Reebok vs Adidas The TRUTH About Their Founders

How Reebok Started: The Untold Story of Joe Foster | Reebok Founder Exclusive Interview

Welcome to episode 219 of Sports Management Podcast.

Today's guest is Joe Foster - the founder of Reebok. At 90 years old, he’s sharing the real origin story for the first time. From hand-made spiked shoes to billion-dollar global dominance, this is one of the greatest sports business journeys ever told.

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This episode covers Reebok’s humble beginnings, breakthrough moments, struggles entering the US market, the aerobics revolution, celebrity endorsements, and why Joe finally stepped away from the company.

If you're interested in sports business, entrepreneurship, brand building, or sneaker history, this conversation is a goldmine.

Time stamps:

00:00 Growing up during World War II
05:45 Winning races with spiked shoes at age 8
08:08 Grandfather invents the first spiked running shoe
17:00 Walking away from the family footwear company
18:49 Building Reebok inside a collapsed brewery
25:15 Creating direct-to-athlete distribution
29:32 Naming Reebok from a dictionary
35:15 First failed attempt entering America
41:08 Runner’s World five-star ratings change everything
43:31 Birth of the Reebok aerobics shoe
46:59 Why Joe exited Reebok
57:10 Turning lawsuits into brand advantages
01:05:05 Joe’s 3 rules of entrepreneurship
01:09:06 Meeting celebrities & reaching global #1
01:12:19 Why he wrote his book to correct history
01:13:00 Outro


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