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Fashion Network
7 hours ago
- Business
- Fashion Network
Converse – not Nike – takes center stage at NBA finals with Thunder star
Meanwhile, Nike, which owns the Jordan brand, is in an unfamiliar position. The next biggest name in the series is Indiana's Tyrese Haliburton, who has a shoe with Puma SE. However, Nike isn't being completely shut out of the finals. The world's largest sports gear maker acquired Converse in 2003 to bolster its lifestyle business. Since then, Converse has had spurts of success, but growth stalled and revenue has been declining, including an 18% drop in the most recent reported period. It makes up about 4% of Nike's total sales. Nike Chief Executive Officer Elliott Hill, who came out of retirement last year to try to reverse a lengthy sales slump, recognizes the shoe's importance. In February, Hill flew to San Francisco to be alongside SGA to debut the Shai 001 — his new $130 basketball shoes in buttery yellow. 'Footwear is all about endorsers and personalities, to be able to identify product lines, and customers know their products by their names rather than just calling them sneakers,' said Simeon Siegel, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets. 'Converse knows this better than anyone. Go back to what made Converse: the Chuck Taylor.' A representative for Converse didn't respond to a request for comment for this story. Long before Michael Jordan played his first NBA game, Converse's Chuck Taylor sneaker was the most dominant shoe on the court. Nearly all pro basketball players throughout the 1960s wore Converse sneakers — usually Chucks, originally developed for the basketball player-turned-shoe salesman in the 1920s. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, the top stars of the 80s, wore Converse as they battled for championships. In the NBA, rivals such as Adidas AG and Puma seized market share, then Nike came along with its first Jordans in 1985 and never looked back. The majority of NBA players wear Nikes or Jordans, and it has signature shoes with most of the sport's biggest names: LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Converse was forgotten. SGA, a 6-foot-6 Canadian guard out of the University of Kentucky, is an unlikely hero for Converse. The Charlotte Hornets picked him 11th in the 2018 NBA Draft and traded him to the Los Angeles Clippers on the same day. After averaging about 11 points per game in his rookie year, the Clippers traded him to the Thunder. The breakout came after SGA arrived in Oklahoma, and Converse finally signed him to a footwear and apparel endorsement deal in 2020 after his second season as a pro. He said at the time that Converse 'not having so many guys and the ability to express myself on and off the court in so many different ways appeals to me so much.' Three All-Star selections and one Most Valuable Player award later, SGA has emerged as one of the league's elite talents. But Converse's timing could've been better. Though SGA began wearing his sneakers midway through the season, they won't be available for shoppers to purchase until this fall. Yet as Converse leans into basketball, Hill and Converse Chief Executive Officer Jared Carver have yet to outline a strategic plan to turn around the brand. It's rarely mentioned on Nike's quarterly calls with investors and analysts. 'Converse as a standalone business is very large,' said Siegel. 'As a piece of Nike, it's felt like an afterthought.'
Fashion Network
9 hours ago
- Business
- Fashion Network
Converse – not Nike – takes center stage at NBA finals with Thunder star
Meanwhile, Nike, which owns the Jordan brand, is in an unfamiliar position. The next biggest name in the series is Indiana's Tyrese Haliburton, who has a shoe with Puma SE. However, Nike isn't being completely shut out of the finals. The world's largest sports gear maker acquired Converse in 2003 to bolster its lifestyle business. Since then, Converse has had spurts of success, but growth stalled and revenue has been declining, including an 18% drop in the most recent reported period. It makes up about 4% of Nike's total sales. Nike Chief Executive Officer Elliott Hill, who came out of retirement last year to try to reverse a lengthy sales slump, recognizes the shoe's importance. In February, Hill flew to San Francisco to be alongside SGA to debut the Shai 001 — his new $130 basketball shoes in buttery yellow. 'Footwear is all about endorsers and personalities, to be able to identify product lines, and customers know their products by their names rather than just calling them sneakers,' said Simeon Siegel, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets. 'Converse knows this better than anyone. Go back to what made Converse: the Chuck Taylor.' A representative for Converse didn't respond to a request for comment for this story. Long before Michael Jordan played his first NBA game, Converse's Chuck Taylor sneaker was the most dominant shoe on the court. Nearly all pro basketball players throughout the 1960s wore Converse sneakers — usually Chucks, originally developed for the basketball player-turned-shoe salesman in the 1920s. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, the top stars of the 80s, wore Converse as they battled for championships. In the NBA, rivals such as Adidas AG and Puma seized market share, then Nike came along with its first Jordans in 1985 and never looked back. The majority of NBA players wear Nikes or Jordans, and it has signature shoes with most of the sport's biggest names: LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Converse was forgotten. SGA, a 6-foot-6 Canadian guard out of the University of Kentucky, is an unlikely hero for Converse. The Charlotte Hornets picked him 11th in the 2018 NBA Draft and traded him to the Los Angeles Clippers on the same day. After averaging about 11 points per game in his rookie year, the Clippers traded him to the Thunder. The breakout came after SGA arrived in Oklahoma, and Converse finally signed him to a footwear and apparel endorsement deal in 2020 after his second season as a pro. He said at the time that Converse 'not having so many guys and the ability to express myself on and off the court in so many different ways appeals to me so much.' Three All-Star selections and one Most Valuable Player award later, SGA has emerged as one of the league's elite talents. But Converse's timing could've been better. Though SGA began wearing his sneakers midway through the season, they won't be available for shoppers to purchase until this fall. Yet as Converse leans into basketball, Hill and Converse Chief Executive Officer Jared Carver have yet to outline a strategic plan to turn around the brand. It's rarely mentioned on Nike's quarterly calls with investors and analysts. 'Converse as a standalone business is very large,' said Siegel. 'As a piece of Nike, it's felt like an afterthought.'
Toronto Sun
17 hours ago
- Sport
- Toronto Sun
Converse - not Nike - takes centre stage at NBA Finals with Thunder star
Published Jun 05, 2025 • 3 minute read Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder drives to the basket during Game Five of the NBA Western Conference Finals against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on May 28. Photo by Matthew Stockman / Photographer: Matthew Stockman/G When the NBA Finals tip off on Thursday night, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will be considered by many as the best player on the overwhelming favorite to win the championship. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account And like many stars, SGA — as he's known — will be wearing his own signature sneakers when his Oklahoma City Thunder face the Indiana Pacers. But the shoes won't have a Nike swoosh or a Jordan logo — the brands that have long controlled the basketball sneaker market. Instead, he'll be wearing Converse. The brand's Chuck Taylor sneakers were a force in hoops into the 1970s, but then morphed into a casual shoe as Nike Inc. gobbled up market share in basketball. But in SGA, Converse now has a superstar that could help it relive the glory days. Meanwhile, Nike, which owns the Jordan brand, is in an unfamiliar position. The next biggest name in the series is Indiana's Tyrese Haliburton, who has a shoe with Puma SE. However, Nike isn't being completely shut out of the finals. The world's largest sports gear maker acquired Converse in 2003 to bolster its lifestyle business. Since then, Converse has had spurts of success, but growth stalled and revenue has been declining, including an 18% drop in the most recent reported period. It makes up about 4% of Nike's total sales. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Nike Chief Executive Officer Elliott Hill, who came out of retirement last year to try to reverse a lengthy sales slump, recognizes the shoe's importance. In February, Hill flew to San Francisco to be alongside SGA to debut the Shai 001 — his new $130 basketball shoes in buttery yellow. 'Footwear is all about endorsers and personalities, to be able to identify product lines, and customers know their products by their names rather than just calling them sneakers,' said Simeon Siegel, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets. 'Converse knows this better than anyone. Go back to what made Converse: the Chuck Taylor.' A representative for Converse didn't respond to a request for comment for this story. Long before Michael Jordan played his first NBA game, Converse's Chuck Taylor sneaker was the most dominant shoe on the court. Nearly all pro basketball players throughout the 1960s wore Converse sneakers — usually Chucks, originally developed for the basketball player-turned-shoe salesman in the 1920s. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, the top stars of the 80s, wore Converse as they battled for championships. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. In the NBA, rivals such as Adidas AG and Puma seized market share, then Nike came along with its first Jordans in 1985 and never looked back. The majority of NBA players wear Nikes or Jordans, and it has signature shoes with most of the sport's biggest names: LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Converse was forgotten. Unlikely Hero SGA, a 6-foot-6 Canadian guard out of the University of Kentucky, is an unlikely hero for Converse. The Charlotte Hornets picked him 11th in the 2018 NBA Draft and traded him to the Los Angeles Clippers on the same day. After averaging about 11 points per game in his rookie year, the Clippers traded him to the Thunder. The breakout came after SGA arrived in Oklahoma, and Converse finally signed him to a footwear and apparel endorsement deal in 2020 after his second season as a pro. He said at the time that Converse 'not having so many guys and the ability to express myself on and off the court in so many different ways appeals to me so much.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Three All-Star selections and one Most Valuable Player award later, SGA has emerged as one of the league's elite talents. But Converse's timing could've been better. Though SGA began wearing his sneakers midway through the season, they won't be available for shoppers to purchase until this fall. Yet as Converse leans into basketball, Hill and Converse Chief Executive Officer Jared Carver have yet to outline a strategic plan to turn around the brand. It's rarely mentioned on Nike's quarterly calls with investors and analysts. 'Converse as a standalone business is very large,' said Siegel. 'As a piece of Nike, it's felt like an afterthought.' NHL Columnists Columnists Sunshine Girls Columnists
Business of Fashion
08-05-2025
- Business
- Business of Fashion
Puma's Earnings Meet Estimates in Boost for CEO-less Brand
Puma SE reported a stable first quarter in a boost for the German sportswear company, which is currently operating without a chief executive officer. The sneaker brand's adjusted earnings came in at €76 million ($86 million) before interest and taxes, according to a statement Thursday. That's down from a year ago but slightly ahead of analyst estimates. Puma also maintained its 2025 earnings targets while acknowledging that the outlook ignores the potential impacts of President Donald Trump's tariffs because there's so much uncertainty. Shares rose as much as 7.8 percent in Frankfurt trading. The stock is down more than 40 percent so far this year. The steady performance amounts to a bright spot for the German brand, which in April parted ways with its former CEO Arne Freundt following a disagreement with the supervisory board over the company's strategy. Puma is now waiting for Adidas veteran Arthur Hoeld's arrival as boss in July. It's a challenging time to be without a leader, with the sneaker industry's exposure to Asia manufacturing putting it in the crosshairs of the US trade war. But Puma appears to be gaining some momentum with its retro Speedcat sneaker, which is key to the company's efforts to raise prices for its more fashionable footwear. The brand still plans to sell between four and six million pairs of the thin-soled Speedcat and related models like the Ballet shoes this year, chief financial officer Markus Neubrand said on a call with reporters. Demand has been particularly strong for those in Asia and North America, while it's been disappointing at some European retailers, he said. While Puma only gets about 20 percent of its sales in the US, the brand has nonetheless seen resilient demand in the country despite concerns about recession and inflation. 'Traffic was under pressure mostly in February, which was the worst month, and since then we've seen an improvement to the traffic development in the US,' Neubrand said. While many investors will welcome the company's decent start to the fiscal year, they'll probably want to see how exactly Hoeld will adjust the strategy before changing their opinion about Puma, Piral Dadhania, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said in a note. Puma performed slightly better than expected in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region while its performance suffered in North America and China, Dadhania noted. In March, Puma disappointed investors with a gloomy trading update based on trade tariffs, currency swings and escalating geopolitical tensions. It also said adjusted earnings before interest and taxes would probably fall this year to between €520 million and €600 million, while currency-adjusted sales would only grow in the low- to mid-single-digit range. The outlook raised doubts about whether Puma can achieve its target of an 8.5 percent EBIT margin by 2027, a goal it already pushed back by two years in January. The brand has struggled to build on the momentum it generated during the nearly decade-long tenure of Bjorn Gulden, who left to become Adidas's CEO in 2023. Freundt sought to deepen Puma's profile on higher-end sneakers and sports gear but never managed to roll out a product that captured the zeitgeist. While some analysts applauded the decision to bring in Hoeld as the new CEO, they cautioned that it will take months for Puma to change its strategy and even longer for Hoeld to bring new products to market. By Tim Loh Learn more: Puma Warns Tariffs, Geopolitical Tensions in 2025 Forecast The German sportswear brand expects currency-adjusted sales to grow in the low- to mid-single-digit range, it said in a statement.
Bloomberg
18-04-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Puma's New Running Shoes Offer Hope For a Brand Desperate to Win
In January, Puma SE launched a grassroots marketing campaign to turbocharge its return to the sport of running. The 77-year-old German shoemaker put out a call on social media for people signed up to compete in this spring's Boston and London marathons, with the only requirement being a record of finishing marathons in about three hours or less. It picked 100 participants in each race and supplied them with its ' Fast-R Nitro Elite 3 ' sneakers, which at that point were still a tightly held corporate secret. With thousands of runners headed to Boston for the annual marathon on Monday, Puma is banking on its army of amateur ambassadors finishing just behind the professionals. That would serve as a splashy debut for the new $300 shoe, which the company is using to regain ground in a sport it long ago helped popularize.
