In this episode of Kickoff Sessions, I had the pleasure of speaking with Joe Foster, the founder of the iconic sports brand Reebok. Joe joins us to discuss his recently released book, “Shoemaker: The Untold Story of the British Family Firm that Became a Global Brand”.

During the interview, Joe takes us back to his childhood and shares the story of how his family’s shoemaking business in Lancashire, England inspired him to pursue a career in footwear. He talks about the challenges of scaling a business to America and the critical decisions that were made to ensure the company’s success.

Joe also shares some fascinating revenue figures and explains how Reebok became one of the biggest sportswear brands in the world. He provides valuable insights into the company’s marketing strategies and the growth of the brand in the highly competitive sports industry.

Whether you’re a fan of Reebok or interested in the business behind the brand, this episode will be a great listen. Check out the episode as we delve into the story of one of the most successful sports brands of all time with the man who made it all happen.

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(00:00) Why build Rebook instead of Joe Foster?
(01:21) Can you build a bigger brand with your name?
(03:07) Comparison of Joe’s family business to Reebok
(05:30) Where did you learn to brand and design?
(08:35) How can you test the performance of shoes?
(13:25) When you work for yourself, you’re building a brand
(17:45) How do you build a billion dollar brand?
(22:05) Revenue figures and profit margin of Reebok
(27:19) How did you find a distributor in Asia?
(32:10) Reebok spent 11 years to break into the USA
(37:25) Advice for young people to build a network
(41:48) How Reebok disrupted the US market
(50:00) How Reebok met the enormous demand in the US
(53:05) Marketing is more important than sales
(01:01:05) Reebok’s influencer marketing in the 1970s
(01:04:00) Reebok vs. Nike competition   
(01:13:58) The future for Joe Foster

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