The Kicks You Wear, Vol. 178 — NIL business for Nike
Phil Knight is making NIL moves
Good morning, family! Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear! Thank you so much for rocking with your boy on this fine Friday morning.
I got my flu shot yesterday! You should go get yours, too. Yes, COVID is crazy out here. But don’t forget it’s flu season, too. Protect yourself. Be safe. Get vaccinated.
Alrighty. Let’s jump in.
Nike may have found an in on NIL business
A few months ago I’d posed a question about whether it’d be worth it for sneaker brands to dip their toes into the NCAA’s name, image, and likeness waters.
The answer we landed on was probably not, thanks to the expertise of my man Matt Brown of Extra Points which you should absolutely subscribe to.
Something interesting has happened: While we’re not seeing major sneaker brands crack the code directly, a bunch of Nike big wigs just got in the game.
Phil Knight, himself, rounded up a bunch of former Nike execs and Sabrina Ionescu to create what is essentially a NIL accelerator company for the athletes at Oregon called Division Street Inc.
The company helps athletes find the best NIL opportunities for themselves through the connections of the executives in the company.
They’ll also be able to lean on Ionescu for business advice from the perspective of a former student-athlete who is now a professional.
Rich Paul’s company, Adopt, is also involved, too, on the creative marketing side.
It seems like a pretty great opportunity for the athletes at Oregon and will almost certainly be a major recruiting tool for the school.
Between the lines: Here’s the big part. While it’s not a Nike NIL deal, I do think it’s creates yet another major pathway to these student athletes for Nike. It gives gives them a direct line to the athletes who attend Oregon and plan on going pro.
Think big: This is something I think we could see replicated at a number of different schools with a number of different brands.
This NIL stuff is just getting started. What Knight is doing here is a test run. And if this is what the beginning looks like? Whew, y’all. Buckle up.
🎵I can see your Halo, your Halo🎵
For years, people have argued over whether or not “Halo Effects” are actually real or not.
I think it’s obvious this is almost certainly a thing. We can actually quantify it.
You can just look at the boom Kanye West has had on, not only Adidas, but also Gap now.
We’ve also seen that on a smaller scale with Travis Scott on specific sneakers and the resale market.
Here it is again. This time, Virgil Abloh is fattening up the resale value of the Jordan 2 — one of the most slept on Jordans out there. You could cop a pair of AJ2’s for less than $100 just a few months ago.
Fast forward to today after news of Abloh’s AJ2 lows on the way, and here’s what resale prices look like.
This is wild. But it’s the reality of what this ecosystem looks like. People capitalize off of hype. We can can visibly see it through these numbers. The way they brought it back with these big names attached was intentional.
The dirty secret: I’d bet money that folks still don’t like the AJ2. But, with Virgil about to put his touch on it, they’re trying to get in on the ground floor. And the point of entry is that $300 price tag.
That price tag is going to rise after folks miss out on the Off-White 2. After that Jordan Brand will release more 2’s. After that, more collabs. And then, before you know it, the hype will die down and those prices will shrink when the shiny new thing comes along.
That, folks, is how the hype economy works. We’ve seen it over and over again. Just don’t be the one to fall for it this time.
Told y’all Kanye can get you to wear anything
Speaking of hype, what if I told you that, in 2021, people rushed on to the internet in the wee hours of the morning to pay $90 for a hoodie that had absolutely nothing on it?
That’s a thing that actually happened. People went wild over Kanye West’s new Yeezy x GAP hoodies.
They dropped as a preorder and still sold out within a few minutes. Quickly. That’s how excited people were about these.
But here’s the thing: They weren’t remarkable at all. It’s just a regular hoodie.
But while it’s pretty plain and boring, it’s also Ye. And Ye moves the needle.
People pay for name these days more than anything — it’s not just quality on the product. I have no doubt that these hoodies are premium. But you can a good premium hoodie from a number of other places for about half this price. It’s not hard.
Now, look. I have no problem paying $90 for a quality hoodie. But it has to be interesting. These hoodies do not feel interesting at all to me.
They don’t push any boundaries, unlike Yeezy footwear. This is just…regular. There’s nothing that justifies that price tag.
But hey. It’s Kanye, I guess.
New Balance gotta stick to its bag
Listen, man. New Balance has been on an absolute tear lately. It’s pretty much all I’ve worn all summer and even into the fall so far.
But I’m going to keep it a buck. This Stone Island collab…this ain’t just the Zoom Fly?
Man. Cue the Warren Lotas jokes. And look, I actually like these! But this is why New Balance just gotta stick to the Dad bag.
Works every time! And they’re the best at it. It’s cool to veer off but, uh, don’t forget your roots.
#TheKicksWeWear
Y’ALL ALREADY KNOW THE VIBES LETS GOOOOOOOOO
The better Mike got us popping with these beautiful Overbreaks. Man this is an awesome shoe.
The homie Ben pulled out the 5 On It Forces and, MAN, these are sick.
The homie Candace pulled out the Free.99 Dunks and these sure are pretty.
Baby Lean was wearing the hell out of these J’s and you absolutely love to see it.
Then my guy Rube and the Fiancé came out here STUNTING. Sheesh.
The homie Phil is clearly ready for Halloween SZN with these Ghostbuster Boks.
Then, of course, Greer came through STUNTING in the best Wotherspoons.
Then the homie Yosh came through with the Hawaiis…or Maui Wowies…or whatever you wanna call em. These joints fye.
My guy Midtown Brown came through in the Protection Pack 2002r’s and I’M SO JEALOUS.
Then the homie J Block closed us out with the CPFM Blazers. MAN. These are so tight.
Smoked that, y’all. Per yooosh.
Thank y’all so much for rocking with your boy. I appreciate you. New episode of Special Delivery coming today! Be on the lookout! Sneaker of the year vibes!
Let’s rap again on Monday. I’ll holla at you. Peace. Love. Be easy. Be safe. Be kind. We out.
-Sykes 💯
You've got to be kidding about the NB x Stone Island collab. This is a dream shoe, if you're a runner. I'm going to pass because I refuse to buy NB because of their politics, but everyone I know who has this model absolutely loves it. It's a legitimate competitor to the VaporFly. I wish we'd see more collabs with models like this.