Radio Flyer offers accessories as well as a fun spin on the original wagon design. According to the Radio Flyer website, the company started over 100 years ago in the Windy City of Chicago. Antonio Pasin, who was originally from Italy, immigrated to the United States and became the founder of the company. He first created the wagon and named it the Liberty Coaster as a nod to the statue that welcomed him to his adopted country. The name eventually changed to Radio Flyer, and the company now offers a wide range of products and accessories in the same iconic red color as the original wagon that started it all.
A family picnic and day at the beach will likely need more features than a simple ride down the block to the playground. Consider what your family’s needs are and look for wagons that match. Crafted primarily of heavy-duty rust-resistant steel, this wagon displays the best of several features according to toy expert Steve Shank of Hummelstown, Pennsylvania’s Toys on the Square. According to Shank, this wagon has superior quality rubber air tires, high wooden stake sides for safe riding, and a sturdy handle with advanced steering for smooth maneuverability and tip-proof riding.
It was inspired by the 45 foot tall “Coaster Boy” model, the Radio Flyer hit of the 1933 World’s Fair. Antonio Pasin, a sixteen year old Italian immigrant, was looking for cabinet making work in Chicago in 1914.2Instead he began his American work experience as a water boy for a sewer digging crew. After three years of working various jobs, Antonio bought some used woodworking tools and rented a small workshop space where he could use the wood crafting skills his father and grandfather had taught him. Pasin, who became company head in 1997, said the wagon has become a “kid transport,” with some of the most popular tweaks coming from ingenious hacks of unsuspecting customers. Their canopies, for example, are formal variations on what they saw parents jury-rigging above Radio Flyers on rainy days in Lincoln Park. Asked what innovations he would like to see come to the red wagon if he ran Radio Flyer, he laughs nervously and says the job is really about thinking three steps ahead ….
At the end of the war, however, the Radio Flyer® Wagon jumped right back into American life, with the company ramping up its advertising and production. In spite of increased competition, the company still held an estimated 70 percent of the wagon market as of the year 2000. Under the leadership of the third generation of the Pasin family, the company seemed ready to adapt to further challenges.
Radio Flyer’s folding wagons have long wheelbases and handles but have fabric sides so they can fold easily with just one hand. Also known as collapsible wagons, Radio Flyer’s folding wagons are perfect for tailgating and going to the beach. From the humble start of the iconic little red wagon, Radio Flyer now makes several different categories of wagons and dozens of choices in each.
The 1950s saw a yellow wagon inspired by the movie Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier and a blue wagon produced in partnership with Disney’s Mickey Mouse Club. Wagons from the 1970s borrowed the stylings of the muscle cars of the day, including the Fireball razor ride ons 2001 inspired by Evel Knievel. The 1990s saw the introduction of the “Quad Shock Wagon” echoing sport utility vehicles. The “Ultimate Family Wagon”, introduced in 2007, includes a sunshade and an adjustable seat; the design won a Chicago Innovation Award in 2007.
The plastic red wagon can be used as a walker, as the handle locks into place. The handle can also be adjusted into a pull position so that the toy can be used in a fashion similar to that frozen ride on toy of the original wagon. It is recommended for children older than 1, and it includes a weight limit of 35 pounds. I have an original Liberty Coaster wagon I used to play with as a child.
In the all-terrain category, Radio Flyer also makes cargo wagons. Each of them has the ability to handle more cargo because the bodies have higher sides so you can stack more cargo inside. The readily recognizable little red wagon manufactured by Radio Flyer is used in several artistic works, including film and television. A character in the 1992 drama film Radio Flyer flies to safety in a converted Radio Flyer wagon. Radio Flyer wagons appear in a store display in the 1983 film A Christmas Story.
Radio Flyer is a four-time Inc. 5000 honoreeand pulled in $200 million in revenue last year. While the company has worked with Starlight since 2001 to donate wagons to more than 800 hospitals around the country, in 2019 Garone and Radio Flyer CEO Robert Pasindecided to collaborate to adapt the wagons for hospital settings. This month, they will launch the newly patented design, the Hero Wagon, retrofitted specifically to transport sick children safely. The classic red Radio Flyer wagon had already been in use in hospitals for more than 20 years. But this year, the company will launch a patented, upgraded version specifically designed for ferrying sick kids. Some wagons offer more features, like storage compartments, attachment seating, or removable canopies.