Posted by Sabrina B. @gametimegirl & DJJUANYTO
When NBA rookie and Under Armour endorser Kemba Walker is asked if youngsters will keep buying basketball shoes if the NBA loses the season to lockout, he doesn’t hesitate.
“I think all my fans will,” said Walker, the No. 1 draft pick of the Charlotte Bobcats starring in an ad campaign touting UA’s entrance into the basketball showe market. “The kids are still playing basketball in high school and college. So they’re still going to buy the shoes. As long as they want them, they’ll get them.”
But industry experts are not as optimistic. Basketball shoe marketers such as Adidas, Nike and UA, and national retailers such as Foot Locker, could lose up to $500 million in sales if the 2011-12 NBA season is wiped out, says Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at the worldwide market research company NPD Group. That’s roughly 25% of the $2 billion basketball sneaker market, Cohen said.
About 33% of all basketball shoes are purchased to play basketball, Cohen said. That leaves 67% of the sales from consumers going for the association with an endorser such as Nike’s LeBron James— or with the NBA itself, Cohen said.
“The impact would be huge,” he said. ” Out of sight, out of mind. If the players are not on the court, and the kids aren’t thinking about them, they’re not going out and getting their shoes.”
Nike is thinking along the same lines. One of their TV spots, which aired before halftime of Sunday night’s NFL game, is under the slogan “Basketballneverstops.” James andDallas Mavericks star forward Dirk Nowitzki are among the featured NBA players in action.
“Like all basketball fans, we look forward to the lockout being resolved,” Nike spokesman Brian Strong said. “But in the interim, we also know that basketball never stops. Through our campaign, we are celebrating the never-ending spirit of the game and the players who love it.”
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WRITTEN BYÂ Michael McCarthy, USA TODAYÂ & FULL STORY HERE
