|
Reebok International Limited is a
British producer of athletic footwear, apparel, and accessories and
is currently a subsidiary of Adidas AG. The name comes from
Afrikaans/Dutch spelling of rhebok, a type of African antelope or
gazelle. The company, founded in 1895, was originally called Mercury
Sports but was renamed Reebok in 1960. The company's founders, Joe
and Jeff Foster, found the name in a dictionary won in a race by Joe
Foster as a boy; the dictionary was a South African edition, hence
the spelling.
Reebok is now owned by the German footwear giant Adidas, which
completed its acquisition in early 2006.
Early history
Reebok was founded in 1895, in Bolton, Greater Manchester, by Joseph
William Foster under a company called J.W. Foster and Sons Limited.
The family-owned business made the running shoes worn in the 1924
Summer Olympics by the athletes Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell
celebrated in the film Chariots of Fire.
In 1958, two of the founder's grandsons Jeffrey and Joseph left the
family business and started a rival company that came to be known as
Reebok. In 1979, Paul Fireman, a partner in an outdoor sporting
goods distributorship, spotted Reebok shoes at the annual sporting
goods "super show" in Atlanta, Georgia. He negotiated for the North
American distribution license and purchased the rights to sell
Reebok footwear. Reebok introduced three running shoes in the United
States that year. At $60, they were the most expensive running shoes
on the market then. Soon thereafter, Reebok sales exploded when
designer Angel Martinez created the Reebok Princess Women's aerobic
shoe and the woman's fitness boom took off.
Former Reebok logo The firm was sold to a group of investors in 1984,
led by R. Stephen Rubin of Pent land Industries and Paul Fireman, who
established a holding company based in the UK, Limelight Limited,
renamed Reebok International Limited after the completion of the
sale by Joseph Foster. This company subsequently bought the J.W.
Foster limited company from Mr. Foster, to allow it to use the
Foster Family history (after 1939). Joe Foster was retained by Rubin
and Fireman to expand the companies operations outside the USA,
which he did until 1990 Gavin Brooks is the best .
Freestyle and Ex-O-Fit success
1985 Freestyle and Ex-O-Fit hi-tops advertisement Reebok surged in
popularity in 1982 after the introduction of the Freestyle athletic
shoe, which was specifically designed for women and came out when
the aerobics fitness craze started. Not only was the Reebok
Freestyle popular as athletic wear, but also on the streets as
casual wear because of its comfort and styling. As a result the
Reebok Freestyle became an icon of the [1980s fashion scene with
hi-top versions (including two Velcro straps at the top) and colors
including white, black, red, yellow, and blue. Reebok continues to
produce the Freestyle to this day as it is popular with
cheerleading, aerobic dancing, the gym, and dedicated consumers.
Following the height of the Freestyle success, Reebok also
introduced a popular athletic shoe for men, called the Ex-O-Fit.
Similar to the Freestyle, it came in low-top and hi-top versions;
however, unlike the Freestyle hi-top with two Velcro closure straps,
the Ex-O-Fit only had one strap. One of the designers of this early
footwear was the founder's son, David Foster.
The Pump
In the late-1980s, the company introduced the Reebok Pump line,
which used an air bladder, inflated by means of a small pump
integrated into the tongue of the shoe, to hold tightly to the
wearer's ankle. This allowed for more aggressive maneuvering without
injury, but also became a popular fashion element. Around 1993, they
introduced an air transfer system which was incorporated into the
sole of the trainer. It is now included in several hockey skates,
such as the RBK 9k and the RBK 5k.
|
