Published Online:March 2025
Product Name:The IUP Journal of Brand Management
Product Type:Article
Product Code:IJBRM040325
DOI:10.71329/IUPJBRM/2025.22.1.73-90
Author Name:Koti Vinod Babu and V Namratha Prasad
Availability:YES
Subject/Domain:Management
Download Format:PDF
Pages:73-90
The case contemplates the long-term prospects of the foray of US-based sportswear giant Nike, Inc. into the metaverse. It starts with a brief history of Nike and the reasons for its emergence as the ‘most valuable apparel brand in the world’. With the drive to always be at the forefront of technology adoption, Nike had, over the years, undertaken digital transformation and made strategic investments in technology. The case then discusses how the company had ventured into the metaverse through various experimental avenues that included acquiring a virtual sneaker company; forging partnerships with gaming platforms; introducing blockchain-based digital collections; and actively securing its brand identities by filing trademarks for its virtual sneakers and logos. By leveraging the metaverse, Nike aimed to enhance brand engagement and increase brand awareness among customers, especially members of Gen Z. The case highlights the potential of the metaverse to emerge as a new tool for brands to market products and connect with consumers. As of 2022, Nike was the world’s highest-earning brand through digital commodity sales. Considering it was early days of the metaverse, can Nike successfully traverse the unexplored space?
In June 2023, the US-based sportswear giant Nike, Inc. (Nike) unveiled an immersive gaming venture in the metaverse titled ‘Airphoria’ (Refer to Exhibit I). The game was introduced on the Epic Games Inc.4 owned Fortnite5 online video game and game platform that had six distinct game mode versions—all of them sharing the same general gameplay and game engine.