Nike continue to dominate the sports industry. Adidas are fading a little while Under Armour become the young whipper snappers that are making moves.
But despite whatever their competitors are doing, Nike sit on their throne with their sportswear. Their sports stars and in this case basketball. According to Forbes. LeBron James is still the King. Leading Nike in sales and the leading sports figure in endorsements.
James remains the biggest endorsement star in the sport with estimated earnings of $44 million this year off the court, and he is still the king when it comes to moving product. Nike sold $340 million worth of James’ signature shoes in the last 12-months through January, up 13% from the prior year, according to SportScanInfo. It is nearly double the amount of the NBA’s second best seller, Kevin Durant.
Nike dominates the action with the top three sellers. Nike and its Jordan Brand subsidiary commanded 95.5% of the $4.2 billion basketball shoe market last year, according to SportScanInfo. Adidas (2.6%), Under Armour (1%) and Reebok (0.8%) fought for Nike’s scraps.
95.5%. There’s dominance and then there’s world domination. That’s a crazy percentage.
Personally I prefer Adidas but that’s because I’m English. I’ve been an Adidas kid for as long as I can remember. But there’s no one like LeBron. Nike know how to market. They’re one of the greatest marketing companies in the world today. It’s no surprise why up and comers like Kyrie Irving are comfortable with being signed to Nike.
