Good morning, folks! Happy Friday. Welcome back to the Kicks You Wear. Thank you so much for being here today.
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Nike’s big numbers mixed with a bit of context
(Photo by rex tavanh on Unsplash)
Last week, Nike told us that they weren’t worried at all about their third quarter numbers. They said they hadn’t slowed down a bit. It turns out they were right.
Business is booming.
The biggest news is this: Digital sales for the company were up 82% with double digit increases coming in both North America and China — Nike’s two biggest markets.
Nike Direct sales were also up by 12% year to year at $3.7 billion.
First quarter revenue dipped in total to $10.6 billion, but that was just a 1% dip from where they were last year.
They are in fantastic shape. Nike’s shares rose by 13% to $132 per share which is an all-time high for the company. This sets the tone for Nike going through the rest of fiscal 2021.
I know what you’re thinking. We’re in the middle of a pandemic. How the heck are they doing so well in the midst of all of this? And the answer is that there are a couple of things at work here.
The first one we talked about one on Monday with Nike’s Direct to Consumer focus.
They were heading in this direction anyway, but the pandemic sped the process up. Consumers are living online more and more. Nike is adjusting to that and it's working.
From Q4 last year to Q1 this year, Nike’s online sales surged again. Last quarter, they rose by 74%. This quarter, 82% as mentioned above. That’s a third of Nike’s total revenue, per Reuters. That’s a huge jump.
Second, Nike's surge is a microcosm of the greater U.S. economy. Right now, despite our government doing the bare minimum in Coronavirus relief, the economy is booming.
Axios’ Felix Salmon has more in Axios Capital.
On an annualized basis, the U.S. economy is going to grow about 25% this quarter, according to the Wall Street consensus. The previous record growth rate was 16.7% in the first quarter of 1950.
The wheels of the economy are churning. Worker productivity is returning. Technology has made it easier for people to go back to or continue working through the pandemic, one way or another. In turn, things have not only stabilized, but there’s also massive growth happening as a result.
Don’t get it twisted, though. This is still a dumpster fire. There are 30 million Americans who are on the unemployment roll, the coronavirus death toll is at 200k and counting, people have no savings and online learning actually sucks. By the way, government help probably isn’t coming soon — if at all.
It’s great that Nike and the overall economy are, not just picking up steam, but sprinting off the block. But it’s important to keep this all in context. We’re still in the midst of a pandemic, folks. Things can reverse at any time.
So, yeah, shouts to Nike. But hopefully the rest of us can make it through, too.
The new StockX
(Photo by Charles Deluvio on Unsplash)
This last summer for the company was a tumultuous one for StockX— even after a huge mid-year report with big numbers.
COVID-19 disrupted the company’s processes to the point where payouts were delayed to sellers and packages shipped to buyers were taking months to arrive.
The company warned consumers about the delays but only after they received numerous complaints about them.
These delays revealed numerous holes in their processes and in the ways that they help buyers and sellers get information about their transactions.
They’re trying to fill those gaps. The company sent out a letter to consumers signed by CEO Scott Cutler pushing forward new customer service initiatives to keep the ball rolling.
New authentication centers, a live chat and more customer service agents are all welcome news for StockX users. In theory, it should help keep people out of the dark on their transactions. We’ll see how it works.
In the meantime, though, they’re also sending consumers who they’ve gotten complaints with discount codes.
This is totally different from the StockX we’ve seen in the past. They’ve struggled for so long with customer service and just, simply, treating people right. Everything from the big data breach to a few years ago to this year with the authentication center blunders and random processing fee.
This new vibe is refreshing. Hopefully, it keeps up.
The H̶o̶l̶i̶d̶a̶y̶ Jordan SZN
We’ve seen a lot of OG Jordan silhouettes pulled from out of the woodwork this year. That’s going to continue this holiday season.
Jordan Brand unveiled it’s holiday lineup and there is plenty of heat to choose from. There are 12 different pairs of shoes from 7 different silhouettes coming this year.
A few interesting things here.
The AJ1 is obviously the most popular silhouette here, but clearly, this continues a big year for non-AJ1 silhouettes. The “What The” 5 is getting a lot of love here and the Fire Red 4 return is the clear highlight.
The AJ3, AJ12 and AJ13 also both get new models. And we get a Jordan 8.
We absolutely have to talk about what’s missing, though — the Jordan 11. It’s not listed here in the official images. We’ve seen leaks of the Silver Eyelets 11 all year, but don’t have official images or a date.
Traditionally, a different Jordan 11 retro drops around Black Friday. It all started with the Space Jam in 2000.
People have been going crazy over them for years. Colorways like the Gamma Blues and Concord 11s have made waves in the sneaker world.
It’s hard to believe the AJ11 would be left out here — especially on during its 25th anniversary, no less. It's arguably the biggest Jordan Brand drop each and every year. Plus, y’all might burn down the internet. No one wants that.
If I had to put money on it, I’d bet this 11 is coming. But I’m broke, so. We’ll see.
You can spend $50,000 on some Dunks rn
Whenever I have to spend $150 or more on a pair of shoes, I always hesitate. It’s the #BrokeBoi in me. I can’t help myself.
So imagine my reaction when I saw these beautiful Paris Dunks were being auctioned off by Sothebys for FIFTY. THOUSAND. DOLLARS. As the starting bid, y’all! To start!
Yeah, fam. I’ma head out. Good luck to y’all tho.
#TheKicksWeWear
Y’ALL KNOW THE VIBEZ. LET’S GET IT.
First, the homie Kayla started us off with some HEAT. These are the cleanest Ozweegos ever.
My dog Jonas came out in the Acronym Lunar Force 1 lows and they’re AMAZING.
Lots of Acronym love today. The homies Sumeet and Phil jumped out in the Prestos.
The homie Muhammad RLee popped out SHINING in the AJ1 Nova XX joints. So fun.
Greer popped out here stunting in the gold toe AJ1’s looking SHARP.
And of course, Lyndsay came through icy as ever with these suede Blazers.
The homie Jonathan popped out in the Northern Lights Lows — aka MY GRAILS y’all.
Mags went straight IG influencer mode on us with the Rayguns and smoked it.
Then, the homies Wallabees and Adrian sent us all packing with these AMAZING ass Space Hippies. Goodness.
EVERY. DAMN. WEEK. Y’all kill it!
Thanks for stopping by, family! Don’t forget to tell your friends to subscribe to the Kicks You Wear! Giveaway soon come!
See you Monday!
As always, peace and love. Be easy. Be well. Be kind.
Signing off.
—Sykes 💯