on oregonlive.com website this afternoon
LRC note: Here is the article. As the head head of Nike’s track and field sports marketing group, Capriotti has been in charge of negotiating Nike's track and field endorsement deals.
on oregonlive.com website this afternoon
LRC note: Here is the article. As the head head of Nike’s track and field sports marketing group, Capriotti has been in charge of negotiating Nike's track and field endorsement deals.
If you believe he stepped down, The Chickens Have Come Home To Roost! Maybe Sara was right.
Sorry that’s Kara
He won't be missed.
Really sad that Cap leaving Nike elicits only 4 posts (5 now!) but Cooper Teare jogging with a bunch of weenies gets double!
Welcome to America.
Good job Johnson boys!
el porto guy wrote:
Really sad that Cap leaving Nike elicits only 4 posts (5 now!) but Cooper Teare jogging with a bunch of weenies gets double!
Welcome to America.
Good job Johnson boys!
1) It was posted over night. It’s now Saturday morning.
2) Why are you hateful?
Agree with the above. The demographics on this board are really bad.
That said, this is an enormous development. While I would usually be encouraged by his departure, as Capriotti has had a chokehold on the sport for the last 15-20 years to the detriment of non-Nike athletes and the sport in general, I fear that this heralds a deprioritization of track and field by Nike brass. When Knight stepped down initially and they brought in the Johnson & Johnson guy, it was immediately apparent he didn't get the culture and he lasted less than a year in the job. They brought in Parker who, although a bit of a charlatan and inflator of his athletic credentials, at least came out of athletics and grew up in the company. The fact that an outsider has lasted this long and is able to move out someone like Capriotti (who had plenty of opportunities to move up the ladder, but declined because he liked his running sports marketing job and the power that came with it so much) is not a good sign, it shows that the culture at Nike is no longer that of athletes, it' s now just a bunch of MBAs. Unfortunate.
One hopes they'll make an enlightened decision, but there are probably about only about five people left in the company who could do this job the right way. More than likely one of Cap's brainless henchmen will ascend - Phalen or Lotwis - who are clowns.
If they go in house, would Craig Masback take over as head of the department, or is that a step down from what his current position is at Nike?
Cap was Alberto's boss and is stepping forward for the position.
allb wrote:
Cap was Alberto's boss and is stepping forward for the position.
Clueless. Phil Knight is the only one who controlled Salazar.
el porto guy wrote:
Really sad that Cap leaving Nike elicits only 4 posts (5 now!) but Cooper Teare jogging with a bunch of weenies gets double!
Welcome to America.
Good job Johnson boys!
I would venture to guess that >70% of posters here don’t even know who he is.
immunity wrote:
allb wrote:
Cap was Alberto's boss and is stepping forward for the position.
Clueless. Phil Knight is the only one who controlled Salazar.
Nope, Cap was Alberto’s boss.
immunity wrote:
allb wrote:
Cap was Alberto's boss and is stepping forward for the position.
Clueless. Phil Knight is the only one who controlled Salazar.
Correct. Regardless of what the org chart looks like, when you have a building named after you and the paycheck doesn't matter you don't have a boss.
free shipping with purchases wrote:
it shows that the culture at Nike is no longer that of athletes, it' s now just a bunch of MBAs. Unfortunate.
.
Jonathan Gault has talked to a bunch of players in the industry to see what they had to say about Cap's departure. Some thought it was great for the sport others were worried it's a sign that Nike is doing what the person above says - pulling back from track and field.
Member's of our Supporter's Club , as a reward for supporting independent journalism, you are getting early access to the feature (check the SC messageboard for the password). It will be published on Monday for everyone else.
https://www.letsrun.com/news/2020/09/john-capriotti-the-most-powerful-man-in-track-is-stepping-down-at-nike-what-does-it-mean-for-the-sport/LetsRun.com wrote:
Jonathan Gault has talked to a bunch of players in the industry to see what they had to say about Cap's departure. Some thought it was great for the sport others were worried it's a sign that Nike is doing what the person above says - pulling back from track and field.
Member's of our Supporter's Club , as a reward for supporting independent journalism, you are getting early access to the feature (check the SC messageboard for the password). It will be published on Monday for everyone else.
Track and field is probably not that interesting anymore for Nike.
Who is following that, anyway?
Nike needs to sell stuff and it's probably better to promote some you tube influencers. They probably sell more shoes than any track and field athlete can.
The senior management of Nike these days are MBAs and former McKinsey consultants. The swashbuckling days of Phil and Co. are over and the company is now fully CORPORATE. There is a current reorganization in process with a mass of layoffs imminent. Redundant functions/departments are being eliminated or merged. If I venture a guess, Cap likely knows that Running/Track & Field Sports Marketing is losing it's independence and being folded into the overall sports marketing organization. Essentially, he loses a lot of power internally and has to get in line for funds behind the Big Four sports, soccer, tennis, and women's initiatives. If he quits, he gets out on his own terms and can milk a few more dollars out of the joint as a consultant to help the running division navigate the new landscape. He's not hurting for money and his legacy is secure.
Another thing to consider, new CEO John Donahoe is a tech industry guy. He is going full send on Nike's "Direct to Consumer Offense" plan. Remember a few months back when they announced that they were jettisoning thousands of established retail accounts to focus on 40 partners and their own company owned retail stores? This is a consequence of that action. Why pour money into grass roots running campaigns, kid's races, point-of-purchase and collateral materials for local running shops, and sponsoring athletes with comparatively short and obscure careers? Those efforts do not move more units at FootLocker, Dick's, or even Nike.com. This is the very sad reality. Nike sells shoes because of the overall brand vibe. Only we geeks care about the AlphaFly, DragonFly, and Zoom Fly. The real money and volume in the running business is made by the Infinity Run, Pegasus, and Winflo. Those can be found at just about any mall store.
Donahoe wants Wall Street to be happy and couldn't care less what LRC and the running community thinks. Maximize profits and ROI, baby! If we need to cut dozens of running division jobs and rid ourselves of millions in contracts and other marketing expenses, the shareholders will be happy. Besides, LeBron moves more shoes in a month than the entire roster of track athletes move in a year or two.
Don't think Capriotti will be doing any "independent consulting" for Brooks:
They should bring in VIN.
They moved Tanya Hvizdak to VP of Women's Global Sports Marketing last spring.
ghost of geoff wrote:
If they go in house, would Craig Masback take over as head of the department, or is that a step down from what his current position is at Nike?
Mossback is gone as well.