wearing adidas to work at nike?

Sabot-Age wrote:

And how would that widget-maker -who GM management considers disposable, doesn't give a flying rat's ass about personally and would fire in an eyeblink without an iota of remorse if it benefited their bottom line- be doing anything for himself by driving a GM?

This.

It’s about peons wanting to feel as part of something bigger.

An employee being brand loyal makes no difference to a company’s bottomline. There is no rationale in mandating brand loyalty. Encouraging it with hefty discounts on the other hand is non coercive and mutually beneficial.

Middle management power tripping muppets and brain dead lemming peon workers = cost free employee servitude.

The major thing is not wearing competing brands. Nike doesn't manufacture suits, so wearing a suit from a decent company wouldn't be looked down upon. Wearing an Adidas pair of shoes, when you could have Nike is a whole other story.

journeyman wrote:

Having worked at world HQ of both adidas and Puma and now employed by Nike....

The worst thing you can do is wear a RIVAL brands products.

To look smart is not rocket science. None branded Gap, H&M and countless other brands are fine.

At first it is weird sitting in meetings with suppliers, key accounts etc wearing t-shirt and shorts while guys across the table are suited and booted. It's the DNA of the company though. They understand that it's a sports company.

On reason I chose to work for these brands because although i might sit in an office it feels far from an office job.

I've not seen a colleague wear a suit ever. It's kinda cool.

That’s awesome. My kind of place.

an mba wrote:

Blizzardo wrote:

If I was a product development guy, I would probably have some of the most knowledgeble and experienced runners wearing and running in the competition and giving me feedback. Although maybe not wearing them to work.

I fully get company spirit. But along the lines of what you're saying, a culture where (judging from these reports) employees are cowed into toeing the company line, or only those who willingly toe the company line remain, does not sound like a culture of innovation. Or integrity.

I assume you are joking

This is a very interesting and timely thread as I'm currently reading "Shoe Dog" by Phil Knight.

LOL at the fools here criticizing Nike's business practices. Right. One of the most successful companies in the history of the USA....and they're doing it wrong because some internet nerd knows better. There is always that guy: "Mr. Federer, your forehand is awful, too wristy, hitting off your back foot, etc."

Also, Nike's success is attributable to their strong corporate culture, not in spite of it. Don't work there if you don't like it. That said, it's foolish to think that any corporation will be there for you when push comes to shove. Nike will throw your a$$ out on the streets just like any other company.

-0/10. A brainless and tactless insult like that doesn't evan deserved 0/10. I'm not brain damaged. I have more brains then I know what to do with.

I can't believe some people are arguing it's okay to wear a different brand when you're talking about shoe / apparel companies.

Would North Face employees be allowed to wear Patagonia jackets to work? No.

It's a little different than automotive or tech industires (although I see why GM would want you to drive a GM or Google doesn't want to see you showing off your i-phone). For Nike vs. Adidas, etc., it's a no-brainer to wear your brand.

Be a Part of it wrote:

I wasn't allowed to wear anything but Nike at the USA championships. No joke.

John Utah wrote:

Also, Nike's success is attributable to their strong corporate culture, not in spite of it. Don't work there if you don't like it. That said, it's foolish to think that any corporation will be there for you when push comes to shove. Nike will throw your a$$ out on the streets just like any other company.

Strong corporate culture does not mandate forcing your employees to be brand zealots. That’s just power tripping by insecure middle management.

If your products are good and you offer employee discounts, staff will choose to wear your products without the need for coercion. Deadbeats who would “fire you on day one for wearing adidas” are insecure failures in life.

Nike is successful because they make good and marketable products. Not because they fire employees for wearing adidas. Muppets.

One place I worked at told me they would fire me if they caught me drinking the Kool-Aid.

It was a Wyler's factory.

Are we discussing hypothetical scenarios or are you thinking of actually trying it?

From my perspective, trying to be rebellious for no good reason is a waste of your effort and time and doesn't do you any favors in the long run. You can wear adidas shoes if you decide to run in your treadmill at home or something. At Nike HQ it's a bad idea.

It was (probably) your choice to work for them and they will pay for your salary. We all know that it wouldn't make a bit of difference on their sales if you wore any other brand other than Nike. But the board and high staff must promote their brand in any way they can and what good would be for their brand credibility to allow their employees to wear their rival's merchandise? Along with that "being part of something bigger" brainwash bs.

I have sneakers of both brands, I don't own anything to them. My money, my choice at that moment. If they provide you with free merchandise (they will) at least try to act grateful.

Put more simply, if you really want to wear Adidas to begin with, why not apply to them in the first place? They are stronger in Europe, but I'd be surprised if they don't sell well in U.S as well. Or will your rebellious persona think of wearing some Nike Pegasus there too?

There is tons of competitive analysis happening at all of the major footwear brands where people wear what's selling to try and reverse engineer. However, you wear it in a controlled way. If you don't have a good reason to be wearing the competition, best that you don't. Even visitors wearing competitive product at one of these companies will get a LOT of dirty looks walking down the hallway.

I used to know of someone who worked at a competitor. She would run to work in one brand of shoes, then change into her brand before walking in the door. It matters.

It's also a relaxed culture that accommodates casual shoes on a daily basis. I've definitely seen a suit with athletic shoes, though.

not a shoe guy wrote:

How does it work when you work for an athletic shoe company? Are you expected to always wear the company brand of shoes and clothes, or at least not display the arch rival brand? (For Nike, perhaps Adidas.)

I've heard of Microsoft employees getting grief for their iPods and iPhones, though by now I imagine that battle has been lost.

in 2010 i was at a design meeting at Apple and my boss had his Samsung Droid phone sitting on the table. A high-up in the room said to him, " You need to put that phone away before Steve gets here."

Nobody was smiling or feeling amused. It was tense.

Steve Jobs was a massive a-hole, btw