Shaquille O’Neal has talked about how he parted ways with Reebok to open Shaq shoes in a bid to offer the market affordable footwear
Regarded as one of the finest players to have graced the court and land of NBA, Shaquille O’Neal was regarded as a force to be reckoned with during his playing career. And his sprawling expertise paired with the consummate success he tasted saw him be roped in by a string of companies as he heralded sponsorships and endorsements his way.
He also had a deal with Reebok, a sporting apparel brand which was in its heyday when Shaq was torching the court. It was a staggering deal with the Big Diesel being handed over a mammoth $40 million to endorse the brand’s shoes and wear them during his NBA games.
Shaquille O’Neal Talks About The Birth Of Shaq Shoes
However, Shaquille O’Neal has now opened up on how he had decided to walk away from the unison and with it forgo the amount he was being paid. Shaq has alluded his decision to being abused at by an old lady who berated him for making shoes which were unaffordable for the general public.
Shaq has gone onto detail how he had tried explain to the woman that he had no role in deciding the prices and had subsequently decided to build his own brand. After deciding to walk out of the deal with Reebok, Shaq had gone onto approach Walmart with him he started the Shaq brand with the price point for all his shoes being $19-$29.
“I had $2,000 in my pocket. I said, ‘Lady I don’t make the prices. Here you go, and she smacked the money out of my hand, [and said], ‘Why don’t you motherf*****s make a shoe that’s affordable?’
“That day, I cut ties with Reebok, “I said keep the money,” Shaq said.