Shaquille O’Neal has set his sights on buying the Reebok brand

Shaquille O’Neal surprisingly has a very prolific career as a businessman after retiring from the NBA. The former basketball superstar has an impressive roster of business deals under his belt with Papa Johns, Carnival Cruise Line, and Krispy Kreme to name a few, now wants to acquire the Reebok brand.

Kia Morgan-Smith

Jun 21, 2019

Shaq thegrio.com — (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Shaquille O’Neal surprisingly has a very prolific career as a businessman after retiring from the NBA. The former Los Angeles Laker has an impressive roster of business deals under his belt with Papa Johns, Carnival Cruise Line, and Krispy Kreme to name a few, now wants to acquire the Reebok brand.

That’s a big move that the big guy has set his sights on ever since he collaborated with the sportswear company and secured a $15 million-dollar brand ambassador deal back in 1992.

The former Los Angeles Lakers star wants to bring life back into the brand which is a subsidiary of Adidas, which stands as the largest sportswear manufacturer in the UK, The IBTimes reports.

Adidas, which is prospering and recently named Beyonce as its creative director, now plans on selling the brand after purchasing it in 2005. Reebok’s seen some setbacks and in 2018 its revenue fell 3 percent.

O’Neal is confident that he could breathe life back into the brand with the acquisition. “Well, (Authentic Brands Group, one of the companies) I’m involved in, we just bought Sports Illustrated but I would love to purchase Reebok,” O’Neal told “CNBC Make It.”

O’Neal blamed Adidas for “diluting” the brand to “where it’s almost gone.”

“If they don’t want it, let me have it,” said O’Neal. “I want to bring them back to basketball and to fitness.” The proof is in the pudding and when the four-time NBA champ joined the board of directors of Papa John’s Pizza, the first African American to hold such a position with the company, Papa John’s stock rose six percent. So it seems O’Neal’s pretty self-assured about his ability to put Reebok back on the map.

Shaq also has numerous other restaurant investments and is the face of everything from Icy Hot to Gold Bond. He’s also a fan favorite as a sports analyst on TNT’s Inside the NBA.