Nike Expected to Post Worst Revenue Drop Since 2020 Pandemic
Will its new CEO be able to turn the brand around?
Signals point to what will potentially be the worst revenue fall for Nike since the COVID-19 pandemic rocked the industry in 2020. According to a report from Business of Fashion (BoF), falling foot traffic, app downloads and inventory crises are heavily impacting the brand’s performance.
The brand is poised to report an 11.5% revenue decline to $11.01 billion, as shown by data compiled by LSEG, making it the company’s sharpest decline since the 38% drop reported in fourth quarter of fiscal 2020. BoF highlights key data points that indicate the Nike’s declining performance citing data from Raymond James that showed foot traffic at Nike stores decreasing by 11% and Sensor Tower intelligence revealing a 35% drop in Nike app downloads. Additionally, Foot Locker, whose assortment is roughly 60% Nike product, shared that deep discounts advised by the brand are harming the retailer’s profits.
While competing sportswear and sneaker purveyors like adidas have climbed to recovery, Nike has consistently struggled in the last five years, prompting the recent C-Suite shake-up aimed at rehabilitating the brand. The appointment of Nike veteran Elliot Hill as CEO late last year, prompting a more optimistic outlook following former CEO John Donahue’s departure. At the time critics and consumers blamed “a lack of innovation” and an over-reliance on retro reissues as a factor contributing the brand’s lack luster performance.
Hill has already kicked off 2025 with a number of initiatives, including the announcement of the NikeSKIMS line, a joint venture with Kim Kardashian‘s shapewear brand aimed at offering solution-oriented activewear for women. The brand has also unveiled other attempts to better connect with women consumers with special WNBA partnerships and ambassadors like Olympic sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson. Elsewhere, early 2025 sneaker drops from Nike fall in line with the technical runner trend, including the Pegasus 41 and Pegasus Plus and the Vomero 18.
As the company enters a new year with a new CEO, time will tell if Nike’s reinvigorated initiatives will show on its bottom line. The company is expected to host a call today with analysts at 5 p.m. ET.
