The Kicks You Wear: Clearing The Air on Puma + Adidas’ Big Game Opportunity

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Good morning, friends! Welcome back to The Kicks You Wear. Thanks so much for lending me a bit of your time this morning. Hope you had a fantastic weekend.

Let’s get right to it.

The Thinking Behind a Puma-Adidas Merger

Just over a week ago, the sneaker world was up in arms behind a rumour quickly spreading about a potential reunion between Puma and Adidas. I wrote about it in this newsletter.

• It was all sparked by a quote in the German newspaper Handelsblatt from Metronuclear founder and chief investment officer, Roy Adams. The company is a Puma investor.
• Puma’s stock jumped by as much as 20 percent following the rumour.

What’s new: I wanted to know how on earth an investor, out of nowhere, shook up the marketplace like this. Puma’s stock is still on a bit of a high following the jolt from Adams’ rumor.

So, naturally, I reached out to him via LinkedIn, hoping to find out more. I didn’t know if he’d actually respond. But he did! We had a conversation about the rumour and his rationale behind it.

The verdict: Ultimately, the idea of Puma and Adidas merging into one company really was just an idea he was putting out in the world, though he said he’s heard speculation along these lines from former employees at both brands. The thought is sparked by their shared history and how close their headquarters are to one another, rather than any specific intel.

“All or many think it makes sense,” Adams said. “Their co-location in the town of Herzogenaurach suggests that they should merge.”

The rationale: How does that lead to a massive rally in Puma’s stock? Don’t ask me. Adams (or Adams, for that matter. He didn’t have much to say about the way everyone reacted, but said “I’m glad I’m part of the dialogue on Puma’s future.” So there’s that.)

Adams did say he wasn’t surprised, though. “It’s impossible not to have an opinion. The idea of Puma and Adidas reuniting is part of [Dassler] family drama, part of business logic,” he said. “Some saw nostalgia. We saw synergies.”

At the very least, his idea is a compelling one. He wants Puma to stop competing with Nike and Adidas and consider competing with companies like Skechers. “Adidas sales are about three times that of at Puma, yeah. And then Nike, I think three times that of Adidas,” he said. “So there’s a huge gap there that I don’t think Puma should try to close.”

• In Adams’ dream scenario, Puma and Adidas would fuse into one company. Puma would specialize in affordable sportswear while using the brand’s history and pedigree to dominate the “downstream” market.
• Meanwhile, Adidas would become a more formidable foil to Nike at the top of the industry with access to the athletes and team contracts that Puma has.

The big picture: Will that dream ever come true? Personally, I have my doubts. The issue of brand cannibalisation is likely a greater concern for investors at both companies than any lingering bad blood between the Dassler family at this point. (The family doesn’t hold ownership in either company anymore.)

But the share spike Adams caused with his conjecture has me reconsidering my own doubt. And if I’m reconsidering, maybe Puma’s executives are too.

A Vibe Check on NikeSkims

We’ve talked a lot about NikeSkims in theory, but what do the people really think of it? Business of Fashion’s Lei Takanashi stopped by Skims’ flagship store in New York City on Fifth Avenue to find out. Here are his thoughts:

The launch of NikeSkims was one of the calmest releases I’ve witnessed for a Nike collaboration in some time.

When stopping by Skims’ NYC flagship on Fifth Avenue, half-an-hour after the line debuted in-store and online this Friday, it became evident in seconds that this was not the type of collaboration that would hold the same hype cachet as Nike’s recent collaborations with Corteiz or even Levi’s. While those aforementioned drops garnered sizable crowds, NikeSkims did not create lines that wrapped around the block or attract mobs of frenzied customers who would become a security guard’s worst nightmare.

Instead, arriving at the store minutes after it opened looked like a cake walk for fans who actually wanted to purchase anything from stores on release day. The lines on Fifth Ave only fluctuated between 10-20 people waiting outside both Skim’s flagship and Nike’s House of Innovation directly across the street that also sold the collection on launch.

Yet despite a noticeable lack of hysteria for NikeSkims, which was likely due to the absence of a sneaker being anchored to the collaboration, hardcore Skims’ fans still stretched out their wallets for Nike’s first sublabel since Jordan Brand.

“This is probably my 30th [Skims] purchase. I just like the quality of it,” said 25-year-old Kimberly Brench, who spent $450 total on NikeSkims in-store and online on launch.

Brench added that she’s a more frequent shopper of Skims rather than Nike apparel. That was a point echoed to me by many customers on-line who were mostly women. Nic Marie Vee, a 23-year-old influencer, similarly said that while she is a big Kardashian fan, NikeSkims was the first Skims release that captivated her to purchase multiple items because of how good the fit felt.

“I like [Nike] shoes, but the clothing, I feel like it’s sometimes ill-fitting,” said Vee. “I tried on everything today to make sure it fit and it was really good. In the past, I haven’t loved Nike’s fit.”

Granted that, NikeSkims didn’t create a viral moment for the timeline to remember —and they ardently tried when considering that bizarre dance routine in front of the New York Public Library — it’s clearly a collaboration that’s resonating with some of the women customers that Nike desperately needs to win over again. Only time will tell if NikeSkims could bring in the same success as signature sneakers by WNBA athletes such as A’ja Wilson.

Adidas’ Chance at a Touchdown

Suddenly, February just became a very important month for Adidas. Bad Bunny is the official halftime show performer for Super Bowl LX.

• The Puerto Rican popstar shared a video on Instagram confirming the news after it was announced at halftime during the NFL’s Sunday Night Football game.
• The show will be the only time Bad Bunny performs on mainland American soil during his Debí Tirar Más Fotos World Tour. He’s only performed outside of the United States because of concerns that his show may be targeted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportations.

The big picture: We’re talking about the biggest stage in North American sports — period.

• The only events that compare are the World Cup and the Olympics. Over 127 million viewers reportedly watched the big game last year.

Every year, artists see huge boosts in their streaming numbers following their performances at the game. The same goes for the brands that the artists wear.

Why this matters: Bad Bunny is arguably the face of Adidas these days. He’s the company’s biggest non-athletic celebrity endorser and he’s got a signature shoe coming soon. This is simply an enormous opportunity for Adidas that the brand has to take full advantage of.

Three stripes need to be everywhere on that stage.

Happy Anniversary, Air Jordan 11

Usually, the Air Jordan 11 gets its time to shine every year during the holiday season as Jordan Brand’s perpetual holiday shoe. But this year, for the legendary sneaker’s 30th anniversary, things are expanding.

What’s new: The brand announced a new Air Jordan 11 collection with nine different colourways coming over the next few months.

• Some of the colourways are familiar, like the Gamma AJ11 that originally dropped in 2013.
• Some are new, like the AJ11 “285” that pays homage to Atlanta’s I-285 highway.

My take: While it’s nice to see the Jordan 11 celebrated, I’m kind of unsure about this.

• Isn’t Nike supposed to be moving away from retro? Dropping nine silhouettes of one model in the span of a few months certainly doesn’t feel like that.
• Plus, some of the colorways featured are just not great. At least not to me. (Flat laces on the AJ11 Pearl? Ugh.)

The AJ11 is a sneaker Jordan fans get excited about every single year. I’m eager to see if these continue to hold up.

What’s droppin’, bruh?

This is a dedicated section detailing upcoming sneaker releases for the week, and sometimes other interesting drops I think you might care about.

Thanks for reading, gang! Hope you enjoyed the newsletter.

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, reach out to me via email at michael.sykes@businessoffashion.com or shoot me a message @MikeDSykes via socials.

Peace and love. Be safe, be easy, be kind. We out.

-Sykes 💯