Joe Foster, Founder of REEBOK

The story is not what you think. REEBOK wasnt born in the US. It was in fact born from a Bolton familly in a terrace house.This is a  story of working hard, spotting the opportunity, never stopping, stepping up to the plate and frankly making your own luck.Joe was born on 18 May 1935 and shared a birthday with his grandfather Joseph William, who had set up sports shoe manufacturer J.W. Foster & Sons, in Bolton, in 1900.Joseph William died around 18 months prior to Joe's birth but was a pioneer in his day, especially in the use of spikes on the bottom of running shoes. His shoes were worn by the likes of Harold Abraham and Eric Liddell, eventually being immortalised in Academy Award-winning film Chariots of Fire."He learned the best way to sell his shoes was to have influencers," Joe said."He was giving shoes to leading athletes and in the 1920s he was supplying all of the Olympic teams, it was amazing. He was supplying the bulk of football leagues as well.""Back then, the shoes weren't for the street, they were pure performance."Talking about how he named REEBOK:"I just opened the dictionary on R because I thought it was a good, strong letter. I came across Reebok and thought 'fantastic', it was a small South African Gazelle and with us being a running company, it fit nicely."Joe talks about how "then we heard about this thing called Aerobics..."Hollywood stars such as Sigourney Weaver and Cybill Shepherd went on to wear Reebok shoes in Aliens and at the Emmy Awards respectively.This is a great story and a great episode.To make contact with Guy Bloom directly: Click Here👇👇👇 ➡️Listen on laptop, phone or PC:https://bit.ly/leadershipbitesVia podcast: Apple: https://apple.co/39pYHprSpotify: http://spoti.fi/3q9DaHvGoogle: https://bit.ly/39nQUsgiHeart Radio: https://ihr.fm/3lmgPTkStitcher: https://bit.ly/33rQVHW To find out more about Guy Bloom and his award winning work in Team Coaching, Leadership Development and Executive Coaching click below.The link to everything CLICK HEREUK: 07827 953814Email: [email protected] Web: www.livingbrave.com