By Duvi Honig
Founder & CEO, Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce – JbizNews Editor
Nike, how did this work out for you?
You took one of the most powerful brands in America and tied it to Colin Kaepernick after his decision to kneel during the national anthem had already become one of the most divisive symbols in the country.
Millions of Americans saw that as disrespect toward the flag. Nike chose to make that controversy part of its brand.
Today, more than $200 billion in market value has been erased from Nike’s peak, and the stock has fallen to levels not seen in roughly 12 years.
No serious person should claim one advertising campaign caused all of that. Nike has real business problems — stronger competition, strategic mistakes, weakness in China, retail troubles and changing consumer habits.
But the lesson is still impossible to ignore.
Corporate America should look at Nike and ask a simple question:
What happens when you use your marketing power to divide the very people who built your success?
On September 11, that question carries more weight.
Twenty-five years ago, nearly 3,000 innocent people were murdered by terrorists on American soil. We remember the firefighters and police officers who ran into those buildings while everyone else was running out. We remember the families who never got to say goodbye.
We also remember what happened afterward.
The American flag was everywhere — on homes, businesses, fire trucks, bridges and in windows. For a moment, Americans who disagreed about almost everything remembered what united us.
We were Americans.
That is why today is the right day for Nike to look back.
Kaepernick said his protest was about racial injustice and police brutality. He had every right to say that.
Millions of Americans also had every right to feel insulted by kneeling during the national anthem.
Nike chose to make that controversy part of its brand. Millions of Americans saw it as disrespect for the flag and for the country that gave Nike the freedom to become Nike.
That was a mistake.
Not because companies should never have opinions. Not because Americans must agree.
It was a mistake because there is a difference between standing for something and using a brand to deepen division.
And that lesson is much bigger than Nike.
A company is not just a logo. It is trust.
It is the relationship between a business and the people who walk into the store, buy the shoes, own the stock and recommend the brand to their children.
When that trust is broken, customers have a voice.
Sometimes Americans speak at the ballot box.
Sometimes they speak publicly.
And sometimes they speak at the cash register.
That is the power of a free market.
At the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce, our mission has always been to unite people through commerce.
Business should build bridges. It should create jobs and opportunities. It should bring together people from different backgrounds, religions, communities and political views.
People who may never agree at a political rally can still sit across a conference table, do business together and build something.
That is the power corporate America should be using.
Not division.
Unity.
Nike now has an opportunity.
Own up.
Acknowledge that millions of Americans felt disrespected.
Apologize.
Then use the enormous platform Nike still has to do something meaningful.
Put real money behind bringing Americans together. Use your athletes, advertising dollars, stores and influence to honor the people who represent the best of this country.
Honor the firefighters who climbed those stairs on September 11.
Honor our police officers and first responders.
Honor our military families.
Honor the immigrants who came here with almost nothing and built lives, businesses and futures.
And honor the American flag.
Not because America is perfect, but because that flag represents the freedom to protest, the freedom to disagree, the freedom to build a business and the freedom to become one of the biggest companies in the world.
America gave Nike that opportunity.
Nike should remember it.
And every boardroom in America should be paying attention.
We are a strong nation. We are proud of our heritage, proud of our flag and proud of what the United States of America stands for.
Companies are free to take positions.
The American people are free to take positions too.
And when consumers believe a company has crossed the line, they can answer with their wallets.
That is not hatred.
That is the marketplace.
So on this 9/11, I am not calling for revenge against Nike.
I am calling for accountability.
Own the mistake. Apologize for the Kaepernick campaign. Respect the flag. Then use the same enormous marketing power that once helped divide Americans to bring them together.
That would send a message far beyond Nike: America is still proud of its flag, proud of its freedoms and proud of what this country makes possible.
Sometimes Americans speak at the ballot box. Sometimes they speak at the cash register. Corporate America would be wise to listen to both.
Never forget. 🇺🇸
JBizNews Desk | New York
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