LeBron James traded South Beach for C-Town last summer when he signed a free agent deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers after four seasons and two NBA titles with the Miami Heat. Skeptics wondered if the move to the smaller, less glamorous market would ding James’ endorsement standing and shoe sales. Fat chance.
James remains the biggest endorsement star in the sport with estimated earnings of $44 million this year off the court, and he is still the king when it comes to moving product. Nike sold $340 million worth of James’ signature shoes in the last 12-months through January, up 13% from the prior year, according to SportScanInfo. It is nearly double the amount of the NBA’s second best seller, Kevin Durant.
The NBA seemingly revolves around LeBron in recent years and it is no different with selling shoes. Nike signed James out of high school in 2003 to a seven-year, $90 million deal. The deal was slow to pay off for Nike, but sales took off starting with the LeBron VI. Nike released its twelfth James’ signature shoe in October, fittingly the LeBron 12, at a retail price of $200. There are more iterations of James’ shoe than any other player and his shoes are widely distributed, which helps boost sales. His sneakers are also huge sellers with kids. James earns an estimated $20 million a year from the $30 billion-in-sales Beaverton, Ore.-sports giant.
Durant’s KD signature line of sneakers had sales of $195 million in 2014 for Nike, up 11% from the prior year. This follows a meteoric 400% rise in 2013 when Nike flooded the market with the popular KD VI. The low-top version of the this season’s KD7 in flashy colors like teal and pink is a bit hit with female teens, according to SportScanInfo footwear analyst Andy Annunziata, who compiled the sales data for Forbes. Nike made a huge bet on the NBA’s reigning MVP last summer when it inked Durant to a 10-year contract extension that could pay as much as $300 million, including royalties. It is the richest player endorsement deal in the history of sports.
The biggest gainer among NBA players with signature shoes was Kobe Bryant. The Los Angeles Lakers’ guard has been a linchpin for Nike for years in China, where Bryant is adored. His U.S. shoe sales more than doubled last year to $105 million, up from $50 million, despite Bryant missing most of the past two seasons with injuries. Credit Nike’s new Flyknit technology, which it incorporated into the Kobe 9 (Nike also pushed the sale price to $200). “Nike continues to reinvent new technologies on a regular basis, and they have instant credibility when they introduce a new technology in basketball,” saysAnnunziata.
Adidas has lost traction in the basketball shoe market and had only a 2.6% market share last year, down from 5.5% in 2013. This week it announced itwould not renew its NBA uniform deal after it expires in 2017. Injuries have hampered its top two signature athletes, Derrick Rose and Dwight Howard, in recent years. Adidas bet the farm on Rose in 2012 to the tune of $185 million over 13 years after his MVP season the previous year. The Chicago Bulls’ point guard has been snakebitten ever since. The latest blow was a torn meniscus in his right knee last month that required surgery. Sales of Rose’s Adidas signature shoes fell 20% last year to $32 million.
Howard was never a big seller for Adidas and his signature shoe has now basically fallen off the map. Sales plummeted 70% last year to only $1.5 million or less than James’ racks up in two days. Adidas has shifted its attention more to John Wall and Damian Lillard over the past year.
Below is the full list of players with signature basketball shoes at Nike and Adidas (other brands, like Dwyane Wade’s Li-Ning shoe, have limited availability in the U.S). Figures are U.S. retail sales and cover the retail fiscal year that ended in January 2015 (Sales for Kyrie Irving and Lillard are since their release).
Nike dominates the action with the top three sellers. Nike and its Jordan Brand subsidiary commanded 95.5% of the $4.2 billion basketball shoe market last year, according to SportScanInfo. Adidas (2.6%), Under Armour UA +1.55%(1%) and Reebok (0.8%) fought for Nike’s scraps.
Irving is an up and coming player to watch. His first signature Nike shoe was released in December, and it racked up $7 million in sales during its first three months. The profile of the Cavaliers’ point guard has surged with the arrival of James in Cleveland. The Cavs are featured the NBA maximum of 25 times on broadcast partners ESPN/ABC and TNT. “You have to be in front of the public to get things rolling. That is why Kyrie came out of the box strong,” saysAnnunziata.
LeBron James might be the king of the current crop of NBA stars, but he can’t touch the man who redefined sports marketing. Michael Jordan has been retired for a dozen years, but sales of Nike’s Jordan Brand rose 17% last year to $2.6 billion. Jordan market share was 58% in 2014 (adding the Nike brand in brings Nike’s total market share to 95.5%).
Nike released the retro Air Jordan XI “Legend Blue” in December. It was one of a dozen Air Jordan releases during the month. The Legend Blue sold out on Nike’s website in three hours and sold more than $80 million worth of sneakers within its first week, according to SportScanInfo. This was one week of sales for one Jordan style, and it crushed the total yearly sales for all but three NBA stars. The brands’ success made Michael Jordan a billionaire and the highest-paid retired athlete in the world last year with earnings of $100 million. It is something for James and gang to shoot for.
Signature Shoe Sales 2014
LeBron James: $340 million (Nike)
Kevin Durant: $195 million (Nike)
Kobe Bryant: $105 million (Nike)
Chris Paul: $32 million (Nike/Jordan)
Derrick Rose: $32 million (Adidas)
Carmelo Anthony: $30 million (Nike/Jordan)
John Wall: $8 million (Adidas)
Dwight Howard: $1.5 million (Adidas)
Up and Comers
Kyrie Irving: $7 million (Nike). Shoe released in Dec.
Damian Lillard: $1.8 million (Adidas). Shoe released in Jan.
source: forbes.com by
Durant’s KD signature line of sneakers had sales of $195 million in 2014 for Nike, up 11% from the prior year. This follows a meteoric 400% rise in 2013 when Nike flooded the market with the popular KD VI. The low-top version of the this season’s KD7 in flashy colors like teal and pink is a bit hit with female teens, according to SportScanInfo footwear analyst Andy Annunziata, who compiled the sales data for Forbes. Nike made a huge bet on the NBA’s reigning MVP last summer when it inked Durant to a 10-year contract extension that could pay as much as $300 million, including royalties. It is the richest player endorsement deal in the history of sports.
Howard was never a big seller for Adidas and his signature shoe has now basically fallen off the map. Sales plummeted 70% last year to only $1.5 million or less than James’ racks up in two days. Adidas has shifted its attention more to John Wall and Damian Lillard over the past year.
Below is the full list of players with signature basketball shoes at Nike and Adidas (other brands, like Dwyane Wade’s Li-Ning shoe, have limited availability in the U.S). Figures are U.S. retail sales and cover the retail fiscal year that ended in January 2015 (Sales for Kyrie Irving and Lillard are since their release).
Nike dominates the action with the top three sellers. Nike and its Jordan Brand subsidiary commanded 95.5% of the $4.2 billion basketball shoe market last year, according to SportScanInfo. Adidas (2.6%), Under Armour UA +1.55%(1%) and Reebok (0.8%) fought for Nike’s scraps.
Irving is an up and coming player to watch. His first signature Nike shoe was released in December, and it racked up $7 million in sales during its first three months. The profile of the Cavaliers’ point guard has surged with the arrival of James in Cleveland. The Cavs are featured the NBA maximum of 25 times on broadcast partners ESPN/ABC and TNT. “You have to be in front of the public to get things rolling. That is why Kyrie came out of the box strong,” saysAnnunziata.
LeBron James might be the king of the current crop of NBA stars, but he can’t touch the man who redefined sports marketing. Michael Jordan has been retired for a dozen years, but sales of Nike’s Jordan Brand rose 17% last year to $2.6 billion. Jordan market share was 58% in 2014 (adding the Nike brand in brings Nike’s total market share to 95.5%).
Nike released the retro Air Jordan XI “Legend Blue” in December. It was one of a dozen Air Jordan releases during the month. The Legend Blue sold out on Nike’s website in three hours and sold more than $80 million worth of sneakers within its first week, according to SportScanInfo. This was one week of sales for one Jordan style, and it crushed the total yearly sales for all but three NBA stars. The brands’ success made Michael Jordan a billionaire and the highest-paid retired athlete in the world last year with earnings of $100 million. It is something for James and gang to shoot for.
Signature Shoe Sales 2014
LeBron James: $340 million (Nike)
Kevin Durant: $195 million (Nike)
Kobe Bryant: $105 million (Nike)
Chris Paul: $32 million (Nike/Jordan)
Derrick Rose: $32 million (Adidas)
Carmelo Anthony: $30 million (Nike/Jordan)
John Wall: $8 million (Adidas)
Dwight Howard: $1.5 million (Adidas)
Kyrie Irving: $7 million (Nike). Shoe released in Dec.
Damian Lillard: $1.8 million (Adidas). Shoe released in Jan.
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