Reebok Reinvents The ’80s: Will Children Fall For Mother’s Previous Footwear?
by Sarah Mahoney, Friday, Mar 2, 2007 5:00 AM ET
THE SHOE BECAME PART OF each girl’s wardrobe within the years following its 1982 introduction, whether or not in cardio courses or on the road. And its “Life is not a spectator sport” advert marketing campaign starred girls like Cindy Crawford and Paula Abdul. And sure, the corporate expects that timeless style wisdom–“If you wore it the first time around, you’re too old to wear it now”–will apply.
“Reebok’s target consumer for the Freestyle 25h Anniversary Collection is the 18- to-24-year-old style-first female, with a strong sense of individuality and a bold sense of style,” mentioned Deena Bahri, Reebok’s director of life-style advertising.

That is sensible to the shoe cognoscenti. “There’s a big demand for authenticity when it comes to sneakers,” mentioned Kevin Wittau, the basic athletic purchaser for Zappos.com. “A young consumer is very savvy now and knows how to differentiate an authentic brand or style from another wannabe. They want credibility, and having some kind of story about the shoes they’re wearing goes a long way.”

The Freestyle push comes simply weeks after Nike launched a advertising marketing campaign for Air Drive 25, the Twenty fifth-anniversary editor of its Air Drive 1 basketball shoe. And Adidas and Converse have additionally had large hits with re-engineered classics. “We find that the retro styles have much more momentum on the men’s side,” Wittau mentioned. “However, brands are desperately trying to find that woman consumer.”

The 25 Candles Freestyle will retail for about $80. Costs for the gathering, which can embody six kinds, vary from $65 to $150. Advertising and marketing consists of print promoting in key style publications, together with Net, viral and in-store help. And only for outdated instances’ sake, the corporate mentioned it anticipated actress Cybill Shepard to point out on the launch get together. The actress made an look on the 1985 Emmys (absolutely, you keep in mind “Moonlighting?”) in a pair of shiny orange Freestyles and a black strapless robe.

In fact, it is uncertain the shoe can ever be as large a success because it was within the day: In 1984, Freestyle gross sales accounted for half of Reebok’s revenues. “The Freestyle launch will be a success if we can get the young stylish consumers excited about wearing this iconic shoe,” mentioned Bahri. “It’s not about volume. It’s about building buzz at the top. “

Sarah Mahoney will be reached at sarah@mediapost.com

hyperlink to the freestyle web site: Reebok freestyle