Reebok has decided to get into the basketball market again and become a competitor to Nike and Adidas. As a step towards this goal, Shaquille O’Neal was recently announced as the President of Basketball at Reebok. He is not alone in this journey, as Allen Iverson was also announced as the Vice President of basketball for the company. They are hoping to bring change and elevate the brand to its former glory and beyond.

Reebok was a highly valued brand in the 1990s. This led to them signing Shaq and Iverson as rookies. It’s been one year since ABG, the Authentic Brand Group, bought Reebok from Adidas. The sale was done for 2.46 billion dollars. Shaq was one of the investors involved in the purchase. Now he has major roles to fill for Reebok.

Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson’s role in the company

Reebok has been doing great for the past few years with its apparel lines and casual wear. But Shaquille O’Neal insisted that the brand should get back into basketball to reach its former stardom. Shaq consistently giving the team suggestions to make the brand better led Todd Krinsky, chief executive officer, to give Shaq the opportunity to come into management. Shaq is now back where he started. His role includes signing new athletes and helping to develop the business.

Allen Iverson is also responsible for player recruitment. Along with this, he will be working on grassroots and community-based initiatives and athlete activations such as the Iverson Classic.

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The Lakers legend and Allen Iverson are grateful for everything Reebok has done for their careers. They gave Shaq a signature shove as soon as he came to the league. Iverson is still set to receive 32 million dollars from Reebok on his 55th birthday as part of a trust fund set up by the company. Both Reebok and Allen Iverson have been loyal to each other.

Signing with Reebok was Shaq’s earliest exposure to business and money. The experience he gained from his time with Reebok helped him in his business endeavors for years after leaving the brand. With years of experience in both marketing a brand and making shoes for people, Shaq is now back with Reebok to take them to new heights.

Krinsky made it clear that Shaq is not in the brand just for the name’s sake, but will be an integral part of the running of the business. He will be involved in all parts of the business, from player categories to negotiating deals.

Reebok’s plans for the future

Reebok has a rich history. It’s not a brand that was made today. But rather than their throwback products, the team is focusing on bringing out new products for the people.

They are hoping to find up-and-comers who will be able to bring about a change in the NBA. Currently, they are also focused on collegiate and high school levels for both male and female athletes. They are not heavily excited about players switching from another brand to theirs. Reebok will have a performance product launch in 2024 and a consumer launch in 2025.

Soon they will be bringing out products in the running line, followed by tennis. After that, they will further branch out into other sports, like soccer. But it will be all done step by step, and they won’t just jump into all the sports at the same time.

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With Shaq on their team, Reebok is hoping to have at least 20 to 25% of their sales through basketball over the coming years. Reebok’s goal in the next few years is to attain 10 billion dollars in sales by 2027. Nick Woodhouse, who is the president and chief marketing officer for ABG, has already revealed that they have already shattered all expectations and are close to 6 billion dollars in 2023 itself.

Apart from this, they are also planning on building their apparel line further. According to WWD, Reebok is also bringing out shoes with collaborations with clubs and influencers, and they hope that this will lead to them hitting the $10 billion mark soon. But the fine line is to have a blend of both sports and lifestyle wear to fully boost sales.

Shaquille O’Neal left Reebok in 1998

Shaquille O’Neal signed with Reebok when he was just 20 years old. During that time, he was also receiving offers from Nike. But Reebok promised him his signature shoe line, which made him sign with them. But years later, Shaq decided to leave his company.

In an episode of the Full Send Podcast, Shaq revealed that it was because of an incident after a game that made him leave Reebok. He was leaving the arena when a lady walked up to Shaq and cussed him out. When Shaq asked her what happened, the lady revealed her displeasure with Shaquille O’Neal for making his shoes too expensive.

Shaq let her know that he was not the one setting the prices. Shaq then said that he would pay for the shoes if she wanted them. She smacked the money from his hand and asked why Shaq just wouldn’t release an affordable shoe for the kids. This made Shaq want to change things. He cut ties with Reebok and decided to start his own brand.

How did Reebok have such a large market share back in the day?

In 1986, after Reebok changed its logo and got into the NBA and NFL, its sales skyrocketed. This led to them overtaking Nike as the largest shoe manufacturer in the US. But two years later, they lost the position.

Reebok had a major share of the market back in the day because of the players they signed. They did not just sign players who were good but added players who had a presence and personality. Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson are prime examples of this. Rather than just their dominance on the court, they were looked up to by fans. They heavily influenced the fans with their personalities, and this led to people wanting to buy their shoes.

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Reebok was making a breakthrough in the basketball world in the late 1990s. But that’s when Adidas, which still owned Reebok at the time, decided to give more focus to its main brand.

Years later, Reebok is ready to take back his position among the best in the world. What do you think of them bringing Shaq and AI into their midst? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!