Today, as part of the virtual Investor & Media Day, adidas’ Aimee Arana, GM Global Training shared the following statement announcing our partnership with Peloton
Source: NEW INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIP AND APPAREL COLLECTION WITH PELOTON
In a recent episode of Professor Galloway’s YouTube Series on the Attention Economy, he stated that Apple would be the frontrunner in acquiring Peloton. As always, I listen to the thought leaders and attempt to tie it back into the sneaker market. I’ve stated, since Tim Cook became a board member with the Swoosh, that Nike and Apple are aligned in strategies.
In a post last year on the Nike Unite Retail Concept rolling out in 2021, I said,
Nike is simply creating better retail. In doing so, there is an inherent danger to stores carrying the product. Who can better serve their consumer?
A. the company that created the product (think Apple)
B. the company that carries multiple products and isn’t aware of all of the details
I’ve written about this before in both books:
Nike’s Consumer Direct Offense and in Sneaker Resale & Retail In the New Normal. I said Nike would continue infringing on their wholesale accounts. Is it right? This isn’t a matter of right or wrong, it’s business and Nike is operating an elegant system. While it seems that their partners who remain shouldn’t feel any pressure, Nike Live and Nike Unite tell me something different.
In Professor G’s show he discussed that Apple is the most likely company to acquire Peloton:
When collaborations are announced, they have usually been discussed for months. Obviously adidas isn’t responding to Prof. G by rolling out this announcement and I could be drawing parallels where there aren’t two aligning lanes, but this collaboration feels like it could be a chess move by adidas to continue tmoving their products upscale and premium. It also feels like a, “let’s do this before Nike,” play. While adidas’ bread and butter lies in classic footwear like the Stan Smith and Superstar, the Three Stripes has become synonymous with luxury via its partnerships:
Yeezy
Fear of God
Stella McCartney
Y-3
Ivy Park
Where Nike sells a lot of premium product, they aren’t a luxury brand. Even in collaborative efforts by the Swoosh the company remains focused squarely on fitness as lifestyle. adidas isn’t recognized as fitness, although they are the brand in the soccer market, adidas’ immediate reference is fashion. Peloton isn’t a crossover product. In my opinion a company is valuable not when it caters to one specific demographic. A company is worth its weight when it can straddle the lines of function, accessibility and aspiration.
Is this a preemptive move by adidas? Does a one time collaborative effort between adidas and Peloton potentially disrupt Apple from being interested in the acquisition? Is Prof. G overlooking Nike and Apple’s connection and that if Apple truly wanted the attention of the fitness world, they could simply utilize Nike’s hyper-effective digital strategy? They are already connected via the wearables market with Nike Run Club and Nike Training combined with the Apple Watch. Or is he spot on in thinking that Apple will acquire Peloton in the near future?
What do you think about this?