by Ny Magee via eurweb.com
When Nike selected Colin Kaepernick to be the face of its “Just Do It” 30th-anniversary ad campaign, one analyst noted that the move proved the company knows its customer, and they would boost sales.
Nearly two weeks after the ad provoked calls for boycotts, shares hit an all-time high, closing at $83.47 Thursday — an all-time high for the company.
According to a report from Bloomberg, Nike had previously faced a dip in its stock price immediately after its Kaepernick announcement, dropping nearly 3 percent in the next day of trading at the New York Stock Exchange. That fall has since been made up and more, per Yahoo.
Nike’s Colin Kaepernick ‘Just do it’ campaign is a two-minute video featuring the former 49er narrating stories of athletes who have beaten the odds, ending with the words: “It’s only crazy until you do it,” then changing to “Just do it.”
Pushback came from many who were outraged by the ad and planned boycotts: some burned their Nike gear and one Louisiana mayor tried to ban the brand from being sold at public facilities before pulling back. Donald Trump tweeted that Nike was getting “absolutely killed with anger and boycotts.”
As it turns out, a spike in sales and brand awareness was worth the backlash, and so far it seems Nike is being proven right by betting on Kaepernick.