With the news that Nike has made Colin Kaepernick the face of the “Just Do It” 30th Anniversary ad campaign, the masses have once again sided up. One side is burning shoes and the other side is out buying the shelves clean. Welcome to one big cash grab. Sure Nike is taking a hit on Wall Street but they are also gaining an unbelievable amount marketing value. And the guy who “believes in something even if it means sacrificing everything” is sacrificing to the tune of a fat 7-digit deal from Nike. There is no need to debate the “what has he actually done to further racial equality while not having an NFL gig” conversation because it really never was about that. He knelt, society sided-up and now he is going to get paid. I have no issues with that.
My suggestion is to the folks at Under Armour. Don’t be satisfied with whatever scraps of the Nike fall out you can grab; that is peanuts. Go all-in and just mortgage the future and cut a deal with the United States military. If you already have a deal, increase it. Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank has already come under fire for making pro-Trump statements in 2017; well Kevin, it is time to double down. Your No 1 rival just played their hand and they don’t really care about 50 something well-off white guys as the stigma would suggest are the pro-Trumpers. One half of the country is waiting to buy your product Kevin!!
Simply ask for a meeting with President Trump, which you will undoubtedly be granted, and offer to give away 25 million dollars’ worth of your product to the US Military. This will result in a huge negotiation with the author of The Art of the Deal and you will sign a big contract to be the exclusive sportswear supplier of the US Military. Your name is Under Armour and you are siding with men and women who wear body armor, and shoot armor piercing bullets…the ad campaigns practically write themselves! And at the end of the day, you have your side. You have you 50% of the country.
Nike is catering to overpaid millionaires that really don’t care about social issues and sure as hell no longer live in the impoverished areas from which some of them came. You get to represent the brave, the common person tasked with doing uncommon things to protect our nation. Let me tell you this Under Armour, I like your chances. You can be all about social awareness while still getting your 50% share and stay in the shallow end of the pool. Nike is beating their chests right now, but their contract with the NFL can easily work against them here. And you get to swoop in on an Armour clad white horse and represent all of the common folks. One half of America is waiting to buy your product, all you have to do is take the other side of the argument.
And remember, if you see this ad campaign hit the internet sooner than later, remember you saw it on Kenosha Sports Extra first.