My Fellow Sneakerheads,
Over the past three and a half years, we've run quite the marathon as a brand. Today, Nike still stands tall—or at least as tall as you can while trying to hide a 20% stock drop under your Jordans. We’ve made historic investments in RTFK and a few other things that bombed. We've also pioneered sneakers made from garbage, or as we like to call it, sustainability.
We use to empower athletes worldwide, now we empower influencers, off brand musicians , gender curious teenagers and D-list celebrities. Our campaigns have broken ground and occasionally Twitter, and our products have leapt off shelves and into StockX listings at ten times the price.
We've collaborated with visionary designers who think a backward swoosh is innovation and supported communities with more hashtags than solutions. Nike has never been better positioned to inspire and enable human potential, except maybe in the stock market.
I know none of this could have been done without you, our loyal customers and dedicated team. Together, we navigated the challenges of a global pandemic and the most volatile market conditions since someone thought Crocs were a good idea. We’ve upheld our commitment to pretending we care about innovation while really just releasing the same shoe in different colors.
It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as CEO of Nike. And while it has been my intention to continue leading this incredible company, I believe it is in the best interest of Nike and my stock options for me to step down and focus solely on ensuring a smooth transition for my successor, who will probably need a strong pair of running shoes (Hoka probably).
I will speak to the Nike family later this week in more detail about my decision. For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked tirelessly to see us succeed while waiting to be laid off eventually. I want to thank our executive team for their unwavering support and extraordinary ability to stay positive in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to Phil for the faith and trust you have placed in me—despite that whole stock thing.
I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing Nike can’t achieve—when we do it together. Well, maybe winning isn’t for everyone, but at least we look good trying.
Your forever servant leader,