Nike has lowered its sales outlook for this fiscal year, blaming a slump in demand for its top-selling sneakers, such as the Air Force 1 and Air Jordan 1 . It’s no coincidence that these styles have fallen out of favour with fashionistas, who are instead choosing Adidas’ low-rise models, led by the Samba. This sartorial shift looks like it is really starting to hurt Nike.
It’s unusual for the market leader to be so on the back foot. Michael Jordan wearing Nike Air Jordan 1 shoes in the mid-1980s. Credit: Getty Nike chief executive officer John Donahoe is trying to spark a revival with a suite of new products.
But these are primarily focused on performance: helping runners run faster, footballers kick harder and yoga enthusiasts stretch more comfortably. Nike and Adidas are also fashion brands; their most successful periods come when their products are riding a wave of popularity. Until last year, Nike’s chunky styles – including the Dunk produced in near-infinite colourways – were ubiquitous.
Now, Adidas’ sleeker models, also including the Handball Spezial, SL 72 and Gazelle, adorn the feet of fitsters. As well as improving Nike’s performance offering — where it’s also under pressure from rivals including Swiss upstart On Holding — Donahoe needs to find some new hits in the more fashion-oriented lifestyle category if he is to wrestle back momentum from Adidas. Loading Underlining the reversal in the two companies’ fortunes, Nike said that after enjoyin.
