Shares of Nike Inc fell 3 percent
on Tuesday as calls for a boycott of the sportswear giant gained
traction on social media following its choice of Colin
Kaepernick as a face for the 30th anniversary of its "Just Do
It" slogan.
Former San Francisco quarterback Kaepernick, the first NFL
player to kneel during the national anthem as a protest against
racism, posted a black-and-white close-up of himself on
Instagram on Monday featuring the Nike logo and "Just do it"
slogan, along with the quote: "Believe in something. Even if it
means sacrificing everything."
Over 30,000 people were tweeting with the hashtag
#NikeBoycott on Tuesday morning U.S. eastern time, making it
among the top trending topics on Twitter. Some posted images of
themselves burning and ripping their Nike shoes and apparel.
"First the @NFL forces me to choose between my favorite
sport and my country. I chose country," Twitter user @sclancy79
said in a post retweeted 16,000 times. "Then @Nike forces me to
choose between my favorite shoes and my country. Since when did
the American Flag and the National Anthem become offensive?"
IM DONE WIT NIKE. #BoyCottNike pic.twitter.com/1Q1hMgohvS
— Mixeddawg Darion (@Yung_Darion) September 4, 2018
I’m just some lowly deplorable from Iowa. Who happens to blow through $10k in Nike tennis gear every season. Not anymore. #BoycottNike #HelloAdidas pic.twitter.com/8gAx8h3wvc
— ǝɯɐN ɹno⅄ (@link_greg) September 4, 2018
Still, there were a large number of other users who took
positively to Nike taking a stand on social issues.
Athletes including LeBron James and Kevin Durant showed
support, posting images of Kaepernick's ad on their Instagram
profiles.
Even former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad weighed
in, tweeting: "The #NFL season will start this week,
unfortunately once again @Kaepernick7 is not on a NFL roster.
Even though he is one of the best Quarterbacks in the league."
Retail industry analysts were divided on whether the heat
around the campaign would be a commercial positive for Nike or
ultimately alienate and lose customers.
"The alt-right calls for a Nike boycott will fail just like
the boycott of Dick's Sporting Goods failed," said Matt Powell,
a senior advisor with market research firm NPD Group. "Old angry
white guys are not a core demographic for Nike."
Gun rights supporters called for the boycott of Dick's
Sporting Goods earlier this year after the retailer
stopped selling assault rifles and high-capacity magazines
following a massacre at a Florida high school in February.
Another analyst, GlobalData Retail's Neil Saunders, said the
campaign will harm Nike in middle America, where it is battle
Germany's Adidas for dominance in the sneaker market.
"The company's stand may go down well on its native West
Coast; it will be far less welcome in many other locations," he
said.
U.S. President Donald Trump has been critical of athletes
taking a knee during the national anthem and has said he would
love to see NFL owners fire football players who disrespect the
American flag.
Nike, who confirmed on Monday that Kaepernick was part of
the campaign and called him "one of the inspirational athletes
of his generation", did not immediately respond to requests for
comment on Tuesday.