Turns out cutting the Swooshes off your sock won’t bring down a multinational corporation.
Earlier this week, former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick was revealed as the face of Nike’s latest ‘Just Do It’ campaign, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the advertising slogan that has become synonymous with the sportswear brand.
BREAKING: Nike had been paying Colin Kaepernick all along, waiting for the right moment. That moment is now, as he becomes the face of the company’s 30th anniversary of the “Just Do It” campaign. pic.twitter.com/uccpDStbq5
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) September 3, 2018
While the campaign was met by widespread acclaim, receiving praise from the likes of LeBron James and Eric Cantona, there were of course a small minority of people who were offended by this.
In fact, these people weer so offended that not only did they swear to never again purchase Nike products, but they also felt compelled to passionately destroy whatever Nike-adorned apparel they already owned, and had already given and paid for.
However, it seems Nike don’t have much to worry about. Nike’s online sales grew 31% over the Labour Day weekend, compared to a 17% over the same period last year. According to Market Watch. Nike stock took an initial dip of 0.12% after the advert was revealed, but has since held up and had increased 1% by Friday.
The advert also caused a surge in online buzz, with social media mentions of Nike rising 1,678% on Sunday, according to marketing technology company 4C Insights.
In August 2016, Kaepernick took a knee during the playing of the national anthem, in protest of police brutality and racial injustice in the US. The protest then spread through the NFL and into other sports, with many other athletes following his lead.
Kaepernick’s stance gained even more traction after Donald Trump called players who “disrespect” the US flag “sons of bitches.”
The American Football star had signed with Nike in 2011, but the reveal of the new advert was accompanied by the news that the sportswear giant had retained him on the roster for the last two years even though he was not competing in the NFL.
