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The Swoosh has once again collaborated with Ambush. I’ve written extensively about the inconsistency of collaborations for brands. In some instances you can get a collab with a designer that sells out immediately. In other instances you get a collab that ends up in the Nike Clearance Store for 69.99.
This latest collab by Yoon Ahn, the founder of Ambush with Nike references the 90s and basketball culture. There is a bit of an issue here. The WNBA has been treated as secondary by adidas and now by Nike.
I understand that the NBA is a bigger business and brand and the league is preparing to come back after the bubble only ended two months ago. However, there is an opportunity for Nike to lend their marketing expertise to the W with a natural collaboration with Yoon and Ambush. Imagine a Houston Comets and New York Liberty throwback collection for women and men, by Ambush.
One of the primary issues for the WNBA is that neither adidas when it was the sponsor, or Nike as the current sponsor, have made any effort to promote the league in a similar fashion to how the NBA is marketed.
Is this a missed opportunity for the Swoosh who has announced consistently that women consumers are important to the brand? Let me know what you think in the comments below.
