Joe Foster – Founder of Reebok - joins Skin In The Game Advisory Board
Joseph William Foster was born in 1935 in Bolton, England. Joe’s grandfather – also Joseph William Foster - was the founder of J. W. Foster & Sons and the inventor of the Spiked Running Shoe and the Trainer (Sneaker).
Joe and his late brother Jeff were born into the J. W. Foster & Sons business, but on their return after two years away from home on National Service, they started to ask questions. The year was 1955 and the brothers saw a business still rooted in the 1930’s.
In 1958, Joe and Jeff left the Foster business to set up a new sports shoe company. The brothers founded Mercury Sports Footwear, which after 18 months they re-branded to Reebok. Joe took Reebok from start-up to a $4 billion business, overtaking Adidas and Nike to become the world’s number one Sports brand. As the surviving Founder of Reebok, Joe welcomes the opportunity to inspire and support the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Joe will join Skin In The Game's Advisory Board, currently comprised of Alistair Brownlee MBE (two-time Olympic Triathlon Champion), Laurie Canter (professional golfer and investor), Roberto Croci (Director, Public Investment Fund), Rory Glover, (ex-KKR and Spectrum Equity), Ben Mercer (ex-professional rugby player), Roddy Scaife (CEO, Zippen), Laurie Pinto (veteran sports financier), Bill Northfield (former MD at Deutsche Bank), Nathaniel Timbrell-Whittle (MD at BNP Paribas) and Rhys Beer (formerly senior executive at Meta, now at One Football).
Skin In The Game is an FCA regulated investment syndicate that invests exclusively in sports and human performance. The group now contains over 100 HNW/UHNW angel investors - exited founders, investment bankers, private equity and venture capital investors, hedge fund veterans and athletes. The group also contains industry experts that have worked for world-leading brands and funds in the sports and health industries – names like Nike, Adidas, UFC, Socios, EA, PIF, Lead Sports, KKR and Spectrum Equity.
Joe and Julie Foster, welcome to the squad!
To learn more about Skin In The Game or to apply to join the syndicate & invest in the future of sports and human performance, click here. If you’d like to learn more about Joe Foster’s journey with Reebok, we highly recommend purchasing a copy of his book ‘Shoemaker’.
