Kendall Jenner helps Adidas US sales pass Air Jordan
OMG, did Kendall Jenner just give the business to Michael Jordan?
Less than four months after the 21-year old model officially signed on to promote the Adidas brand, the German athletic footwear maker has passed Nike’s Air Jordan to become the No. 2 selling sneaker brand in the US, according to an industry group.
“This is an achievement I never thought I would see in my lifetime,” Matt Powell, an analyst with NPD Group, which tracks sneaker sales, tweeted this week.
Adidas in August saw its sales soar by more than 50 percent and its market share by nearly 50 percent, according to Powell. Adidas now controls a 13 percent slice of the US sneaker business.
Jenner, with 24.3 million Twitter followers and 83.3 million followers on Instagram, has been sporting Adidas Stan Smith and Superstar kicks and promoting both heavy on social media.
It seems to be having an effect on shoppers.
Since May 31, Adidas’ ADRs have outgained Nike shares 20.1 percent to 1.1 percent. Over the past year, Adidas ADRs are up 40.2 percent while Nike shares are down 2.7 percent.
Nike remains the No. 1 selling brand in the US. Its premium-priced Air Jordan brand, with its Jumpman logo, was started in the mid-Eighties to take advantage of basketball great Michael Jordan’s immense popularity.
Kanye West, the husband of Jenner’s half-sister, Kim Kardashian West, also has a deal with Adidas but Powell down-played the effect West has had on Adidas sales.
“Adidas sales were negative for 2 years after signing West,” Powell tweeted.