoy our precious lives “if you can't enjoy the journey, what is the point of going on it in the first place, if you're all you're looking for is the destination, which may or may not even exist”.
Now, for those who prefer to read rather than listen, I’ve published the full story in article form below.
When I first sat down with Dom Cotton for the podcast, One Precious Life, I was curious to learn how someone who had lived out his dream job as a sports journalist could end up reinventing a cycling helmet - and, along the way, join an ABBA tribute band. But what unfolded in our conversation was a deeply thoughtful and honest reflection on reinvention, resilience, and the importance of variety in life.
Dom described his philosophy simply: "People, variety, and making things a little bit better - those are the things that make me tick." That spirit of openness runs through every part of his life and career.
Growing up in London, Dom spent six years at boarding school in Worcester after his father took a job in Nigeria. He was only eight at the time. “It was quite a shock to the system,” he told me. “One minute you're at home with your parents, the next you're at a very formal school, expected to conform to a world you didn’t even know existed.”
He found a lifeline in sport - particularly cricket - and for years, dreamed of becoming a professional player. “I was pretty good,” he says, “but not quite good enough.”
That passion pivoted into journalism. Dom’s mother was a freelance journalist, and the profession captured his imagination early. “From the age of 15, I knew I wanted to work for the BBC,” he said. And he did. After studying media at Sussex and later completing a postgraduate diploma in broadcast journalism, Dom worked his way through BBC regional news before reaching national level. He covered cricket tours, World Cups, and lived what he calls his boyhood dream.
But after a decade, that dream began to feel less fulfilling. "You use the same corner of your brain over and over again," he said. "It became repetitive. I wasn’t learning."
A secondment to The Media Trust sparked a change. He went on to work in the charity sector for over a decade. “I found a new sense of meaning. I was using the same storytelling skills, but in service of causes that mattered.” Today, he’s still involved as a trustee for Peer Power, a charity supporting young people who’ve experienced trauma.
But Dom was still to discover his inner inventor. He describes the moment he and his colleague Josh came up with the idea for a foldable helmet as a casual but pivotal conversation while meeting on day in London. Josh, who was 25 at the time, was riding a Santander hire bike and mentioned how uncomfortable and unsafe it felt not to wear a helmet - while Dom, then 50, had his own helmet awkwardly hanging off his rucksack. Josh remarked, “That must be annoying for you, and it’s scary for me not to have anything on my head.” Then he said, “Let’s create a foldable helmet.” Dom, without any product design or engineering experience, simply said yes. “I had no idea how to make a thing, let alone a new safety product. But I just said yes.”
In hindsight, Dom calls it a moment of naive optimism. He wasn’t actively searching for a product to create, but he recognises now that he was open to something new. That brief conversation became the catalyst for a seven-year journey of invention, challenge, and persistence.
From there, they set about tackling one of urban commuting’s most stubborn pain points - how to carry a helmet without it being bulky or inconvenient. The pair imagined a helmet that could fold flat and fit easily into a bag. That idea became their mission.
They explored the physics and practicalities, eventually envisioning a design that would allow the helmet to pivot, flip, and lock flat - compressing its volume while maintaining safety standards. But turning the idea into a real, certifiably safe product was a long, gruelling road.
“It was a nightmare,” Dom admitted. “We came very close to not making it at all. The testing - dropping it, smashing it - it’s intense. And we had to keep going back and redoing things.”
Each helmet had to be tested to industry safety standards — rigorous benchmarks that involved placing the helmet on a dummy headform and dropping it from significant heights onto steel anvils to simulate impact. This simulates what would happen if a cyclist were to fall off their bike and hit their head. “We tested it within an inch of its life,” Dom said. “We had to prove it could perform under the same conditions as any standard rigid helmet.”
One of the toughest challenges was achieving a foldable design that didn’t compromise structural integrity. “It took us several complete design overhauls,” Dom said. “We worked with four different designer-engineer teams over seven years. Each one brought us a step closer, but the real breakthrough came when we found a way to turn a three-quarter sphere into a flat disc - almost like a frisbee - using a central pivot and a clamping mechanism.”
“That alone took years to perfect,” he continued. “And every time we thought we’d cracked it, we’d hit another wall in testing or production.”
That yes led to seven years of what he describes as a “rollercoaster.” Designing, failing, redesigning. Getting certified as a safety product was its own saga. “It took us at least three and a half years longer than we thought it would, just to get it safe,” Dom said.
In parallel, Dom and Josh had to launch a company from scratch. They named it Newlane and spent years juggling product development with raising investment, pitching to retailers, and building relationships with manufacturers and partners.
“We nearly ran out of money five times,” Dom said. “My wife was asking where the next cheque was coming from. But we just kept saying — they built the Shard. They went to the moon. Surely we can make a helmet that folds.”
That optimism paid off. The result is a helmet that folds flat — like a frisbee — while still meeting rigorous safety standards. Dom’s company has now sold over 3,500 units. The helmet is stocked in Selfridges, sold online through Halfords, and partnered with Brompton Bikes.
He shared one of his most memorable moments: “I saw someone on the street wearing our helmet. I literally ran after him and asked for a photo. I was buzzing. He was buzzing. That was the moment it felt real.”
What’s striking about Dom is how he talks about business. For him, everything is sales - but not in the traditional sense. “The best sales come from authenticity and passion. You’ve got to believe in it yourself.”
He also talked candidly about the emotional strain of entrepreneurship. "You have to find ways to keep going. Little wins. Celebrate the steps."
Dom emphasised that sustaining motivation over a long and often anxiety-inducing journey can be about deliberately building in moments that lift you up.
“Satisfaction comes in many different forms,” he said. “You need to work out ways of having stop-offs along the way which make you feel good and refuel yourself.”
Whether it’s seeing progress, spotting someone wearing the helmet, or hearing positive feedback, these moments give him fuel to keep going. “You have to scan the horizon for, ‘That’s good — we should keep going.’” Dom calls them ‘sustenance points.’ Without them, he says, it’s easy to lose steam.
That philosophy extends to his daily routine. He works from a studio at the end of his garden, but he’s quick to acknowledge the blurred lines of running your own business. “You don’t really switch off. Your laptop’s always there.”
Physical activity helps. “I ride my bike, go to the gym, go for walks. I think the physiological benefits of movement are huge — for everyone. It keeps me sane.”
His workdays are varied. “It could be speaking to investors, working with designers, liaising with manufacturers, doing customer service, chasing up suppliers — it’s everything.” Dom explains how all-encompassing the role of a founder is: “It’s never just the technical bit. It’s sales, logistics, brand, cash flow — the actual product is just one part of the business.”
And then there’s music.
“I’m in an ABBA tribute band,” he says. “It started after a Christmas karaoke night. Someone said I could sing a bit, and it snowballed. We now do 10 to 12 gigs a year. We’re called A Star is Bjorn. Singing lifts me. I walk into rehearsal feeling tired and come out feeling like a million dollars.”
His openness about family life is equally honest. Dom went through a separation 11 years ago and described the emotional aftermath with candour. “I thought I’d failed my family,” he said. “But I’ve come to see that families don’t have to look one way. I’ve built a blended family. And it works.”
He has four sons — three of whom have now left home, while the youngest still lives with him. “So I always see a child” He reflects on how parenting has shaped him: “It’s grounding. It makes you think about your time, your values, how you show up in the world.”
When I asked who had helped him become the person he is today, Dom didn’t hesitate. “My mum has always encouraged me and my brother to be open to new things,” he said. “That open-minded optimism — that idea that you can do it if you want to — that’s been essential.”
He also spoke with admiration about his wife, Gayle. “She gets me. She supports me. She’s got my back.” He also shared moments that mean the most. “My wife changes the head on my electric toothbrush. That might sound ridiculous, but to me, that’s love. It’s care. It’s having someone who has your back.”
And in his professional life, he credits one of his former charity bosses, Charlotte Hill, as a mentor. “She was a very positive influence on how I think about leading and working. A great example of how to connect with people.”
When I asked Dom what his 85-year-old self would say to him, he laughed: “Calm down. Keep things in perspective. Take a breath. Don’t go off the deep end.”
And what about his 100th birthday? “I’d want people to say I was enthusiastic. Optimistic. That I worked hard when it mattered. And that I was a good dad, husband, and friend.”
His one piece of wisdom? “Open things up. Don’t close them down. Try new things. Meet people. Be open.”
That sentiment stays with me. Dom Cotton’s story isn’t just about reinventing the cycling helmet — it’s about reinventing yourself, again and again. And it’s about saying yes. Even when you’re not sure how. Even when you have no idea what comes next.
Because that’s what it means for Dom to live his one precious life.
Listen, read, or watch more here: https://bit.ly/m/onepreciouslife
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