Nike Forces Out Their Head of BasketBall Due to Poor Sales
Our boy Brian Sozzi breaks down the shake up over at Nike that resulted in the resignation (a.k.a. forcing out) of Michael Jackson, who was the head of Nike Basketball. “The resignation follows underwhelming holiday season signature shoe releases in North America,” pointed out Stifel analyst Jim Duffy in a note to clients on Wednesday.
Understanding the reason for Jackson’s departure — a mere weeks removed from Nike basketball products being center stage at the summer Rio Olympics — is as simple as looking at the latest results from footwear retailer Foot Locker (FL) .
Sales of basketball sneakers at Foot Locker fell by a mid-single digit percentage during the quarter. Despite strong interest in Under Armour’s(UA) Stephen Curry basketball sneakers, Nike’s LeBron and Kevin Durant lines “proved the most challenging” said Foot Locker. The company’s chief, Richard Johnson, said Nike was starting to “reset the price relationship” on its signature basketball sneakers. In other words, Nike may be lowering some prices on LeBron and Durant styles in order to spur sales.
Johnson added Foot Locker was dealt a “body blow” in its signature basketball business to kick off the year. On the positive side, Nike’s Jordan brand had “excellent results” said Johnson.
