"Adding up Nike, Converse and the Jordan business, Nike has a 93 percent share of the basketball shoe market, the largest take of any shoe business by one company. And finally, consider this. Michael Jordan is still Nike's best endorser by a mile. Powell says sales of the Jordan brand make up a larger percentage of the overall shoe business than they ever have. For every three pairs bought in this country, two of them (67 percent) are the Jordan brand. Nike has a 24 percent share, adidas has a 4 percent share and Converse has a 2.5 percent share."
it cannot be stressed enough that it is really up to the consumers (who can be as fickle & jaded as they are loyal), i believe phil knight has been quoted saying something akin to "nike is a marketing company that sells shoes" and thusly everything they create gets pushed as if it is the greatest thing since sliced bread, that has over time built a certain relationship & equity with consumers...adidas has a fundamentally different approach, reebok has been by far the most adhd, converse has been the quiet mainstay, and1 the gritty newcomer; and each has had their time in the sun (if only momentarily). true enough nike has held on longer than most, not by accident mind you, but the world works in ebbs & flow so a few of these players will come up again when consumers decide that they want the alternative, this is all but certain; the question is will they sustain it? it is dubious to think a small upstart will really make waves in athletic footwear, simply because the cost to bring something QUALITY to market is so high to develop product (and seemingly becoming moreso), as KG would say ANYTHING IS POOOSSSIBLLEEEE but i'd put my money on li ning (because there an established footwear brand in asia) more so than UA, though under armor is being smart getting into running (it a larger, more fragmented, & relatively easier market to gain some credibility in) & x-training 1st and easing into basketball, they will be the better for it...
i wish i could take people through the process of creating product, it would make it so much easier for people to appreciate what goes into it...one thing that it is really tough to grasp on the outside looking in is how tough it is do something new, it is often expensive & risky, not only because you going out on a limb but also because you very well might alienate loyal customers. so even if one succeeds in creating something new, it isn't nearly as easy or enough to just be different, especially if it is something truly different, you have to explain why its different and hope that people understand & choose something different over what they are used to and already know. as something of an experiment, next time you go to a few of the champs, DSGs, FTLs, FNLs, FAs, & TSAs around your hoods, take note of the ratio of nikes to the other brands, notice of the brand & prices of those shoes at or above say $90 retail. because really those are the shoes that typically most representative of what brands want you to see, the aspirational high end product that influences how people think of the stuff at lower pricepoints. notice how many of the brands even have 1 shoe much less multiple shoes in that range...this is to point out that there are a lot of apples to oranges comparisons when it comes to what people think of certain brands, that may indeed be the reality of the market positions of the respective brands but it something to keep in mind. nike can afford to build & put out numerous shoes north of $100, and actually make money off of them or at least create enough interest that it creates opportunities at lower pricepoints, while MOST of the other brands typically have a difficult time even justifying 1...
sorry no cliff notes...
