FAIRWAY FASHION | NIKE
Surprise , bemusement , shock , panic ; the statement released on the Nike Golf website certainly made an impact within the sport , with many social commentators fearing what it could all mean for the game . The reverberations will run wide and deep with questions raised over employment levels and athlete sponsorship deals , whilst many others continue in their attempts to explain and reason why such a seemingly drastic decision has been made by the biggest sports brand in the world . However , we really don ' t think the move is as unexpected or even as negative as it initially appears .
All that is happening here is a shift in the paradigm from a Nike viewpoint . The hardware market is saturated to such an extent that they no longer see worth in staking their claim , with no real likelihood of ever dominating that particular segment of golf retail . The apparel and footwear business is precisely where Nike have been enjoying a lot of success , especially in 2016 , as we ' ve been reporting all year . We are at the frontline of said success and to hear that the brand is bringing a renewed focus and commitment to improving their lines of clothing and golf shoes has injected our own sense of renewed focus and commitment to the brand , here at GPHQ .
A quick look on the Nike website speaks volumes . The brand has departments for an array of sports and likely dominate many of them in terms of apparel and footwear ... but a few things are clearly missing . There is a tennis department without any tennis rackets ; there is a skateboard department without any skateboards ; there is a surf department without any surfboards . Heck , there isn ' t even any gym equipment available to purchase online and that has been one of their biggest growth sectors in recent years . So why , then , should they bother retailing their own brand of golf equipment ?
We ' re not here to surmise and analyse the hardware market with stats , figures , sale reports and any other insightful data that others can gain access to . Instead , we ' re taking some real positives from this latest Nike Golf news with one quote in particular making us excited for what may be yet to come .
" Over the past year the MM Fly Blade Polo , the Flyknit Chukka and Air Zoom 90 have all connected strongly with golfers . We ' ll continue to ignite excitement with our athletes and deliver the best of Nike for the game ."
As they so rightly say , Nike golf clothing and shoes have made
24 | YOURCADDY MAG - ISSUE 11