As traditional stores close, the sneaker giant reversed course and made a deal to sell on the site, seeking more control of pricing and display.
Source: How Nike Capitulated to Amazon After Years of Resistance
Last year I made a prediction that didn’t come to pass. The link to that article is below. This article was about brand gating and I said that last year Nike and other brands would begin to move towards the same thing New Balance and ASICS as well as Coach has done on the Amazon platform.
Brand Gating Will Hit Sneaker Resale In A Big Way This Holiday Season
Today I was browsing the WSJ and an article by Sara Germano has finally given a date for the worst day in the history of resale for people who flip Nike products on Amazon: July 13th.
Amazon told sellers this month that they won’t be allowed to sell certain Nike items, including sneakers and apparel, starting July 13.
I’m not feeling vindicated or excited because I was right. I’m actually at a loss because I see this as a major chink in the armor of Nike and while it will do wonders for Nike’s profits, long term I still think it’s a mistake. I said that in this post:
Nike selling directly on Amazon Should Never Happen (NASDAQ:AMZN)
In the above article I have my reasons for why this partnership shouldn’t happen. Last year I gave a more explicit narrative of what would happen and I actually went so far as to shut down my own shop on Amazon which was generating a half a million dollars. Below is the discussion on when I saw the writing on the wall for resale on Amazon.
Insider Ties: Amazon, Counterfeits and the Battle Against Fake Startups (Updated)
This is a really big story in resale and possibly one of the biggest stories of the year and I’m sure other sneaker blogs won’t talk about it because they don’t understand why this is a huge story. Use the source link to read the article and take your time to look back through all of the articles I’ve been writing for the last few years.
