English Original
When Cool Goes Cold
Subtitle: Nike was a marketing MVP. But with its image, brand and business under fire, a company and a CEO with a sense of mission are suddenly reeling.
[1] Phil Knight doesn't speak in public very often. And when you hear from him these days, he doesn't sound happy. Talking to Wall Street analysts from his Oregon headquarters last week, the founder and head of Nike Inc. didn't mince words: "This is a dark day around these halls."
[2] Knight's problems would worry any CEO: a stock price that has slid to the $40s from the $70s, a plunge in profits and warehouses full of shoes that aren't selling. Nike's two-year-long battle with critics of its labor policies in Asia is heating up again: filmmaker Michael Moore features Nike in his new movie and, in an event stage-managed by Nike but sure to generate some unwelcome imagery, the company's pre-eminent spokesman, Michael Jordan, plans to visit Far East factories this spring. The region is the source of more woe: Asia's economic slump has cut sales by 17 percent in recent months. But most critical is a price war that has sliced U.S. sales and is a sign that Nike's lock as the champion of "cool" may be weakening. Although Nike prides itself on technical innovation, losing its cool would be tantamount to losing the game.
[3] Last week was particularly glum at Nike's headquarters in suburban Portland. Managers had warned of layoffs but hadn't revealed any names. On Wednesday, 250 employees were told to pack up their desks, while stunned colleagues looked on.
[4] At most corporate offices, that scene, though painful, wouldn't be cataclysmic, but for Knight and his employees, even a setback bears the agony of defeat. Nike rose about as high and fast in the '90s as any company can. It took on a new religion of brand consciousness and broke advertising sound barriers with its indelible Swoosh, "Just Do It" slogan and deified sports figures. Nike managed the deftest of marketing tricks: to be both anti-establishment and mass market, to the tune of $9.2 billion in sales last year.
[5] But Nike sees itself as part of a grander mission. Knight has often talked of sports as a force for good, and of Nike—named for a Greek goddess—as a force behind that good. "'Swooshification of the world' should [really be] 'Sportsification of the world'," he said last year. "We will mature with the inexorable penetration of sports into the global psyche."
[6] Employees are recruited to share that mission. They work and play hard, leaving a sizable population of "Nike widows" and, presumably, widowers. Some young sales people initiate themselves with Swoosh tattoos. And besides the ubiquitous sports metaphors, Nike people talk about the "heart" and "soul" of Nike. "You didn't even talk about the stock price inside those halls," says a former employee. "That's not why you were there."
[7] For such believers, the harsh criticism of Nike's labor practices has been a shock. When activists spurred new interest in foreign labor conditions in 1996, Nike was the perfect foil.
[8] Nike's bigger problem is a 1990s marketing conundrum: can you be big and cool? When Teenage Research Unlimited did its latest survey, 40 percent of kids named Nike as one of the "coolest" brands, down from 52 percent just six months ago. Kim Hastreiter of Paper, a New York magazine, says that the coolest things around now are brilliantly colored suede sneakers by New Balance. Even Adidas, torpedoed by Nike and Reebok in the '80s, is staging a comeback.
[9] Knight acknowledges the challenge. "We have to be beautiful as well as big," It's no mean feat, says Scott Bedbury, former global ad chief for Nike. The "Worst-case scenario would be to become Microsoft," says Kevin Keller, a marketing professor at Duke. Best case: be like Coca-Cola. "They're everywhere, but no one seems to resent them for it."
[10] One answer is to play down the Swoosh, and some Nike watchers say it will do just that. Nike is marketing new products, including its ACG (All Condition Gear) line for hiking and outdoor styles.
[11] Nike's genius has been its "strong, intuitive sense" of the brand, says Keller. But with the loss of some of Nike's top marketers in the last few years, he wonders if the newer people can "tap into" that understanding, "almost a genetic code."
[12] Nike's ace in the hole is Knight himself. Charismatic and down to earth, Knight still lives in the house he bought 25 years ago. "He's the kind of guy who leans in when you talk," says Blumenauer. Knight's deep passion for Nike means he will fight hard for it. "I've always thought that Phil has three children—two sons and a brand," says Bedbury. "Never underestimate a father's love of a child."
中文翻译
“酷”变冷的时候
副标题： 耐克曾是营销界的MVP。但随着其形象、品牌和业务受到猛烈抨击，这家公司和它那位富有使命感的CEO突然感到地位不稳了。
[1] 菲尔·奈特不常在公开场合讲话。最近如果你听到他的发言，会发现他听起来并不开心。上周，这位耐克公司的创始人和负责人在其俄勒冈总部与华尔街分析师交谈时直言不讳：“这是公司总部黑暗的一天。”
[2] 奈特面临的问题足以让任何CEO忧心忡忡：股价从70多美元跌至40多美元，利润骤降，仓库里堆满了滞销的鞋子。耐克与批评其在亚洲劳工政策的人士长达两年的斗争再次升温：电影制作人迈克尔·摩尔在他的新电影中重点提到了耐克；此外，在一场由耐克策划但注定会产生一些不受欢迎形象的事件中，该公司最有影响力的代言人迈克尔·乔丹计划今年春天访问远东工厂。该地区带来了更多麻烦：亚洲经济低迷导致近几个月销售额下降了17%。但最关键的是，一场价格战削减了美国的销售额，这标志着耐克作为“酷”品牌冠军的地位可能正在削弱。尽管耐克以其技术创新为荣，但失去“酷”感无异于输掉比赛。
[3] 上周，位于波特兰郊区的耐克总部气氛格外沉闷。管理层曾警告过裁员，但没有透露任何名字。周三，250名员工被告知收拾办公桌走人，震惊的同事们在一旁看着。
[4] 在大多数公司办公室，这种场面虽然痛苦，但算不上灾难性的。然而，对奈特和他的员工来说，即使是挫折也承载着失败的痛苦。耐克在90年代的崛起速度和高度是任何公司都难以企及的。它接受了一种新的品牌意识信仰，并用其难以磨灭的“勾形”标志、“Just Do It”口号和被神化的体育明星打破了广告的“音障”。耐克施展了最巧妙的营销技巧：既反主流又面向大众市场，去年的销售额高达92亿美元。
[5] 但耐克视自己为一项更伟大使命的一部分。奈特经常谈到体育是一种向善的力量，而耐克——以一位希腊女神命名——是这种善背后的推动力。他去年说：“‘让世界充满勾形标志’应该（真正是）‘让世界充满体育’。我们将随着体育不可阻挡地渗透到全球心灵中而成熟起来。”
[6] 招聘员工是为了让他们共同承担这一使命。他们拼命工作、尽情玩乐，留下了相当数量的“耐克寡妇”，可能还有“耐克鳏夫”。一些年轻的销售人员以“勾形”纹身作为加入的仪式。除了无处不在的体育比喻，耐克人还谈论耐克的“心”和“魂”。一位前雇员说：“你甚至不会在大楼里谈论股价。那不是你在那里的原因。”
[7] 对于这样的信徒来说，对耐克劳工实践的严厉批评是一个打击。当活动人士在1996年激发起人们对外国劳工状况的新兴趣时，耐克成了完美的陪衬。
[8] 耐克更大的问题是90年代的一个营销难题：你能既庞大又酷吗？当“青少年研究无限”公司进行最新调查时，40%的孩子将耐克列为“最酷”品牌之一，而仅仅六个月前这个数字是52%。纽约杂志《Paper》的金·哈斯特雷特说，现在最酷的东西是New Balance色彩鲜艳的绒面革运动鞋。就连在80年代被耐克和锐步击垮的阿迪达斯也正在卷土重来。
[9] 奈特承认这一挑战。“我们必须既庞大又美丽，”耐克前全球广告主管斯科特·贝德伯里说，这绝非易事。杜克大学营销学教授凯文·凯勒说：“最坏的情况是成为微软那样。”最好的情况是：像可口可乐那样。“它们无处不在，但似乎没有人因此怨恨它们。”
[10] 一个答案是淡化“勾形”标志，一些耐克观察家表示它会这样做。耐克正在营销新产品，包括其用于徒步和户外风格的ACG（全地形装备）系列。
[11] 凯勒说，耐克的天才之处在于其对品牌的“强大、直觉性的感知”。但随着过去几年耐克一些顶级营销人员的流失，他怀疑新人能否“融入”那种理解——“几乎像一种遗传密码”。
[12] 耐克的秘密王牌是奈特本人。奈特富有魅力且脚踏实地，至今仍住在25年前买的房子里。布鲁梅瑙尔说：“他是那种你说话时会身体前倾认真倾听的人。”奈特对耐克的深厚热情意味着他会为之奋力拼搏。贝德伯里说：“我一直认为菲尔有三个孩子——两个儿子和一个品牌。永远不要低估一位父亲对孩子的爱。”