After a recent shift in creative direction, Reebok is on the path to a refreshed brand direction centered around inclusivity and inspiration.
After being tapped to head up all design disciplines for Reebok in September, Pyer Moss founder Kerby Jean-Raymond has enlisted the help of Jide Osifeso, an alum of menswear brand Reigning Champ and founder of streetwear label Hymne. Osifeso will serve as the brand’s artistic marketing director, Reebok announced last week, and has kicked off his tenure with content that highlights the brand’s new look and feel. A newly released video collection dubbed “Reconnect” was timed to coincide with the release of the fall 2021 collection.
Osifeso has been building an internal creative agency that will shepherd the brand’s aesthetic moving forward. “I’ve been blessed to have three to four creative partners in my life and Jide is one of them,” Jean-Raymond said. “He’s the genius who’s been behind your favorite geniuses. We speak the same language and care about the same audience.”
Reebok’s autumn campaign centers around a series of vignettes, along with a long-form video co-written by Jonas Lindstroem and Osifeso that draws inspiration from sport and community. “The film series was made for people to derive their own meanings,” Osifeso said. “I wanted to explore forward movement—literally and figuratively—and on a macro level, the idea that life is not a spectator sport as we should always strive to make the most of every moment in our journey through life.”
The video is housed on Reebok’s YouTube channel and its Instagram page. Over the course of the coming months, Jean-Raymond and Osifeso will unveil Reebok’s new global brand campaign for spring 2022.
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“The opportunity for someone like myself to contribute to a company with such a rich heritage is special,” Osifeso added. “Having the ability to work with one of my brothers to challenge what a brand like Reebok can and should look like is not only an exciting endeavor, but also an important one to undertake.”
Danielle Guizio
Earlier this month, the brand teamed up with New York streetwear designer Danielle Guizio on a reimagined version of the iconic Club C sneaker, inspired by a desire to empower women. Guizio’s eponymous line celebrates those who deviate from tradition, bucking gender roles and pushing boundaries. Reebok claims the Club C was the first shoe of its kind designed for women, underscoring a synergy between the two brands.
The foray into footwear is Guizio’s first. “I’m honored and humbled to be able to design my very first sneaker with Reebok,” she said. “The fact that I get to tell a story of positivity and strength through the shoe is all I could have ever dreamed of.”
The Guizio Club C retains its traditional design while playing with new textures and colors, including a palette of chalk, paper white, light green and yellow that the designer said was inspired by earth, nature and flowers in particular. Interchangeable boucle laces offer an alternative bit of whimsy. The style is now available on Guizio.com and Reebok.com for $120.
“The overall theme of the design is meant to uplift and inspire you to get up and achieve your goals with determination,” Guizio said.
Daniel Moon
Representing an altogether different kind of collab, Reebok’s collection with renowned hair colorist Daniel Moon will drop June 24. Dubbed “Major Reebok,” the parties’ debut line was inspired by the color palettes of Moon’s hair art, revamping the Classic Leather and Club C silhouettes with a trendy twist.
Based in Los Angeles, Moon has been lauded for bringing unconventional shades and hues into the mainstream, Reebok said, encouraging individuals of all ages, genders and backgrounds to embrace color and self-expression. Having served in the Marine Corps prior to his second career as a hairstylist, “Major Moon” often references the experience of breaking free of the uniformity dictated by his service and embracing creativity.
“After my service, where hair was very standardized, I made a vow to practice complete self-expression,” he said. “I see the [Major Reebok] shoe as an armor that completes the colorful Major Moon wardrobe, head to toe.”
The sock liner of the Classic Leather Legacy comes from a photograph of one of Moon’s hair coloring projects, and the shoe’s vibrant color range was pulled from his most frequent client requests. Meanwhile, the leather material on the shoe’s heel was developed to be reminiscent of a shaved head.
The Club C, by contrast, features a bright green and pink palette, which Moon said represents “the same feeling of hyper freedom that my hair art brings to my clients.” The transparent parts of the style were inspired by Moon’s fashionable and functional apron, which is marketed to stylists across the globe. Both shoes come with a pair of fuzzy laces that are reminiscent of hair, and retail for $90-$100 on Reebok.com.
Hasbro’s Nerf Brand
The colorful collab’s release will coincide another lively line with Hasbro’s Nerf brand debuting on June 24 for Reebok Unlocked members and on June 25 worldwide. Rooted in an appreciation for basketball, a four-model retro sneaker pack will include brightly hued versions of Reebok’s Pump Omni Zone II, Kamikaze II and Kamikaze II Low.
Offered in two color ways, the Nerf x Pump Omni Zone II “Light Jammer,” which retails for $160, boasts a glow-in-the-dark upper and outsole, graphic splatter print on the vamp and a custom graphic sock liner. Meanwhile, the Nerf x Pump Omni Zone II “Big Bad Backboard” showcases a ‘90s-era basketball-inspired color palette.
The Nerf x Reebok Kamikaze II and Kamikaze II Low pay homage to six-time NBA All Star Shawn Kemp. Retailing for $110-$130, the styles showcase an asymmetrical design execution, Nerf logo, spatter graphic on eye stays and heel, and graphic sock liner illustrations and packaging inspired by Kemp. All sneakers come with limited-edition packaging that unfolds into a functioning doorjamb backboard for at home play, Reebok added.
Bronze 56k
On Monday, the brand announced the release of its third collaboration with Queens, New York-based skate brand Bronze 56k. Debuting Saturday, the collection aims to provide a fresh perspective on Reebok’s Classic Leather and Answer IV silhouettes with a blue and orange palette inspired by New York’s flag and sports culture.
Founded in 2012, Bronze 56k is known throughout the city’s skateboarding community for its board hardware, skateboards and clothing.
“Working with Reebok has been an amazing experience for the past three years,” said founder Peter Sidlauskas. “It was such a great opportunity to exceed our expectations and make a full-on basketball shoe.”
Reebok’s Answer IV style will celebrate its 20th anniversary this year, and Bronze 56k’s new, minimalist version—which will retail for $160—brings a techy, 2000s-era skate inspiration to the classic basketball shoe. A gum outsole acts as a nod to ‘90s skate footwear, while the label’s dice logo is embroidered on the tumbled leather upper. The $120 Classic Leather, crafted from suede and nylon, features chenille on the collar for “an elevated, yet fun and playful look in unisex sizing,” Reebok said.
“Each [silhouette] has a different meaning to me,” Bronze 56k’s Sidlauskas added. “The Classic Leather is more simple, more casual, whereas the Iverson is more tech, more aggressive. I think they are polar opposites of each other, which makes them complement each other at the same time.”