Nike keeps up the pace

Nike‘s quarterly results have not been harmed by production problems in Asia: the manufacturer sees the strong results as proof that its direct-to-consumer strategy is the right one.

Higher investments

Nike achieved a turnover growth of 5 % to 10.9 billion dollars (10 billion euros) in the third quarter of its broken financial year. This is better than expected, mainly because the trainer manufacturer had to deal with production problems in Asia due to lockdowns. The growth was strongest in North America, only in China did sales decline. Net profit, however, fell to 1.4 billion dollars (1.2 billion euros) as the manufacturer increased investments in marketing and technology.

The strong results prove that Nike’s strategy to approach consumers more directly is the right one, chairman and CEO John Donahoe points out. This approach arms the company against market volatility. Nike Direct sales increased by 15 %, partly due to a normalisation of traffic in the own stores. Digital sales increased by 19 %.

The press release does not give an update on the impact of the war in Ukraine. Nike did close its Russian web shop, but the physical stores in the country, which are run by partners, would remain at least partially open.