Comment of the Week
“Nike can’t even loosen its grip so fans can have a piece of Kobe Bryant gear? It’s indefensible.”
What Marker readers have to say about the marketing tactics that make it near impossible to buy limited-release Nikes
Nike’s SNKRS app — the marketplace for the company’s limited-edition releases—has gained notoriety on social media among sneaker fans for creating bottlenecks and making it virtually impossible for customers to check out and snag a pair. Earlier this month, “Michael Jordan’s son Marcus released a limited-edition version of his dad’s Air Jordan I ‘Freeze Out’ sneaker that hardly any actual consumer was able to purchase,” writes David Dennis, Jr., senior writer for LEVEL and author of the forthcoming book, The Movement Made Us.
Dennis, who has repeatedly tried to purchase sneakers via the SNKRS app (to no avail) has likened the whole experience to renting movies at Blockbuster: “We didn’t go to Blockbuster because we liked it — in fact, we hated the damn place,” he reflects. “It leveraged its near-monopoly in predatory ways, charging people exorbitant late fees for movie rentals and even damaging people’s credit scores for not being able to pay those fees.” It’s an example, he says, of how brands like Nike…
