Yesterday I bitched about Levi Strauss and their support for gun control. Then, on reading about the new Nike marketing campaign featuring that asswipe quarterback as a symbol, I stumbled on this gem at The Last Refuge which, as always, put both events into perspective:
The bigger risk to Nike has nothing to do with Black Lives Matter, U.S. Consumers, or Antifa-like political advocacy. The bigger financial risk to the Nike Corporation has everything to do with geopolitics and a reset of international trade agreements.
You must read it all; but as a spoiler, let me just hint that both Nike’s and Levi’s campaigns are being driven by a secret textile manufacturing agreement with… North Korea through China. In fact, instead of bringing the manufacturing of their products back to the United States (which is actually a viable option), it seems that both corporations would rather undermine the U.S. government’s trade policy, just to keep their own foreign business deals going.
Bastards. Bastards.
I’ve been buying and wearing Chuck Taylor shoes for over 40 years.
Converse is owned by Nike now.
No more Chucks for me.
His chain of logic does not work as there is pretty much zero chance they would have long term liability if the contracts could no longer be executed (I say that having worked in a couple of companies that have had to extricate themselves from China to one degree or another). If somehow that is not the case, their contract lawyers should be shot for stupidity. (Not saying it would not be a giant PITA.)
Do not assume conspiracy where stupidity will suffice. They assume that their target market is made up of people who think like they do. They like BLM etc., so it seems like a no brained win/win to them. Who knows, maybe it will sell them more shoes with the urban lefty crowd. I suspect they are wrong net/net, but they can bet however they like with their money.
Logic? You saw logic?
Looked more like boilerplate tinfoil hat nuttery to me.
Yes, I get it. Nike, the “uniparty” the “Globalists” and the Godless Communist Hordes have all cooked up a sinister plan to swoop down on us foolish Americans and deprive us of our Precious Bodily Fluids.
You know, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. And sometimes an ad campaign that tries to jump on an already well-established social justice bandwagon for purposes of getting attention is just that – an ad campaign that hopes to use a completely manufactured “controversy” to increase its impact.
Jesus, if there’s a “conspiracy” afoot it’s not run by the “uniparty” or the “New World Order” or the illuminati, it’s run by Alcoa to increase sales of foil to crazy people to make hats and line their basement bomb shelters.
A lot of these companies are run by leftist MBAs from the proper schools with the right degrees, using the same market research & assumptions that Hillary used to be super successful in 2016.
They’re also hoping to jump on the “Blue Wave” the upper level Democrats have convinced themselves will happen (using the same data that predicted Hillary’s 2016 landslide). Thus the edgy & woke nature of the campaign- it’s what the kids like, right?
I’m certain this will join New Coke and Crystal Pepsi in the Business Failures Hall of Shame.
You know what’s really annoying about this? Dumb shits like the people at Reason, or Warren Meyer of Coyote Blog, who just don’t care, because it means cheaper goods. They’re all sure that no matter how many American industries are hollowed out, some magical new set of high-paying jobs will appear.
Nike and Levi Strauss can produce anywhere the fuck they want. How much of that shit they sell, however, is another story.
Levis never wore well and don’t fit and nike was crap shoes to start with.
To say I don’t buy from them is an understatement. Now they have just reinforced my dislike of what they offer.
Sorry, but I see no connection at all between this marketing campaign and Nike’s manufacturing operations in China/DPRK. Nike may be very worried by the possibility of a trade war and heavy tariffs on its goods imported from China. Therefore they oppose Trump. But how does their putting Kaepernick’s face on their brand do anything to damage Trump politically?
They would be better off funneling campaign funds to free-trade Republicans or to the Democrats (though a lot of the Democrats these days are anti-“globalism”, i.e. free trade).