Patrick Ewing's Ewing Athletics has filed a $28M suit
against NY-based Next Sports, Inc., the now-defunct
distributor of the "Patrick Ewing 33" shoe brand, charging
it with "scheming to defraud" the sneaker company, according
to Richard Wilner in the N.Y. POST. The case could go to
court next spring. The Bahamas-based Ewing Athletics Co.
was "one of the most successful business ventures ever
undertaken by an active athlete," and industry estimates say
the venture provided Ewing with annual royalties of almost
$2M per-year. But distribution decisions recently forced
Ewing to close the seven-year-old company. The "Patrick
Ewing 33" brand had grown "over the years" into a $40M a-
year sales operation and Ewing hoped to eventually sign
other players to sponsorship deals and take more of an
active management role once he had retired. But earlier
this year, the shoe "started showing up in discount stores
and flea markets" and the "discounting" of the brand slowed
sales to full-price retailers like Foot Locker and "forced
Ewing Athletics to close its doors." Ewing now wears Nike
shoes, and while the company said it is not paying him,
market sources indicate Ewing is "receiving some Nike cash
for his marketing efforts" (N.Y. POST, 12/12).
