Exclusive | Fastening the brand's growth with partnerships, Reebok's Basu

Reebok as a brand has been identifiable with fitness and it aims to provide consumers with the right experiences, products and the inspiration to be ‘Fit for Life’. Reebok has now geared up to cater to the ever changing needs of the consumer and keeping that in mind, only last year it has repositioned itself.  

Mid last year, Reebok released a new brand mark, Delta symbol which represents the positive and transformative change that fitness can have on a person’s life and symbolizes a better life through fitness; physically, mentally and socially. The brand mark is their symbol of change - an invitation to take part and unlock your true potential.

Taking the ‘Fit for Life’ philosophy ahead, The Reebok Fitness Avenue originated a year ago through an association with the popular ‘Raahgiri’ concept in Gurgaon and was soon introduced in the heart of Delhi; Connaught Place.

After receiving an overwhelming response at both these venues, with over lakhs of consumers signing in, Reebok is looking at expanding the program to other parts of the country such as Mumbai, Hyderabad and Dwarka. Reebok also gave the citizens of Bangalore a taste of the program through a one-day Reebok Fitness Avenue conducted in the city.

To know more Adgully caught up with Somdeb Basu, Brand Director, Reebok India who spoke about the association with Raahgiri, the brand’s performance and a lot more.

Aggressive Partnerships – ‘Raahgiri’:

Raahgiri is India’s first sustained car-free citizen initiative that was started by the residents of Gurgaon in 2013 for encouraging the use of cycling, walking and public transport in the city. Every Sunday, there is a temporary closure of a network of streets to cars so that they become open to people for community leisure activities and provide them an opportunity to celebrate life as a community.

It provides fitness enthusiasts a platform where they come together and participate in a varied range of fitness activities such as running, cycling, aerobics, dancing and yoga etc. It helps them to break-away from the stresses of life and helps people stay fit while having fun. Lakhs of people are seen flocking the streets every Sunday as they gear up for another fun-filled fitness day at Raahgiri.

When asked about the rationale behind getting associated with a concept like this, Basu said, “Reebok is committed to fitness and through our initiatives we wish to engage the people of India in fitness activities & encourage them to adopt fitness as an integral part of their lifestyle. Towards this endeavor we introduced the Reebok Fitness Avenue at Raahgiri locations and other public forums”.

“We got an opportunity to live our philosophy of motivating Indians to be ‘Fit for Life’. As a part of our association with Raahgiri, Reebok trainers conduct studio classes at the circuit every Sunday spanning across the activities of dance, yoga, Les Mills classes and aerobics. We also conduct CrossFit and functional training classes. Occasionally, our experts present at the venue also provide health and fitness advice to the visitors attending Raahgiri,” he stated.

As Raahgiri fits best with Reebok’s overall ‘Fit for Life’ philosophy hence when asked whether consumers would we be seeing some more of such initiatives, Basu said, “As a brand dedicated to fitness, and abiding by our ‘Fit for Life’ philosophy, we are constantly on the lookout for newer associations, activities, events and initiatives to engage our consumers in the fitness space. Yes, we are open to go all out to engage with existing fitness enthusiasts and inspire others to get ‘Fit for Life’.”

Expanding ‘Raahgiri’:

Unfortunately due to unconducive weather conditions in the capital, ‘Raahgiri’ had stopped for couple of months but kick started its first session on 1st February 2015. Interestingly, with the winter spell calming down, Delhiites came out in full zeal to participate in the 1st Raahgiri session of 2015 last Sunday. The event was truly memorable, and Raahgiri experience for the first time was dedicated towards ‘Persons with Disabilities’. Reebok India left no stone unturned in wholeheartedly supporting this unique initiative, as the official fitness partner of this unique community fitness initiative.

When asked whether this is something on the lines of a CSR initiative or no, he specified, “Though, we feel that nothing can be better than this initiative to show our responsibility towards the society and contribute in the best possible way. At Reebok, we believe that fitness is for all and our support to Raahgiri’s recent initiative for specially-abled people was in the same stride to encourage people from all walks of life to be ‘Fit for Life’.”

The Year that was – 2014: 

The year that just ended has been a fantastic year for the brand. At Reebok, the mission is to empower people to be ‘fit for life’ and towards this endeavor they have undertaken several initiatives over the past year.

Along with a number of product launches, Reebok introduced more Fit Hub concept stores in tier II & III cities aimed at providing a complete fitness experience to their consumers. “We also opened the first Reebok Fitness Studio in the world, thereby truly spreading the message of fitness and encouraging people to be ‘Fit for Life’, Basu stated.

In the month of April 2014, Reebok launched a fully-integrated marketing campaign, ‘Live with Fire’ highlighting Reebok’s core pillars of Training, Running and Studio. It featured Reebok’s assets and iconic fitness trio: M.S.Dhoni, John Abraham and Nargis Fakhri in a never-before-seen ‘avatar’.

As mentioned above, Reebok also reinforced their commitment to fitness and introduced the Reebok Fitness Avenue which is a unique fitness movement aimed at inspiring people to move, train and get fit. As a part of this unique format, consumers can not only attend high energy and fun workout sessions, but will also have access to Reebok’s fitness experts and trainers for personalized tips and customized fitness routines.

The year 2015:

Having witnessed success in the last year, Reebok has some very exciting launches planned for 2015. Their first launch of the year was Cardio Ultra studio shoes which were especially designed for women who work out in a studio. It was introduced in the month of January.

“Our biggest launch of the year would be in March. The shoe will be globally launched in New York and will also be introduced in India at the same time. We have already introduced a wide range of new apparel and accessories in all three categories – Training, Studio and Running,” Basu said while concluding.

A brand that saw a decline or rather witnessed a silent phase has aggressively once again started making its presence felt from the last few months. With such initiatives and strategies the brand surely has a long way to go….! By: Aanchal Kohli | Twitter: @aanchalkohli