The new signature shoes of NBA stars Allen Iverson,
Penny Hardaway and Gary Payton have been a "pleasant
surprise" for manufacturers and retailers, while sales of
Michael Jordan's new Nike Air Jordan XIV have been
"disappointing," according to Josh Gotthelf of the
SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. Iverson's new shoe, the Answer II,
saw a 13% sell-through rate in its first week on the market
and is now close to 20%, "mounting the strongest challenge"
to Jordan. Hardaway's and Payton's Nike signature shoes,
have had sell-through rates of 15-25%, but analysts "expect
sales of both models to slow." The sell- through rate of
the Air Jordan XIV has decreased "steadily" since its
initial figure of 20%. Laidlaw Global Securities footwear
industry analyst Peter Russ, on sales of Air Jordan XIV:
"That's about half of what retailers expect." Gotthelf adds
that Nike released the Air Jordan XIV with a suggested
retail price of $150. But some are "already" marking it
down to $125. Manufacturers are generally "pleased" with
double digit sell-through rates in the "first few weeks" of
a product's release (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 11/23).
