‘Jumping The Shark’ refers to that episode of Happy Days when Fonzie jumped the Tiger shark on waterskis. Ratings plummeted thereafter. Reebok seems to find a new shark in every country of the world.
The Reebok story here in the US is plain as day. Adidas German engineered an acquisition that was already too lean and undercapitalized. This left a two-legged stool. Not enough of a base on which to grow, and no costs left to cut to buoy margins. Sprinkle on top a little competition for Under Armour, and stepped up efforts at Asics and New Balance, and Reebok’s share was cut by 2/3.
This is not news. But Adidas brass has been talking about the non-US growth opportunity for Reebok. I won’t argue with the potential, but to see initiatives like the one below (in the second most populous country in the world) is kinda frightening. The way to grow in this space is to gain relevance with the aspirational sports enthusiast. Do you think that just MAYBE Reebok could have found better brand ambassadors that the Powerpuff girls?
The Reebok story here in the US is plain as day. Adidas German engineered an acquisition that was already too lean and undercapitalized. This left a two-legged stool. Not enough of a base on which to grow, and no costs left to cut to buoy margins. Sprinkle on top a little competition for Under Armour, and stepped up efforts at Asics and New Balance, and Reebok’s share was cut by 2/3.
This is not news. But Adidas brass has been talking about the non-US growth opportunity for Reebok. I won’t argue with the potential, but to see initiatives like the one below (in the second most populous country in the world) is kinda frightening. The way to grow in this space is to gain relevance with the aspirational sports enthusiast. Do you think that just MAYBE Reebok could have found better brand ambassadors that the Powerpuff girls?
