Nike got “woke” and announced cop-protesting, Fidel Castro-praising national anthem kneeler Colin Kaepernick as the new face of the company’s 30th anniversary “Just Do It” campaign on Monday. Since the announcement, the sports apparel giant took an initial nosedive at the stock market amid mounting backlash from fed-up patrons of the brand promising boycotts.
And the hits just keep on coming.
According to new report from Morning Consult, Nike suffered a 34-point drop in favorability overall, including dips in nearly every demographic since announcing the Kaepernick ad campaign.
Here are the key takeaways from the report, which was comprised of findings from over 8,000 interviews among adult Americans:
Nike’s Favorability Drops by Double Digits: Before the announcement, Nike had a net +69 favorable impression among consumers, it has now declined 34 points to +35 favorable.
No Boost Among Key Demos: Among younger generations, Nike users, African Americans, and other key demographics, Nike’s favorability declined rather than improved.
Purchasing Consideration Also Down: Before the announcement, 49 percent of Americans said they were absolutely certain or very likely to buy Nike products. That figure is down to 39 percent now.
The Effect on the NFL Seems Small, For Now: Forty percent of consumers said Nike’s campaign does not make them more or less likely to watch/attend NFL games — 21 percent said more likely and 26 percent said less likely (14 percent didn’t know).
The unveiled first ad features a photo of Kaepernick, overlaid with the quote, “Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything.” The former NFL QB is being praised for taking a knee during the national anthem due to what he describes as the widespread oppression of minorities in the United States. “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” declared Kaepernick in 2016.
As reported by The Daily Wire on Tuesday, Nike’s shares initially dropped by nearly 4%, losing around $3.75 billion in market cap.
To view the full Morning Consult Report, click here.