Case Study Brand Jordan: Selling a Legend Essay Example
Case Study Brand Jordan: Selling a Legend
Introduction
March 2006 – Larry Miller, President of The Jordan Brand, finally had a few moments to relax. He sat in his office in the Jerry Rice Building at the Nike World Campus in Beaverton, Oregon, taking in the late afternoon sun. The latest advertising campaign was a success and sales were at an all-time high. But Miller knew that now was the time to plan for tomorrow’s success. He turned to the briefs on his desk, which contained various recommendations about how to improve the Jordan Brand’s collection of athlete endorsers. Four potential endorsers in particular stood out, each representing a new strategic direction for the brand to take. Miller needed to decide which, if any, of these individuals he would like to pursue. He knew that Michael Jordan, who had final say on this matter, would expect a convincing argument no matter what Miller decided. He thought back to some of the key events that really defined the Jordan Brand…
Shaping Brand Jordan
The Shoe that Changed Everything
Nike signed Michael Jordan to an endorsement deal in 1984 out of the University of North Carolina, where his successful college basketball career had included a national championship. Jordan was an exceptional athlete known for high-flying dunks. In 1985, Nike produced a shoe called the “Air Jordan” designed in the red and black color scheme of the NBA team Jordan played for, The Chicago Bulls. The shoe was remarkable for its extreme looks (almost all basketball shoes at that time were primarily white in color) and for its use of Nike’s new compressed air cushioning technology, Nike Air™. The NBA initially banned the shoe because its unusual red and white color scheme violated existing league dress code rules, creating a debate in the media that engendered widespread national coverage.
This convergence of the shoe’s attributes, the controversy of the ban, and Jordan’s budding star power turned the Air Jordan
Introduction
March 2006 – Larry Miller, President of The Jordan Brand, finally had a few moments to relax. He sat in his office in the Jerry Rice Building at the Nike World Campus in Beaverton, Oregon, taking in the late afternoon sun. The latest advertising campaign was a success and sales were at an all-time high. But Miller knew that now was the time to plan for tomorrow’s success. He turned to the briefs on his desk, which contained various recommendations about how to improve the Jordan Brand’s collection of athlete endorsers. Four potential endorsers in particular stood out, each representing a new strategic direction for the brand to take. Miller needed to decide which, if any, of these individuals he would like to pursue. He knew that Michael Jordan, who had final say on this matter, would expect a convincing argument no matter what Miller decided. He thought back to some of the key events that really defined the Jordan Brand…
Shaping Brand Jordan
The Shoe that Changed Everything
Nike signed Michael Jordan to an endorsement deal in 1984 out of the University of North Carolina, where his successful college basketball career had included a national championship. Jordan was an exceptional athlete known for high-flying dunks. In 1985, Nike produced a shoe called the “Air Jordan” designed in the red and black color scheme of the NBA team Jordan played for, The Chicago Bulls. The shoe was remarkable for its extreme looks (almost all basketball shoes at that time were primarily white in color) and for its use of Nike’s new compressed air cushioning technology, Nike Air™. The NBA initially banned the shoe because its unusual red and white color scheme violated existing league dress code rules, creating a debate in the media that engendered widespread national coverage.
This convergence of the shoe’s attributes, the controversy of the ban, and Jordan’s budding star power turned the Air Jordan