What Happened to L.A. Gear, the Light-Up Sneaker Brand of the 90s?

In 1990 L.A. Gear was the number three sneaker brand in America, right behind Nike and Reebok. Its stock had been the best performer on the New York Stock Exchange. A few years later the company was bankrupt. Nike did not kill it. L.A. Gear killed itself, and the man who led it into the wall went on to build Skechers. This is the story of how a neon sneaker brand from Los Angeles bought fame instead of building better shoes. Robert Greenberg started L.A. Gear in the early eighties and rode the aerobics boom with bright women's sneakers. The company went public in 1986, and by 1990 sales reached about $820 million, almost 12% of the U.S. athletic shoe market. Then came the Michael Jackson deal, billed as the largest endorsement deal ever, a parade of famous faces, a sole that peeled off on live television in 1991, and a slide into discount racks. In 1991 the investment group Trefoil, backed by Roy Disney, put in $100 million. In 1997 it sold its stake for about $228,000. L.A. Gear filed for bankruptcy in January 1998. In 1992 Greenberg started Skechers with his son Michael, and in 2025 Skechers was bought for about $9.4 billion. If you like true stories about the rise and fall of once-great American names, subscribe to The Wreckage and stay for more. This video is an educational look at business and market history. It is not financial or investment advice and not an individual recommendation. Company names and figures come from public sources such as company reports, court filings and press coverage, and numbers are approximate. #lagear #sneakers #businesshistory