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Reebok files lawsuit against Nike

Reebok International has filed a lawsuit against Nike Inc. for allegedly copying its patented technology in sneakers now on store shelves. Reebok received a patent in January for collapsible or “flexible sole” technology allowing shoes to be folded into a more compact form for packaging or to save space while travelling. The athletic footwear and apparel company claims that 11 Nike shoes marketed under various “Free” product names incorporate that technology and therefore infringe on its patent, according to documents filed yesterday in federal district court in Tyler, Texas.

“We will act to protect our research and development efforts whenever companies try to claim Reebok technology as their own,” Diana Wainrib, Reebok's chief counsel, said in a statement. Former Reebok footwear designer Andrew Gillespie, now vice president of global sport, footwear and apparel for Reebok, designed the technology in question, and Reebok applied for the patent in 2002. The technology enables the company to dispense sneakers in vending machines.

“We are evaluating the claims related to this very recently issued U.S. patent and any potential limited application to the successful Nike Free product,” Nike said in a statement. Reebok filed the lawsuit in an east Texas court that a PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP study ranked as the second most favourable in the nation for patent lawsuits, according to Bloomberg News. Inventors and patent owners have won jury verdicts 90 percent of the time there since 1994.

www.reebok.com
5 April 2007

Scarlett Johansson designs for Reebok

Golden girl Scarlett Johansson has signed on to design and market an athletic-inspired sportswear and footwear line for US athletic giant Reebok. The new line is called “Scarlett (Hearts) Rbk”. The actress admits to not having an athletic bone in her body, and the partnership is also unprecedented for Reebok. “This is definitely new and different for us,” said Reebok president and chief executive Paul Harrington. “This hits the sweet spot of our major women's initiative that I announced in April.” Johansson has signed a contract for three years for an undisclosed amount and will be involved in every process of developing and selling the line. “I like to do yoga and stretch out, so we will probably do a bunch of stuff for that,” Johansson told WWD. “I like the idea of exercise and aerobics being glamorous: Olivia Newton John and women exercising in false eyelashes.” She wants the emphasis to be on the feminine cut. “There is so much pressure to look a certain way and be thin, and I think part of that comes from fitting into the clothing or not fitting into clothing,” says the famously voluptuous star. “I am basically designing clothes for my friends, and a lot of my friends are also regular girls with lovely curves and feminine figures.”

Reebok, now a subsidiary of athletic concern Adidas, has run campaigns with actresses and rappers, while Adidas has joined forces with rappers and international designers Stella McCartney and Yohji Yamamoto. Both companies have signed athletes to endorse their products. Together, they have total sales of $11 billion.

Harrington believes that Johansson is a good fit for the company, despite not being an athlete or regular gym-goer. He told WWD she is “relevant with our consumer – a multidimensional woman with a busy life, an independent spirit and an authentic persona.” He did not reveal any volume projections. “I don't think it's a volume play. It's about how Scarlett attaches to the brand, which affects not just her line.”

The company will distribute the line to high-end department stores and boutiques in the US , Europe and Asia . Although prices have not yet been determined, Harrington indicated they would be similar to other sportswear lines sold in such stores. The line targets women between the ages of 16 and 35 and Johansson prefers to keep the prices reasonable. “I want to buy things at affordable prices, especially if it's a T-shirt,” she says. “What makes Reebok great is it is all going to be affordable.”

www.reebok.com
25 July 2006

Reebok and Scarlett Johansson to join forces

It may seem like a strange marriage, but Scarlett Johansson and Reebok are partners on a new project, the details of which the athletic giant is keeping discreetly out of the press, until an announcement on July 25, when their collaborative plans will be unveiled at a New York party.

The 21-year-old Hollywood acress is already a spokesmodel for L'Oréal and Calvin Klein and would be a natural to appear in other types of fashion or lifestyle ads. In fact, she's no stranger to the fashion world, having presented the Womenswear Designer of the Year Award at the CFDA Fashion Awards in June.

16 July 2006

Reebok CEO steps aside

Reebok chief executive Paul Fireman will step aside now that the takeover of Reebok International by Adidas-Salomon has been completed. Fireman acquired the North America distribution rights to Reebok in 1979. Since then he has stepped down from his post several times, only to return to the brand each time to further expand it. On Tuesday, Adidas said that Fireman will remain as an advisor to the newly formed company.

Meanwhile Adidas chairman and chief executive Herbert Hainer will head up the combined company. Erich Stamminger, president and chief executive of the Adidas brand will report directly to him, as will Paul Harrington, president and chief executive of the Reebok brand, and Mark King, president and chief executive of Taylor-Made Adidas golf.

The newly formed company has sales of $11.8 billion (£6.63 billion), making it the second biggest athletic company after Nike.

www.adidas-salomon.com
1 February 2006

Reebok Q3 profit rise despite acquisition concern

The pending acquisition of Reebok by Adidas for $3.8 billion (£2.14 billion) has had a negative impact on the company's performance, despite healthy earnings in the third quarter. “We believe that the announcement of our planned merger with Adidas has created, in the short-term, some retailer uncertainty with respect to our company and that this impacted our sales and order intake in the quarter,” said Kenneth Watchmaker, Reebok's executive vice president and chief financial officer, in a call with analysts Monday to discuss Reebok's third quarter results.

Earnings for the third quarter shot up 43.9 percent to $117.7 million, compared with $81.8 million during the same period last year. This increase was due in part to the sale of its Ralph Lauren footwear license back to Polo Ralph Lauren Corp for $49 million. Reebok had unusual legal expenses from the acquisition by Adidas and the integration of The Hockey Co, which the company acquired in June 2004. A decline in sales at client Foot Locker of $46 million also hurt the company's results.

Sales in the third quarter dropped 10 percent to $1.15 billion. Global footwear sales, including Reebok, Rockport and Greg Norman brands, fell 16.9 percent to $589 million, while the sale of apparel slid 0.7 percent to $452.2 million. The Reebok brand saw its sales decline slightly in the US , but it was the sale of footwear both in the US and internationally that saw the greatest decline. According to analyst John Stanley of Susquehanna Financial Group this decline is in part due to changes in fashion trends away from Reebok's more traditional footwear styles. In the past nine months, Reebok's earnings rose 36.9 percent to $198 million on a sales increase of 1.4 percent to $2.84 billion.

www.reebok.com
25 October 2005

Ralph Lauren buys back Reebok licensing

Polo Ralph Lauren will buy Reebok International Ltd.'s rights to the Ralph Lauren line of footwear for $110 million in cash, ending a 9-year-old licensing agreement under which Reebok made and sold shoes under the Ralph Lauren label. Reebok chairman and chief executive Paul Fireman said Monday the agreement will allow the Canton-based maker of athletic shoes and other apparel "to focus on the continued growth and development of our core business."

New York-based Polo Ralph Lauren said the agreement is in line with its goals of taking more control of its own brands and developing a global luxury-accessories business. Reebok bought the Ralph Lauren footwear license in 1996, including the rights to design, develop, manufacture, market and distribute shoes under the Ralph Lauren name. Reebok set up a wholly owned subsidiary, Ralph Lauren Footwear Co., to operate the business.

The deal to sell the subsidiary to Polo Ralph Lauren is expected to close by the end of the second quarter. Reebok said it will discuss how much of a financial gain it will record from the sale when it announces second-quarter earnings on July 21. Polo Ralph Lauren said the deal is expected to marginally reduce its fiscal year earnings. Shares of Reebok rose 39 cents to $41.65 in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange, while shares of Polo Ralph Lauren were up 27 cents to $37.79 on the NYSE.

11 October 2005

Nelly does fashion

Yo, yo, yo! Attention all you rappers in da house - or whatever a white girl can get away with saying. Three-time Grammy Award winner Nelly has signed a deal with sporting goods giant Reebok to develop a collection of apparel, footwear and accessories, the company revealed on Tuesday.

Nelly, born Cornell Hayes Jr, has become a permanent fixture on the hiphop scene, scoring hits with songs like "Hot in Herre". Now he joins the ranks of 50 Cent and Jay-Z in entering the sports fashion arena with Reebok. The company has been signing young artists in an effort to appeal to a younger audience. Nelly is the latest celeb to collaborate with the firm on a collection.

The sale of the collection will start with a small selection of men's footwear launching in time for the holiday season this year, according to a company spokeswoman. Apparel and accessories are planned for spring 2006, and the name of the collection will be revealed during this year's holiday season.

Footwear prices will retail for between $75 and $85 and will be sold at specialty chains and department stores in the US. Reebok's spokeswoman said that women's products may be introduced at a later stage, with no exact agenda as yet. Further to the collection, Nelly will also feature in Reebok's multimillion-dollar "I Am What I Am" adverstising campaign, which began earlier this year.

Reebok recently emerged from a lawsuit it filed against musician and producer Pharrell Williams, with whom the company had started a similar fashion collection. Reebok sued Williams claiming breach of contract, but the lawsuit has now been settled. "I've always wanted to have a signature pair of sneakers that truly reflect my personal style," Nelly said in a statement. "It made the most sense for me to partner with Reebok because they fully understand and respect the culture of sports, music and entertainment."

www.reebok.com
20 July 2005

Reebok opts for fashionable outlets

Sportsbrand Reebok has gone into partnership with Topshop and will launch collections in its London stores, in addition to the high street's chains in Manchester and Belfast. This will be the first time the company has focused on fashion retailing within this sector.

Many women find sportswear shops boring and unappealing and Topshop offers the perfect environment to enhance sales in this new channel of retailing. The new collections will be promoted by Jamelia, which will include a NFL American football range.

www.reebok.co.uk
11 January 2005

Pharrell sues Reebok

It was announced last week that hiphop musician and producer Pharrell Williams is suing Reebok International for more than $4 million (GBP 2.2 million). Pharrell is accusing the sporting goods company of breach of licensing contract.

Reebok was to produce Williams' clothing and footwear brand, BBC (Billionaire Boys Club) Ice Cream, but BBC accused the sporting goods giant of failing to produce products that meet BBC's approval standards and having the goods in the shops at the agreed time. According to BBC, the problems started not long after the contract was signed in October 2003. Certain Reebok employees reputedly admitted that Reebok could not produce the BBC line according to agreed standards. However, these employees stated that mistakes would be rectified. BBC states that this has not been the case.

Pharrell told reporters that designing for fashion has been a childhood dream, and nothing to do with being an entertainer.

11 January 2005

Reebok A Race Ahead

Never one to stay put in its tracks, cool trainer company Reebok is launching a limited edition label this spring that will be so exclusive it may never make it to the shop floor.

The series, which is expected to sell out online consists of Reebok Gold Medallist Crocodile, Gold Medallist Reptile, and Zenswa (to be worn by the women of the New York City Ballet) will be available on Reebok's website for a period of one month only. New styles will further be introduced, but sold by first-click first-served, first-worn.

www.reebok.co.uk
13 April 2004

Q3 Profits for Reebok

The leading sports- and shoe brand Reebok posted a big rise in third quarter net profit, boosted by strong apparel and footwear sales in the US.

Earnings in the quarter ended September 30 rose 19 per cent to 62.7 million dollar, compared to 53.4million in the same period of last year. Net sales rose 14 per cent to 1.04 billion dollar. US footwear sales for the Reebok brand rose 16 per cent to 279 million, while international sales of Reebok branded products amounted to 411 million dollar.

With the NFL season under way and the NBA season about to kick off Reebok is positioned to have another successful year. Reebok also owns other brands; Rockport, Ralph Lauren Footwear and The Greg Norman Collection.

www.reebok.co.uk
24 October 2003

Reebok Signs Mis-Teeq

Reebok will unveil girl band Mis-Teeq as the faces of its UK womenswear range in November. The tie-up will be the key UK component of the brand's global Sounds & Rhythm of Sport campaign, which has included US stars 50 Cent and Mary J Blige. Mis-Teeq will promote a series of ranges in photo-shoots, advertising and point-of-sale material.

8 October 2003
www.reebok.co.uk

Reebok partners with Limited Too

Canton-based athletic footwear maker Reebok International Ltd. has signed a deal with women's clothing retailer Limited Too in an effort to reach the influential "tween-age" girls market.

The partnership calls for Reebok to sell its footwear in Limited Too's stores, on its web site, and through its catalogue, which is mailed to more than 4 million girls several times per year. The partnership is designed to connect the Reebok brand to trend-setting girls between the ages of seven and fourteen.

The partnership will launch in March in select locations of the New Albany, Ohio-based apparel retailer's 510 total stores. "Limited Too is widely considered the retail authority on fashion for 'tween girls," Jan Sharkansky, vice president and general manager of Reebok women's division said in a statement.

www.reebok.co.uk
www.limitedtoo.com
February 24, 2003

Apparel sales improve Reebok results

Reebok International on Wednesday reported net income for the fourth quarter of USD 16 million, an earnings per share increase of 200% when compared to net income of USD 5.1 million, in the fourth quarter of 2001. For the full year ended December 31, 2002, net income was USD 132 million, an earnings per share increase of 23% when compared with net income of USD 103 million for the 2001 comparable period.

Apparel sales surged. In the U.S. they were USD 145 million, an increase of 48%. The Company's international sales of Reebok Branded products amounted to USD 287 million in the quarter, an increase of 13%.

Paul Fireman, the Company's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer said, "I am pleased to report that during this past year we were able to exceed earlier prognoses. This was accomplished in a challenging retail environment. During the year, we introduced many new exciting products that caught our retailers' attention and satisfied the needs of our consumers in distinctive and relevant ways."
He continued: "During the year we successfully launched our new Rbk product in the U.S. market. And, to support this product launch, we created our "Sounds and Rhythm of Sport" marketing platform which fuses sports with music and entertainment."

Reeboks Rockport, Ralph Lauren footwear and Greg Norman brands also made progress in the fourth quarter despite the difficult conditions at retail. During 2003, Rockport plans to continue to focus on expanding their product offerings. Rockport also plans to pursue a renewed focus on the women's business with new product introductions planned beginning in the second half of 2003.

"Our current goals are to increase our 2003 sales in the mid to high single digit range and to grow our earnings per share for the year in the range of 15%," Fireman concluded.

January 30, 2003
www.reebok.co.uk

Profit rise Reebok due to strong apparel sales

Reebok International reported a 27 percent rise in third-quarter earnings this week on strong apparel sales despite a difficult retail environment. Reebok said net income increased to US 53.4 million (GBP 33,8m) from US 42.2 million (GBP 26,7m) a year earlier.

Net sales for the quarter rose 7.6 percent to US 911.6 million (GBP 576,5m) from US 847.3 million (GBP 535,8m) a year earlier. Footwear sales increased 3.4 percent to US 566 million (GBP 358m) from US 547.2 million (GBP 346m), while apparel sales rose 15.2 percent to US 345.6 million (GBP 218,6m) from US 300 million (GBP 89,7m).

Reebok attributed much of its success in the quarter to its performance at athletic specialty retailers, a key channel to snaring young, fashion-conscious customers. The company launched its hip new Rbk line primarily through this channel.

October 25, 2002

Reebok developed foldable trainers

Sportswear giant Reebok is about to launch foldable trainers in the UK after spending £2 million researching and developing the idea. The new "Travel Trainer" has been designed using advanced fabric technology that allows them to be rolled into a tiny ball, the size op a rolled-up sock, and then packed away into a pouch or bag.

The Daily Express said the trainers were originally developed in Japan for vending machines but will go on limited sale in the UK priced at £45 in the next few weeks. A Reebok spokesman told the paper: "We are confident these shoes will revolutionise the trainer market.

www.reebok.co.uk
08-22-02

Maternity collection by Reebok

Reebok is the latest sportswear giant to get in on the baby craze. The footwear retailer has joined forces with babystyle to create its first maternity collection.

The five-piece collection includes a boot-cut pant, bike shorts, a V-neck tee, a racer-back sports bra and a tank with a built-in bra, and will retail from $35 to $54.