Brand, Sports and Equality

How Nike is aiming to support equality in the younger generations.

Nike In.c has realised that it is not only a brand, it is also a tool. The company starts to reinvent itself to help younger generations play by the rules.

For the past 42 years, America celebrates Black History Month, which happens in February and recognises blacks' central role in U.S. history. It sounded like a perfect period for Nike to launch their EQUALITY campaign, a statement that promotes fairness and justice in every community by using the power of sports.

On their website, the company states that their mission is to “Bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete* in the world (*if you have a body, you are an athlete)”. Their EQUALITY campaign does not run away from that, and it connects the brand’s values with society's aspirations.

Nike is a worldwide player in the sports industry and has sponsored many top athletes in diverse sports. Serena Williams, Lebron James, Cristiano Ronaldo, Eliud Kipchoge, to name a few. The idea behind this campaign is to support diversity and inclusion not only in sports but everywhere else in society.

But why is Nike doing this?

In its 2017 annual report, Nike Inc. announced that it competes in the sports industry with Adidas, ASICS, Li Ning, lululemon Athletica, Puma, Under Armour and V.F. Corporation, among others. The intense competition and the rapid changes in technology and consumer preferences in the markets for athletic and leisure footwear and apparel constitutes significant risk factors for its operations. However, NIKE is still the largest seller of athletic footwear and apparel in the world.

Essential aspects of competition in this industry are:

• Product attributes such as quality, performance and reliability; new product innovation and development and consumer price/value.
• Consumer connection and affinity for brands and products, developed through marketing and promotion; social media interaction; customer support and service; identification with prominent and influential athletes, public figures, coaches, teams, colleges and sports leagues who endorse our brands and use our products and active engagement through sponsored sporting events and clinics.
• Effectively sourcing and distributing products, with attractive merchandising and presentation at retail, both in-store and online.

Nike does use all these resources to appeal to customers of all ages and backgrounds. There is a line of products called Equality Collection in the EQUALITY campaign embedded in Nike quality standards. There is definitely a brand connection due to its emotional and political appeal. The video has many influential people such as Lebron James, Alicia Keys, Serena Williams, and Michael B. Jordan. Finally, The campaign is mainly online, with a few actions in designated cities, making the distribution and sales process a lot easier and cheaper than sending products to the physical store.

And the conclusion is…

Nike Inc. knows its business industry, plays by the rules, and wants its public to do the same. The main idea is that if we are equals inside a game court's lines, we are equals everywhere else. This is not a campaign to increase revenues, so they created just a small apparel line for this purpose. The brand definitely knows that sports are a passion, and all ages benefit from this. By releasing a campaign like this, the public's connection (especially the Millennial generation) will only increase the brand’s attractiveness. It may be a preference when making buying decisions.

REFERENCES

Monllos, K. (2017, 1 12). Nike Just Released a Gorgeous, Powerful Campaign Dedicated to Equality. Retrieved from AdWeek: http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/nike-just-released-a-gorgeous-powerful-campaign-dedicated-to-equality/

Nike Inc. (2018). Annual Report of Form 10-K. Beaverton, OR: N/A.

O’Brien, K. (2017, 2 13). Nike’s ‘Equality’ campaign takes a stance on diversity and opportunity. Retrieved from Business Insider: Australia: http://www.businessinsider.com/nikes-equality-campaign-takes-a-stance-on-diversity-and-opportunity-2017-2?IR=T