Nike: World Class Athletes Who Invest In The Brand

Everybody has heard of the brand Nike. Since Nike’s founding in 1972, the company has been able to build a strong foundation and generate a large amount of revenue through its ingenious strategies. Nike is a very popular brand for athletic apparel, sportswear and footwear as well. Through its infamous popularity, Nike now poses amongst some of the most successful companies today. The success that Nike has attained throughout the years comes from the characteristics within the cultural markets, meaning: Nike tends to pay its undivided attention to its product and for whom that specific product will be marketed towards. Being that there has been such a comprehensive change within sports and the products marketed for improvement of one’s “ability”

The consumers of Nike products live by the endorsements that they view on commercials, articles, etc. But why are these endorsements so intriguing to those who invest in the brand? For a customer the popularity of the brand, as it is seen and heard about so often, makes that particular person want to purchase the product as they believe they will be in style with the current fashion also attaining the ‘latest and greatest’ apparel on the market. Consequently, world class athletes wearing Nike products that are available to the public, amplifies the voice of the athlete which generates a tremendous appearance for the brand as a whole. This use of athletes as well as many endorsements with well known public figures is the brand’s way of viewing society through a lens meaning: Nike has created a bold partnership with its athletes to make statements about world issues such as racism, rare diseases, cancers, etc. This approach is an intuitive upswing that Nike’s competitors have failed to do, therefore this approach gives Nike the upper hand by being able to feed their brand into the culture and subculture through its sportswear, footwear, and

What Bergen means entirely about the theory of “stepping back” is taking time to reevaluate and question something to challenge a particular idea or proposition. “The pressure to keep moving forward---and the accompanying reluctance to step back and question---is not just a business phenomenon.” (Warren 77). As stated previously, Nike has taken this step back and challenged the ideas of its brand not only in terms of business but as an influential icon in the sportswear market. A prime example said by one of Nike’s corporate employees Dan Wieden, “To create a lasting emotional tie with consumers, we use the athletes repeatedly throughout their careers and present them as whole people. So consumers feel that they know them. It’s not just Charles Barkley saying buy Nike shoes, it’s seeing who Charles Barkley is—and knowing that he’s going to punch you in the nose. We take the time to understand our athletes, and we have to build long-term relationships with them. Those relationships go beyond any financial transactions”. Here a step back is taken into consideration due to the reasoning that this proposition was not done simply for financial benefit for the company, but the intellect and insight into the consumer’s view on the brand. This in a way challenges the consumer to think more broadly what Nike is trying to portray through