Along with personal branding, Snoop Dogg is all about strategy when it comes to his business endeavors — and his partnership with Skechers is no different.
During an interview on the “All The Smoke” podcast, the legendary rapper and serial entrepreneur recalled how he almost missed the opportunity to work with the sneaker company due to someone on his team.
However, Snoop Dogg saw the bigger vision at hand, which was that Skechers remains a global success since it launched in 1992 and hasn’t partnered with someone like himself. He credits Martha Stewart for leading him in the direction of joining forces with the company.
“Thank Martha Stewart for that because somebody from my team was blocking,” Snoop Dogg explained to hosts Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson. “I ain’t gonna say his name, but the n—a was blocking. But he was blocking for the right reasons because he felt like Skechers and me didn’t connect. He felt like it was a brand that was beneath me, but n—a all shoes are beneath me.”
He continued, “I took Martha Stewart’s advice. She said, ‘Snoop, you should get with Skechers because they don’t have anyone like you. They’ll give you as many shoes as you want. You should meet the owner [Robert Greenberg]. He used to run LA Gear.’”
Another key factor under Snoop Dogg’s strategy for working with Skechers is that he was cognizant of the fact that he most likely wouldn’t land a shoe deal with the Jordan Brand, so he chose to create ties with another winning team.
“What people don’t know is that [Skechers] is No. 2,” he said. “Nike’s No. 1, and they’re No. 2. They got the most stores around the whole world, and they’re the shoes that everybody buys. You got parents, people that work at hospitals, police officers — they make shoes for all walks of life.”
He added, “In some countries, all they do is wear Skechers. So I was looking at that like, I’m global. I ain’t gonna get no deal with [Michael] Jordan. He don’t want me on his team. He already got too many people like me. Let me go find somebody that ain’t nobody paying attention to, do my thug thizzle with them… show them some things they ain’t never seen and let them take me places I ain’t ever been.”
On the podcast, Snoop Dogg also shared that Julius Randle is among the NBA stars who rock his Skechers sneakers on the court. According to Sports Illustrated, the New York Knicks player and Los Angeles Clippers’ Terance Mann are the first NBA players to compete in Skechers basketball shoes.
Skechers released SKX Resagrip “Boss Treatment,” Snoop Dogg’s new basketball shoes, on Jan. 25, per the outlet.
View this post on Instagram
The performance basketball shoe features grip, comfort, and performance technologies. Designed by Snoop Dogg, it was created to be worn both on and off the basketball court.
