Nike were set to ditch Colin Kaepernick just months before he was unveiled as the face of the Just Do It campaign which boosted the brand’s value by $6billion.
The sportswear giant was allegedly in discussions about what they could do with the unemployed quarterback, following his controversial decision not to stand for the national anthem during the 2016 NFL season.
Instead of cutting ties with the former San Francisco 49ers player, Nike decided to embrace what he stood for – social and racial equality – following an intervention from the head of communications.
Kaepernick decided not to stand as a way to raise awareness about inequality and police brutality against minorities.
Nike were set to ditch Colin Kaepernick just months before he was unveiled as the face of their 30th anniversary Just Do It campaign (pictured the 30th anniversary Nike campaign)
It reportedly took a decision from Nike’s head of communications Nigel Powell, before the company resolved to stand beside Kaepernick.
Powell argued that breaking their bond with the former player could result in backlash from the media and consumers, according to the New York Times.
Bosses at the company as well as its ad agency, Widen and Kennedy, began to come around to Powell’s way of thinking, that there could be value in positioning itself alongside Kaepernick
The sportswear giant was allegedly in discussions about what they could do with the unemployed quarterback
Nike signed Kaepernick in 2011, but has not utilised him over the last two years, according to ESPN. Nike has been making all NFL jerseys since 2012 and signed an eight-year extension with the league in March.
Nike cashed in on its political advertisement with Kaepernick at the forefront -recording a five per cent increase following their Labor Day announcement unveiling the former 49ers quarterback as the face of its 30th anniversary campaign.
Instead of cutting ties with the former San Francisco 49ers player, Nike decided to embrace what he stood for – social and racial equality
The athletics company has also seen its shares surge 36 per cent over the year, making it the Dow’s best performing stock, according to CBS.
Gino Fisanotti, Nike’s vice president of brand for North America, previously told ESPN: ‘We believe Colin is one of the most inspirational athletes of this generation, who has leveraged the power of sport to help move the world forward.
‘We wanted to energise its meaning and introduce ‘Just Do It’ to a new generation of athletes,’ added Fisanotti, who said the campaign is aimed at 15- to 17-year olds.
Kaepernick has remained unsigned since March of 2017 after the season where he refused to stand for the national anthem.
Since starting the demonstrations during the 2016 NFL preseason, Kaepernick has been joined by scores of other NFL players in the face of intense criticism, namely from President Donald Trump, who has referred to the protesters as ‘sons of b******.’
In early August, Trump demanded on Twitter that the ‘$40,000,000 commissioner’ of the NFL suspend players for a whole season if they kneel during national anthem more than once.
‘The NFL National Anthem Debate is alive and well again – can’t believe it!,’ Trump wrote in the tweet.
The demonstrations were primarily a reaction to the deaths of African-American men at the hands of law enforcement.
Just hours after Colin Kaepernick was announced as the face of Nike’s new Just Do It campaign, people began to protest.
Nike customers upset at the decision took to Twitter and shared videos of them destroying their apparel.
Many clips showed people setting their sneakers and clothes on fires while others cut their socks.
John Rich, one half of the country band Big & Rich, said their soundman, a former Marine, had cut off the famous swoosh logo from his socks.
Just hours after Colin Kaepernick was announced as the face of Nike’s new Just Do It campaign, people began to protest by destroying their Nike apparel
Nike customers upset at the decision took to Twitter and shared videos of them destroying their sportswear
The NFL is still working towards a resolution on a national anthem policy. In May the owners announced a new set of rules allowing players to remain in the locker room during the anthem while requiring any team personnel on the field to stand. Teams with personnel in violation of the new policy would have been subject to fines, and those teams would have the right to fine their own players as they saw fit.
However, since then the league and the NFL Players Association have been meeting in East Rutherford, New Jersey to work towards a compromise on the issue. According to an ESPN report, both sides are ‘encouraged’ by the dialogue, but a resolution is not expected to be made by Thursday’s opener.
While the uproar over the protests has continued, Kaepernick has pressed ahead with his lawsuit against NFL owners, claiming that they have colluded to keep him out of the league, in violation of the collective bargaining agreement.
Kaepernick recently scored a legal victory when an arbitrator denied the league’s request to throw his suit out last week.