Good Luck Reebok, We Hope Rapper Lamar Saves You

Reebok has had a rough go as of late with sales that dwarf top competitor Nike.

The footwear and apparel retailer saw its market share slump from 8 percent in 2006 (the same year they were acquired by Adidas) to 2 percent as of February 2015.

Though for over a year now Reebok has been aggressively working on a comeback plan that includes going after the “tough fitness” segment including Crossfit aficionados and UFC fans, while using star rapper Kendrick Lamar to reach a low-brow fashion market (a.k.a. comfort fashion).

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Mixing hip hop and fashion is something competitors Adidas and Puma know all too well. Though what makes Reebok’s move decidedly different is their focus on comfort fashion with affordable prices. We’re not talking about Adidas’s Yeezy Boost running shoes promoted by singer Kanye West which can run upwards of $2000, and on the low end $200.

“A lot of artists approach high fashion, but for me personally, I just like a more classic, comfortable feel,” Lamar tells Fashionista.

The hip hop artist has been recently seen sporting Reebok’s classic leather gum shoes selling online for $75, as well as wearing Reebok’s Ventilator shoes last year, which retail between $75-$110.

From a marketing perspective, Reebok is desperately seeking to distinguish itself. They weren’t terribly successful in nailing the lifestyle fashion market in the 90s, failing to reel in hipsters, hip hoppers and fashion forward urbanites. So now in addition to affordable fashion, Reebok is trying to capture athletes within a very specific subsegment of “tough fitness”. This means that they must deliver on both style AND performance, not an easy task.

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“The bigger backstory is just the whole shift of the brand from a multisport generalist to a fitness-focused specialist,” Reebok’s president, Matthew O’Toole, tells Business Insider.

We wish Reebok the best of luck. If Puma’s partnership with singer Rihanna is any indication, they may strike gold. Puma saw a 40 percent increase in U.S. women’s shoe sales last year, which analysts attribute to Rihanna’s Creeper line of shoes.

Reebok may have been overshadowed by Nike’s success with Air Jordan shoes in the 90s, but every underdog deserves a comeback.