Likely fearful of the less than upscale brand perception associated with Sears and Sears’ recent purchase of Kmart, Nike has decided to stop selling its shoes at the mass retailer. Nike, apparently. does not want to associate it self with downmarket Sears. Some say it’s a good thing and will allow Nike to continue as a hip, premium and expensive brand. Others, such as Sterling Group President Debbie Millman think it’s not so smart saying, “It is surprising and incredibly short-sighted of Nike to pull their sneakers from Sears. This would have been the perfect opportunity to leverage the idea of a ‘specially designed’ sneaker for the retailer in an effort to capitalize on the current design-led economy we are living in, which is a good part of what is currently differentiating Target.”
