NIKE is above everything else, a master storyteller that also happens to make well designed products. Products that become an emblem, declaring one’s cultural alliance with the brand. The actual things that NIKE sells are simply an outward symbolism of that cultural affiliation, thus the relationship with a brand like NIKE becomes transformational whilst the majority of their competitors have only a transactional relationship with their customers. I don’t think that NIKE could have predicted the pandemic, but the decisions it make 4 years ago have powered its performance through it and has provided a roadmap for others. 

The lessons for retailers across categories are clear: 

1. No single customer or level of sales volume is worth sacrificing your brand as In reality, the brand is all you have!

2. Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) sales is just a throwback to the way retail has been performed for generations. In fact, the true value of a brands rests in the power of the stories it tells - “Lose the story and you lose the brand and lose the brand and you will lose everything!”

3. Bricks and mortar shops have opportunity to become the most powerful media channel on earth, real life stages from which those unique brand stories can be told.

We all see things from different perspectives. Don’t be shy, contact me via e-mail when you are ready for an external perspective on your brand engagement.