Is Nike tennis fading away?

[martini1]

At least on the men's line. 2 slams in row without Fedal and no sight of Nike in the finals.

If Rafa is not back in form for the FO we'll probably see another non-Nike player lifting the RG trophy.

[El Diablo]

Think a little larger here. The 20th century was the American Century. At least the first half of the 21st is about China. Nike will not disappear, but will recede into the crowd with others, including Chinese brands such as Li-Ning and others yet to come.

[Say Chi Sin Lo]

Originally Posted by El Diablo

Think a little larger here. The 20th century was the American Century. At least the first half of the 21st is about China. Nike will not disappear, but will recede into the crowd with others, including Chinese brands such as Li-Ning and others yet to come.

We all know logic doesn't apply in these forums.

[martini1]

Sorry, Li Ning is not there yet. Their overall price - quality ratio is not any better (and slightly less quality overall last time I checked).
I am talking about marketing and stars endorsement here. Nike is still in No.1 position overall but they can't rely on luck to pick the next big star, or end up having to pay big bucks to lure one over.

[El Diablo]

^^ think LARGER, pretend you're martini10. Sure they're not there yet, but eventually they will be.

[DeFrank]

Nike and Adidas will rule all sports all the time for a long long time. Li Na wears Nike. Cilic wears Li Ning. Li Ning doesn't have trillions of tennis camps or top endorsements or anything. There is no way that Nike is fading from tennis.

[loci]

nike isn't going anywhere. the company dominates market share and their endorsement portfolio includes the two biggest stars in the game and no other company has threatened their grip on the game for nearly two decades. visibility is clearly not an issue for them.

[BreakPoint]

Wait, weren't BOTH finalists wearing Nike - Azarenka and Li Na?

[martini1]

Originally Posted by BreakPoint

Wait, weren't BOTH finalists wearing Nike - Azarenka and Li Na?

Men's line.

[rafafan20]

Originally Posted by BreakPoint

Wait, weren't BOTH finalists wearing Nike - Azarenka and Li Na?

3 out of 4 in the womens semi wearing Nike, and would have probably been 4 if Serena hadn't twisted her ankle. How many were wearing li-ning?

[BreakPoint]

Originally Posted by martini1

Men's line.

But your question is: "Is Nike tennis fading away?". That's the title of this thread, right? So the answer is NO. Even if no male pros wear Nike, we will STILL have Nike Tennis.

[Gonzalito17]

Nike's losing major ground. Fed and Nadal are not going to be in many more major finals which is the most exposure for the brands. Also, Nike's investments in the next wave - Dimitrov, Harrison and Tomic has so far not paid off, or even come close.

Expect Nike to make a big push for Djokovic.

[Babolast]

Originally Posted by Gonzalito17

Nike's losing major ground. Fed and Nadal are not going to be in many more major finals which is the most exposure for the brands. Also, Nike's investments in the next wave - Dimitrov, Harrison and Tomic has so far not paid off, or even come close.

Expect Nike to make a big push for Djokovic.

Djokovic just signed with Uniqlo not even a year ago.

[bosssauce]

No I think they are going to make a big push when nadal comes back and in 2014

[rafafan20]

People said the same thing when Jordan retired, theres always the next star (and I don't even like Nike).

[martini1]

Originally Posted by rafafan20

People said the same thing when Jordan retired, theres always the next star (and I don't even like Nike).

The Jordan brand is a one in a million golden egg. The RF line can't even come close so far.

And Nike b-ball is the most powerful marketing machine in the world. Nike tennis is slightly different. And no "the next super star" in sight coming up in the next 3-4 yrs. Most of the players got slam final potential are non-Nike players. Again, men's side.

[martini1]

Originally Posted by BreakPoint

But your question is: "Is Nike tennis fading away?". That's the title of this thread, right? So the answer is NO. Even if no male pros wear Nike, we will STILL have Nike Tennis.

Yes, I see your logic, bp. But I also talked about Nike FADING away, meaning being dropped to 2nd or 3rd place, losing the driver's seat.

As for women's line, it is a complete different market mentality. A few rich club players would buy their fashion centric dresses, but yet I do not see the majority buying the star featured dresses at all. They wear shorts or tight yoga outfit. And contrary to men, they do not wear tennis shirts as daily wear from my experience. Just like very few women would wear sports jersey to go out.

In many places women's nike/adidas would go on sale year round while some men's shoes are fixed priced until they are truly close to end of the season.

[Gonzalito17]

speaking of Air Jordan, was Kuznetsova sporting Air Jordan blue tennis outfit last week in Melbourne? It sure looked like the Air Jordan logo on her attire.

[axel89]

Originally Posted by Gonzalito17

speaking of Air Jordan, was Kuznetsova sporting Air Jordan blue tennis outfit last week in Melbourne? It sure looked like the Air Jordan logo on her attire.

i think it was Qiodan or something Jordan sued it http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...687647450.html