Check out Nike.com and experience sports, training, athletes, shopping and everything else that’s new at Nike. Just Do It.
Source: Nike. Just Do It. Nike.com
I remember seeing Nike ads in print in the 80s and they all looked the same. They were flat and simple with a basic font and nothing really distracted you from the look of the footwear being touted. The only prominent feature in the ad was the slogan.
As Nike is attempting to battle back from a difficult year that has seen adidas gain ground and make an unrelenting push in both casual and performance, Nike’s approach has been classic Nike. Nike remains faithful to performance first. Over the last year we’ve heard and seen the ZOOM X discussions and we finally had our first glimpse with the Breaking2 event. What I expected was the Zoom VaporFly Elite would be right behind as that just seems like what Nike would do to counter the growth and shift the market back to the Swoosh.
The rollout has been slow. The Elite has not been released and ZoomX has yet to make a true appearance in the form that was worn in #Breaking2. Now without much fanfare the Zoom series has dropped and there hasn’t been a YouTube video, or social campaign. The only thing we’ve gotten is a small release and a classic photo. The slogan references history, but juxtaposes it with shoes that are Nike’s answer to modern performance. This “modern-retro” theme is on trend, but it doesn’t really standout.
Will the retro styled rollout help the brand or is this another mistake by Nike who seems to be more sluggish than they’ve ever been? Time will tell. If sales are any indication, only one style has sold out in the ZOOM release. That’s not a good thing in my opinion, but it is very, very hard to target the marketing in this new environment. Maybe Nike should be looking to adidas now for pointers. What a strange time…
