The Kicks You Wear, Vol. 177 — Making the exclusive inclusive...kind of
Nike's "Dear Summer" drop is about to become the norm
What’s good, family! The Kicks You Wear is back. Thank you so much for rocking with me today — appreciate you!
Quick note: I will be on TikTok now over at For The Win. Gon head and follow us over there to get a look at me making myself look like an idiot for the kids.
Alright, let’s jump in.
Hope y’all are ready for more drops like “Dear Summer”
Because they’re coming. Soon. And probably more frequently than you think.
What happened: Nike CEO Phil Donahoe hopped on an earnings call with investors this week after Nike’s latest earnings report was released and he spoke glowingly SNKRS’ exclusive access frenzy with the “Dear Summer” Off-White Dunk collection.
Donahoe was transparent about how the release worked, which was shocking enough on its own.
He said the exclusive access drop model they used for the release was a “better” way to satisfy customers with drops like these.
And then he dropped this bomb here.
That pissed sneaker Twitter off and rightfully so. Because, sure, maybe 90% of people who missed on Off-White drops before actually did end up copping. So what? Let’s be honest — the pool of folks who copped Off-White from SNKRS before isn’t that big.
There were still only so many people that applied to. Facts are most folks still took L’s after interacting with the app in the exact way Nike instructed them to.The drop was an absolute mess. There’s really no way around it.
The glowing review here from Donahoe is just like another twist of the knife. No one wants to hear this.
But here’s why it still matters: This is absolutely what we’re going to see moving forward. Donahoe even said Nike has a name for it: “Exclusivity at scale.”
He claims the “improved customer experience” had a positive impact on the business.
Apparently, the exclusive access incentives drop people to spend more, including after they won.
This is why Donahoe was so transparent about this — because it’s something he wants his investors to believe in. You don’t talk like this about something unless you’re about to lean into it.
So get ready. Because exclusivity at scale is here and it’s only going to get bigger.
Real Hot Girl Shit
Megan Thee Stallion tapping in with Nike is the joy that I didn’t actually know I needed in my life, but I’m so glad it’s a thing.
The two sides are working together as part of Nike’s “Play New” campaign. Meg is Nike’s “Hot Girl Coach” on the Nike Training Club app.
She has a series of workouts and wellness videos on the app that showcase the workouts she does to stay in shape to perform.
Ms. Stallion also gets a chance to share her story with us and dive into how dance is her sport. It’s pretty awesome.
This has been the highlight of “Play New” so far. The campaign itself is pretty interesting — it’s about finding the joy in sports, no matter what it is or if you’re good at it.
And that’s a different perspective. When most folks talk about sports these days, it’s all about being competitive and winning instead of being about just having fun and getting better. And that’s a great message. It just hadn’t been this…interesting before.
Meg brought new eyes to the app and the campaign. My fiancé, who generally does not care about this stuff much, couldn’t stop talking about it. That was their goal here.
What’s next: It’ll be interesting to see if this leads to more for Meg and Nike. There’s a clear audience here and plenty of opportunity.
Don’t be surprised if she’s back real, real soon.
The Obsidian 13s >>>
Special Delivery is BYKE and this week we had some retro J’s on tap…well, kind of, anyway.
We got our hands on the Obsidian 13s from Jordan Brand and, I’ve got to say man, those things are beautiful. The color blocking is like the He Got Game 13’s but in a UNC Colorway. Best of both worlds, IMO.
Anyway, tap in!
New colorways on old models >>>
The Knit Runners in real life
I really need to see someone unbox the Yeezy Knit Runners on video now because, man, these things look weird.
They really do look like those shoes you wear to dust hardwood floors — no lie.
The outsole looks like a velcro base where you’d stick the dusters and just get to work. This is actually incredible, yo. I…I might actually see the vision now? Idk.
Someone send me these and I’ll unbox them on Special Delivery. It’ll be a great time.
What’s droppin, bruh
Nike Dunk Low “Championship Red” — Tuesday, September 28
Billie Eilish x Jordan 1 KO — Thursday, September 30
Billie Eilish x Jordan 15 — Thursday, September 30
MADE New Balance 990 v3 — Friday, October 1
Air Jordan 5 “Shattered Backboard” — Saturday, October 2
Thank you so much for rocking with your boy today! Appreciate y’all, man. The best audience in the world is right here.
We’ll tap in once again on Wednesday. Til then, y’all know what it is. Peace. Love. Be easy. Be safe. Be kind. And we out.
-Sykes 💯
I hate to say it but the knit runners have the potential to be very cool