Content deleted Content added
→top: changed to "United States-based", as "American" could be mistaken for part of ABG's name; copyedits Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit |
→1980s–1990s: rearrange for flow Tags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit |
||
Line 56:
In 1982, Reebok debuted the [[Reebok Freestyle]] aerobics shoe, the first athletic shoe designed for women.<ref name=rourke/><ref name=mcdonald>{{cite news|title=Cases in Sport Marketing|last1=McDonald|first1=Mark A.|last2=Milne|first2=George R.|publisher=Jones and Bartlett Publishers|date=1999| pages=63–86}}</ref> The following year Reebok's sales were $13 million,<ref name=fortune88>{{cite magazine|url=http://archive.fortune.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1988/05/23/70575/index.htm|title=America's Fastest Growing Companies|author=Stuart Gannes|date=May 23, 1988|magazine=Fortune Magazine|access-date=February 25, 2015}}</ref> and Fireman bought the English-based parent company in 1984. Officially an American company in 1985, Reebok had its [[initial public offering]] on the [[New York Stock Exchange]] under the ticker symbol RBK and was renamed Reebok International Limited.<ref name=ny86 /><ref name=vartan />
The brand established itself in professional tennis with the Newport Classic shoe, popularized by [[Boris Becker]] and [[John McEnroe]], and the Revenge Plus, also known as the Club C. The company began expanding from tennis and aerobics shoes to running and basketball throughout the mid to late 1980s, the most significant segment of the athletic footwear industry.<ref name=vartan>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/21/business/market-place-a-brisk-pace-is-set-by-nike.html|title=Market Place; A Brisk Pace Is Set by Nike|author=Vartanig G. Vartan|date=January 21, 1986|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=February 25, 2015}}</ref>
In 1986, Reebok switched its logo from the Union Jack it had since its founding, to the vector logo—an abstract Union Flag streak across a race track—which mirrored the design of the side flashes of its shoes.<ref name=adage>{{cite magazine|url=http://adage.com/article/news/change-reebok-logo-shift-pros-crossfit/291923/|title=Change: Reebok Logo Indicates Shift From Pros to Crossfit|author=Natalie Zmuda|date=February 28, 2014|magazine=Advertising Age|access-date=March 1, 2015}}</ref> The switch signaled the transition of the company into a performance brand as it began licensing deals with professional athletes in the [[NBA]] and [[NFL]].<ref name="fastcode">{{cite web |author=Brownlee |first=John |date=March 13, 2014 |title=How Reebok Became The Brand For Crossfit Junkies |url=http://www.fastcodesign.com/3027567/how-reeboks-crossfit-logo-took-over-the-mothership |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160828051346/http://www.fastcodesign.com/3027567/how-reeboks-crossfit-logo-took-over-the-mothership |archive-date=2016-08-28 |access-date=2022-10-16 |website=FastCode}}</ref> Reebok also began developing sports clothing and accessories, entered the college/pro sports arena, and introduced a line of children's athletic shoes called Weeboks.<ref name="chicagotrib">{{cite news |author=Petersen |first=Clarence |date=March 15, 1987 |title=The Training Of Trendy Tots |newspaper=[[The Chicago Tribune]] |url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1987-03-15/features/8701200671_1_tres-yup-buzz-buzzell-trendiness |access-date=March 1, 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180926014557/http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1987-03-15-8701200671-story.html|archive-date=2018-09-26}}</ref> It acquired Rockport for $118.5 million in 1986.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Groves |first=Martha |date=1986-09-17 |title=Reebok to Buy Rockport for $118.5 Million |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-09-17-fi-10421-story.html |access-date=2022-12-08 |website=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref> By mid-decade, Reebok's sales were about $1 billion, and it overtook [[Nike, Inc.]] as the largest athletic shoe manufacturer in the US before losing the top position in 1988.<ref name="wsj05">{{cite news |last1=Berman |first1=Dennis K. |last2=Kang |first2=Stephanie |last3=Karnitsching |first3=Matthew |date=2005 |title=Adidas Nears Deal to Buy Reebok In Effort to Gain Ground on Nike |newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url=https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB112304841978003570 |access-date=March 23, 2015}}</ref><ref name="FarrellT" /
Reebok worked with fitness professional Gin Miller in the late 1980s to develop Step Reebok, based on Miller's wooden prototype step and her ideas for [[step aerobics]]. The Step was evaluated in physiology trials undertaken by Drs. Lorna and Peter Francis at [[San Diego State University]]. In August 1989 the Step was ready, made in molded plastic by Sports Step of Atlanta with Reebok's name on it,<ref>{{cite news |title=One Step Makes Workouts More Strenuous |newspaper=The Courant |location=Hartford, Connecticut |date=September 18, 1991 |first=Garret |last=Condon}}</ref> and by March 1990, the step aerobics classes were attracting media attention.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/26/sports/on-your-own-step-up-and-down-to-sharper-workouts.html |title=Step Up (and Down) to Sharper Workouts |date=March 26, 1990 |last=Lloyd |first=Barbara |newspaper=The New York Times |page=C-10}}</ref> Miller promoted Step Reebok in person, touring the U.S. and demonstrating it at exercise studios. Step aerobics became widely popular, helping the company sell many thousands of adjustable-height step devices and millions of high-top shoes with ankle support.<ref name=lesmills/> Step aerobics peaked in 1995 with 11.4 million people exercising in that style.<ref>{{cite news |title=Firming Up Revenues |newspaper=The Courant |location=Hartford, Connecticut |date=April 22, 1999 |first=Vanessa |last=Hua}}</ref>
| |||