YoBeat: Making Fun of Snowboarding Since 1997
Hump Day Gets Swooshed
By Nick Lipton • Jan 28th, 2009 • Category: Random
Protested, picked on, and once failed in the snowboard market, Nike is back and neither the “jock” stigma nor bad press will stop them. Nike Snowboarding has a simple goal, put you in the best boot possible. Love it or hate it, Nike Snowboarding is working hard to make your riding experience better.
From Danny Kass to Laura Hadar, Louie Vito to Justin Bennee, Nike Snowboarding started by putting together a solid crew of today’s hottest talent. Contest winners, backcountry greats, urban assassins, the team represents snowboarding in all of its forms. This ensures that the consumer realizes not only will the flagship boot, the Zoom Force One, function well in any condition, but that it holds universal appeal. There is no room for such petty things as tight vs. baggy pants — instead a focus on quality boots replaces such arguments. And Nike is using its greatest asset (money) to make sure its riders are taken care of and the quality is there.
But money is also the unattractive quality about Nike. That large pocket book, the lure of being a Fortune 500 company, the power and ability to get things done, these things are harmful if you believe being a grassroots, (and poor) snowboarder are key to staying true to the bro-bra boarder spirit. It seems though, for most snowboarders, a company that is willing to invest large sums into the quality of both the product and the team is a good thing.
Pipe jocks jibbing. At Nike Snowboarding, these things happen. Louie Vito. Andy Wright photo.
Money gives Nike the ability to take the time to ensure quality products are made. Plenty of testing and R&D is done, and before the boot hits the shelves, team members and developers have to agree the product is ready. Don’t be fooled by Nike’s 2008 release, the Zoom Force One has been in the works for years. Now that it’s out, the boot is flying off the shelves. Tactics Boardshop Manger Eric Purdy was shocked when he checked the sales report, “Damn, they are doing well. It’s barely January and we’ve sold 78% of our inventory.” Purdy said some kids just seem to want the swoosh, “I actually had a kid come in and buy a pair without trying them on.”
Nike has had its failures. Failed skate shoe brands, and a miserable first attempt in snowboarding taught the brand a few lessons. Time, understanding, and much better hiring practices have already fixed such errors in the skateboarding community. The Nike snowboarding program is now following by example. While the original effort to break into the snowboarding industry only produced disgusting moon boots, the current effort is backed by a snowboarder-based staff, ensuring the gear is actually cool.
Still, many in the snowboard community hold a prejudice with anything Nike-related. Worthless products and poor production facilities are sure to be brought up in any Nike conversation. But a few lawsuits and a global microscope caused Nike to clean up its act years ago. So much so, that it is now much more responsible than many competitors. Marketing Manger Bobby Meeks knows the lengths Nike has gone to clean up its act, “We had to find completely new production facilities, we even had to figure out new glues and materials to use in the boots,” he explained.
However, the age-old argument, “It’s Nike, it can’t be good for snowboarding,” is still there. Upon actual inspection though, the “Nike is bad” argument holds no merit. Nike Snowboarding is run by snowboarders who have lived snowboarding longer than the average snowboarder has been tying his own shoes. This is a group that goes to the mountain for “team building exercises” and avoids the office to “test” product on powder days. Meeks, freshly retired from a game-changing snowboard career, is a prominent member of the Nike program. His fellow co-workers have all been hand selected to ensure that Nike Snowboarding is a snowboarder driven operation. Suits are not designing boots, and neither are the guys that created the latest Nike sports bras. Quite literally, Nike Snowboarding is for riders by riders. “You have to care about snowboarding to do this, you know bring it from the right place,” Nike Snowboarding’s Kevin Stevenson said. “I snowboard, I wouldn’t make silk shirts or something.”
Raising the roof. Austin Smith. Andy Wright photo
To reach these goals, Nike started at the ground level and did what it takes to gain credibility, and didn’t just try to buy a place in snowboarding. To date the staff have created a respectable team, a good product, and are only selling to trusted and respected shops. The mega sports stores would love to carry the Zoom Force One, but you won’t find them there. This formula ensures that the boots are put into the right hands and that the money from sales goes back into the industry. Also, Nike has a plan to help those shops during the rougher months.
Special or “limited” releases will begin to show up on the shelves in the near future. Shops rely heavily on seasonal sales, and a burst of enthusiasm for new products during down months should help them economically. Theoretically this formula will help the industry as a whole financially. Not only will sales increase during otherwise hard times, but a larger audience generated by the swoosh symbol will be lured into the core snowboarding shops. If this plan works (and it did for skateboarding,) Nike can bring more interest to snowboarding.
For shops, the real luxury of Nike affiliation though, is its massive appeal. Fifteen-year-old kids with Daddy’s credit card aren’t the only folks clamoring to get boots. Big shot Rap stars KRS-ONE and RedMan have contacted Nike to request a pair. Do they want to go snowboarding in them? Possibly. Do they want to rock them in da’ club? Who knows. Regardless, those personalities, along with the rest under the Nike influence, will be in the store and spending money in the industry.
“All the tech and money Nike has isn’t bad, it makes crazy functional boots,” Team Rider Justin Bennee said. “You get the best of both worlds, a simple but functional boot. And it’s crazy, you’d think it would be small fish big pond but I have a lot of creative input into what gets made. It’s a real tight knit deal at Nike, they take care of us.”
For more on Nike Snowboarding, visit http://www.nike.com/nikesnowboarding/
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This is their third attempt, but first with a decent (or so I’ve heard) product.
Snowboarding’s been jocked out beyond the point of no return since at least 98 (DC mesh shit/BIG money/the little steroid guys); they’ll do fine this time…
Put me down for those middle ones up top, size 10.5.
This is the second run with hardgoods for Nike. In the late 90’s they had boards boots and bindings.
doesnt matter how many times they have tried. shit, i’m sure you tried to start something and totally blew it once before.
the sick part is that they are doing right. their boots work great. the people doing it are legit. and they are doing good for the market. heck yeah kevin and bobby.! keep it up.!
They tried twice with ACG…I didn’t see any “hard/softgoods” distinction above. The bindings were on some “???” shit. I picked up some pants at an outlet mall once; they were good…I hope these boots trickle down to outlet malls…
They’ll pay their riders, that’s probably the best part. You need more boots?
Also: why doesn’t the number of attempts matter? I think it’s relevant, as they have all the money in the world. Little dude gets knocked down, that elicits some sympathy…gets back on his horse again–maybe that’s inspiring… There was more than enough money in snowboarding during Nike’s first attempt(s), it was sorta heartwarming that they couldn’t pull it off…
at any rate–those crackle concrete elephant print whatevers: those look nice.
ps didn’t Redman learn his lesson when he wore the ski goggles?
pps get the powerstripe DOOD
Fuck Nike.
i don’t understand the love for nike in skateboarding, and now snowboarding. burton is way more ‘for snowboarders by snowboarders’ than nike and the only thing burton gets is hate. no one would ever write an article like this about burton. nike doesn’t deserve/need benefit of the doubt. what the fuck has phil knight or michael jordan ever done for me? exactly, so why the fuck should i buy their ugly-ass-wannabe-skate-shoe boots? nike isn’t in it to improve snowboarding/build a better snowboard product. they’re in it for market share and that isn’t enough.
nike>burton
suck my dick
nice post nick. thanks for sharing and providing a viewpoint that spans beyond Nike sucks or corporate snowboarding is ghey. journalism is a solid balance of both viewpoints. nice to hear from bobby meeks, et al.
Yeah, thanks for sharing a viewpoint that is only worth what Nike paid for it.
Damn you guys must be so hardcore cuz you hate the big brands. You’re all idiots. I’m gunna go ahead and say it doesn’t matter who the companies are or what they do. If you like it that’s all that matters. OH and to that idiot up top, ACG is Europe’s number one outerwear brand. They just pulled the plug in the states. Morons.
the mega stores have them, thats false right thurr
Haha, reading these comments is almost better than reading the article. Sure, Nike has a way to go, but seriously you haters don’t even know what you’re talking about. What mega stores. prove it. and how do you know about all this inside nike bullshit, you probably don’t know the first thing about the industry.
word at JW, how many sweet pairs of kicks did you guys get for this? go ahead and call me a hater, that label is almost as played out as Nike’s cold ass boots. looking good with frozen toes!yay nike.
You even ever wear the boots? Try em out first, I got a pair right after xmas, they are awesome.
Nike hands down makes great product. And because of this they are a giant. Nike started with meager beginnings and the shoes were sold out of the back of a Volkswagen van. That’s pretty much as “core” as you can get. Due to their innovative designs and pushing boundaries they succeeded. Fast forward to modern times they are interested in new markets such as skate and snow. Think back to the beginning of skateboarding before skate shoe brands were a top commodity and you would see people such as Lance Mountain wearing the Blazers. Sure Nike has making money on their mind but who doesn’t. No matter how core a company is they want to turn profits and grow. The people who work at Nike snowboarding are all people like me or you who are into it for the right reasons and got lucky with getting a good job. The whole point of alternative sports is to enjoy yourself in the first place without a coach breathing down your neck. Nike doesn’t tell you that you have to buy the stuff they make, but they do test everything the make and make the best products possible. The choice is up to each and every person to consume what they want, but at the end of the day you should be worrying about having fun, not who wore what and what company did what. The world is already fucked and it’s just going to keep getting worse. Enjoy yourself and take these brands and life with a grain of salt.
Man, I wish we thought of getting paid to write this article! Nick, you blew it man, I bet Nike would have given us like a million dollars!
okay, soooooo nike boots have liner materials that were used about 4-5 season ago boots. what makes this “good product” definitely nothing new going on with liner materials to get in the boot smoothly (ie. cat’s tongue material) and catch your heel so they don’t slip up? i’d say that a pair of sb’s are more comfy than the materials used in the snow boots. this was the first let down upon seeing the nike boot. other than that, they fit like a vans danny kass 2006 boot off the shelf. have a similar ankle strap to keep you tight all day long. nike boots is good, but no standout. so if you happen to like them. rad. buy them and have fun on the hill cuz they will treat you right. but if you are the typical, “i read this years buyers guide and my friends cousins, brothers, cat told me that ___ brand is the boot for me” this isn’t your standout, offers something more than the boot next to me on the shelf deal. for a large company with “Said” resources…they aren’t bringing anything new to the snowboarders foot.
at a price tag of $250 the idiots buying these are paying at least $30-$40 above what this boot offers comparatively to most boots on a real shops wall. It’s a solid $200-$220 boot. you got hyped into buying the swoosh if you didn’t get a deal, or a box of product in the mail. i work at a shop that sells them. 1 of 50 retailers in the states…we get sneaker head calls all day for these….so please keep making them. we sell them…but yes, overpriced and not in the same boat as somebody like burton, salomon, or other heavies that put good time into boots made for snowboarding.
not that my opinion matters…but shit…i’m offering it, and have sold more boots than most of you that will read this.
” Nike started with meager beginnings and the shoes were sold out of the back of a Volkswagen van. That’s pretty much as “coreâ€? as you can get. Due to their innovative designs and pushing boundaries they succeeded.”
They succeeded mainly because they were ruthless. They used third world labor, including using children, so that they could increase their profits to a high degree. Now they are using those profits gained from the blood of children to buy their way into the snowboard industry. It didn’t work before when they tried before, and hopefully they will fail again.
The boots look shitty anyways. They are not innovative in the slightest bit, unless you call making boots that look like classic basketball sneakers innovative. They are just trying to make a quick buck again while putting forth the least amount of effort possible. Ohh, come get your limited edition color way, we didn’t add anything to the boot, but check out these cool colors! Fuck Nike.
oh shut the fuck up, almost everythings made in asian sweatshops.
i just really like blowjobs
JW - your mom is a sweatshop! your such a dumb ass!
I didn’t say sweatshops are bad per say, but child labor definitely is! Sweatshops are a necessary step for third world countries to moving up in the world and is much better work than what else is available. That doesn’t mean the workers shouldn’t be making more, but at least it is a start for them.
Beyond all that these boots seem to be all “steez” anyways! I don’t see anything other than a copied old school sneaker look…the liners don’t even have laces!
who gives a shit if they tried it before. whats important is their taking money out of little companies and putting a lot of money into jock pros, and more importantly pros who think they aren’t jocks but are complete jocks at heart.
You do your thing and I’ll do mine. That being said I have to say that I really dislike the fact that nike is trying to establish itself in the snowboarding realm simply because over the last years the sport has been blowing up exponentially. As a snowboarder I love the freedom I have and the complete oneness I get between me and my board. This is something team sports can’t quite grasp, at least not in the same ‘just me’ sense. I have a slight prejudice toward Nike in that I feel they belong on the team sports side and don’t understand/deserve the freedom of snowboarding. But with a team of names and developers that have been a part of snowboarding fueling their fire, they will surely get the hang of something, but I’m fine without a swoosh on me when I shred. But whatever, other kids rocking it is their choice, just go snowboarding and don’t spend too much time in front of the mirror when you could be catching first chair.