Nike Pulls Swoosh From Sears

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg News
Nike, which controls more than a third of all sales of athletic shoes, is taking its swoosh out of Sears even as it spends heavily on advertising.

San Francisco (chainstoreage.com)- Nike Inc. will pull its products from Sears department stores, a brand decision that analysts say reflects Nike’s attempt to protect its high-end image by not selling its brand at Kmart. The move comes after Kmart recently began selling well-known Sears brands such as Kenmore and Craftsman following the Sears-Kmart merger.

Nike’s decision may also reflects the company’s move to capitalize on the increasing demand for premium-priced shoes such as the Nike Shox, which have boosted recent quarterly profits. Nike declined to say whether it plans to sell its lower-priced Starter brand, which is sold in Wal-Mart stores, to Sears or Kmart, according to reports. Sears, noting that it still carried other brand-name athletic shoes such as New Balance, Reebok and Adidas, said it plans to “continue talking to Nike.”

“As of October 2005, Nike will no longer be selling product to Sears,” Nike said in a statement responding to questions from Reuters. “This was a brand decision following a routine account review and the recent expiration of Nike’s agreement with Sears.”