Nike Announces Kapernick in New Ad, Suffers Devastating Economic Defeat the Next Day
The people have spoken.
As I’ve written before, boycotts just seem to work a lot better when spearheaded by conservatives as opposed to liberals. Recent history has shown that to be true yet again.
Nike stock fell by 3.2 percent on Tuesday, less than 24 hours after the company unveiled the Kaepernick ad. That figure may not seem large, in and of itself, but it amounts to a total market capitalization drop of nearly $4.2 billion dollars for the company.
While the far left flounders to dissuade people from eating at In-N-Out Burger, for the sole reason that the California-based burger chain dared to donate to Republicans, it took conservatives all of a day to put a noticeable dent in apparel titan Nike.
Regardless of how you felt about the price, quality or branding of Nike, for years it had always been a generally inoffensive apparel company. Yes, its marketing tends to skew toward “trying to be edgy,” but it was hardly boycott-worthy.
That is, until the company decided to thrust the polarizing Colin Kaepernick front and center for its 30th anniversary ad campaign.
Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything. #JustDoIt pic.twitter.com/SRWkMIDdaO
— Colin Kaepernick (@Kaepernick7) September 3, 2018
No matter how you feel about Colin Kaepernick, his anthem protests, his anti-police and pro-dictator rhetoric and clothing choice (he infamously wore socks depicting cops as pigs and, on a separate occasion, a T-shirt shirt emblazoned with the image of former Cuban dictator Fidel Castro) you have to admit that he is a divisive figure.
After all, while Kaepernick obviously has his supporters, he has just as many detractors who find his message to be anti-American and extremely disrespectful to the men and women who serve this country.
After disrespecting our nation and anthem, first-kneeling former QB Colin Kaepernick is now the face of #Nike even though he is no longer part of #NFL. https://t.co/H5Qtt6hlNk @mvespa1 via @townhall #TeaParty
— Tea Party Patriots (@TPPatriots) September 4, 2018
That displeasure with Kaepernick kicked off an immediate #BoycottNike movement, primarily led by conservatives, when Nike revealed its big collaboration with the NFL’s most famous malcontent.
Done with Nike for life! #BoycottNike
— Doug Hamburger (@DougBurger1man) September 4, 2018
https://twitter.com/WaveDavethe/status/1036978896980373504
From all indications, it wasn’t just Twitter user “DavetheWave” who ditched Nike stock. Countless others must have followed suit because Nike’s stock took an overnight tumble.
In other words, just the likelihood of an effective conservative boycott of the company had investors more than a little skittish.
The effectiveness of a boycott is certainly subjective. After all, despite the 3.2 percent dip, Nike’s stock has still grown a healthy 31 percent in 2018, according to Bloomberg.
But the fact that conservative voices can deal a blow, no matter the size, to a massive company like Nike shows the power of a conservative-led boycott.
CNN is reporting that Nike investors are not happy with the Kaepernick ad. Whether the reasoning is moral, fiscal or both, they have every right to be.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article stated that Nike had lost 2.7 percent of its share value with a resultant drop in market cap of “hundreds of millions of dollars.” The actual drop was 3.16 percent, with a market cap loss of $4.15 billion. The article has been edited to include the correct information, and we apologize for the error.
UPDATE: As of market close Wednesday, Nike’s stock price had recovered only about one-eighth of its Tuesday losses — $0.32 of $2.60.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
