Asics Signs Bates and Kieffer

Dude Gaga wrote:

This is a great move for Asics. Bringing on an obese athlete like Kieffer shows that they are an inclusive brand and I predict they'll generate a lot of new revenue by selling shoes to overweight, previously-running-averse Americans. You don't have to be a skinny person to run, you can weigh 240 pounds like Allie and still plop out elite marathon times.

Dude, chill. I'd much rather have a woman that looks like a woman, than a woman that looks like a stick figure. I bet she looks just fine in real life.

UA Runner wrote:

Dude, chill. I'd much rather have a woman that looks like a woman, than a woman that looks like a stick figure. I bet she looks just fine in real life.

Look up in the sky! It's a bird... it's a plane... it's a joke sailing over your head!

Kieffer's IG post today shows her training in V4% shoes. Granted, it could be an older photo; however, I'd think she would be more aware of this if she just signed with Asics. Why not wait a day or so and post a pic of her training in Asics, her new sponsor?

lkjjl wrote:

Anon,

Sally wrote that they were in the fight of their life and survived the round. Not a very positive message. Winning the fight would have communicated long-term sustainable growth. They are basically living paycheck to paycheck, which is expected given their over-expenditure in sku and athlete.

They are not in the free and clear. They need to double revenues in 2019 to call this a successful trajectory.

People have said this every year since Oiselle started.

FWIW I was listening to a podcast with Emma the other day that was recorded last year, she mentioned she had signed with a sponsor but couldn’t talk about it yet. So it doesn’t sound like things were just signed today. ASICS pr just seems to have blown the announcement and not coordinated to make sure the ladies posted on their social media at the same time.

Good job ASICS!

Ignoring the sarcasm above, congrats to Emma and Allie for landing a shoe sponsor!

Oiselle? wrote:

So is Allie still with Oiselle and just signed a shoe deal/joint deal or she dropped them? She seemed pretty committed to Oiselle's message so I'm shocked to see her leave them. Wonder what kind of deal Asics gave her

She might have done what Stephanie Bruce did where Allie will wear the Oiselle kit and Asics shoes for a couple years before signing solely with Asics

JamesTheAmateur wrote:

Oiselle? wrote:

So is Allie still with Oiselle and just signed a shoe deal/joint deal or she dropped them? She seemed pretty committed to Oiselle's message so I'm shocked to see her leave them. Wonder what kind of deal Asics gave her

She might have done what Stephanie Bruce did where Allie will wear the Oiselle kit and Asics shoes for a couple years before signing solely with Asics

She'd be making more if she were all in on Asics. If she has a split deal for Oiselle apparel and Asics shoes, she's not a hot commodity at all. Or she's shooting herself in the foot.

word in Boulder is over $100k. Confirmed.

Didn't Seph Bruce have sign solely with Hoka because starting towards the end of 2017 Hoka started producing apparel and Hoka said their athletes could not have a separate shoe and apparel contracts? They either had to be solely Hoka or find a different shoe sponsor.

zoomzoomzoom wrote:

...the problem is the carbon spring, if Nike just removed that, most people would have far less of a problem with the shoe, I'd actually have no problem if it was just a light pebax shoe because there are others

carbon springs have no place in running, it's mechanical doping, a foreign device other than foam or stability enhancements for those with form problems, even a spike plate can be justified but that's not what's in vaporflys or any other new nike models

and to get back to this thread, Allie could never, ever, run sub 2:30 without them

on the other hand Sara Hall has proven a few times she doesn't need them

I've done marathon in Asics Hyperspeeds, you are really hating life after mile 22 in them, it's almost a track flat, for Sara to do 2:26 in Asics is pure talent and drive

Get your facts straight. They tested the components of the Vaporfly’s, and it’s the foam, not the carbon plate, that gives most of the energy back. Only a slightly benefit of the plate.

Other shoes companies are welcome to create their own version, but it all boils down to Nike innovating the best and using superior materials- mostly the foam, not the plate.

Isn't this a match made in heaven - as Asics are clunky, junk shoes that overweight hobby joggers use?

lher wrote:

word in Boulder is over $100k. Confirmed.

Only if over 5 years!

Allie is an awesome investment. She is fast and improving. She tells a body image story that is relatable beyond elite running. She is darn good at social media.

To clarify, she is bigger than most top tier marathoners. But she is most certainly not fat. She is strong and well muscled. Will that translate to low 2:20? Not sure. But 2:24-2:27 is competing for the Olympic Team and she will be in the mix.

Why do we think $100k/year+ is not right for an American female sub-2:29 Marathoner? There are only a handful on the planet. The BroJos can reach out to their agent pool again to confirm, but she did get north of $125k/YEAR. That is fair market value for a top American female marathoner., who is consistently competitive and sub-2:30.

All you fools that think she signed for $20k/year are the ones that thought Sydney McLaughlin wouldn't get near $2M/Year.

Just saw Allie's latest post in Instagram- she's wearing Nike's....

This is a desperation move for ASICS, who have slipped out of the top tier of the US market share. As someone who worked in specialty running for the past 5 years, I know the data.

Nationwide it's Brooks, New Balance, Nike and adidas (in that order) for specialty running. ASICS is a distant fourth fighting with Mizuno with the new comers Hoka and ON gaining market share.

They got outbid by NB for the NYC Marathon sponsorship as NYRR was looking for an over arching partnership for all of their races and their program. NB stepped up with a $100 million, 10-year deal to be the exclusive partner for all of their races. To put that in perspective, they did $4.5 million in revenue during the expo of the 2017 NYC Marathon, their first year as the sponsor. So the deal is paying off for NB, especially with the "hobby jogger" crowd as the NYC Marathon, NYC Half, Brooklyn Half, etc. attract much more of the "hobby jogger" crowd and the experientially valued millennial generation who will do a larger race in NYC for the experience, but wouldn't do a local 26.2/13.1.

ASICS lost that connection with letting their deal with NYRR lapse, their running footwear line has been stagnant, and their "flytfoam" hasn't had the same buzz as boost, everrun, zoom x, etc.

This deal is a hail mary to make them relevant in the run specialty space again.

One could argue that the NYC Marathon sponsorship was the start of the decline for ASICS. That over-expenditure did nothing to elevate the brand and grow market share. In fact, market share declined while sponsoring the NYC Marathon. On the other hand, New Balance is doing quite well during their sponsorship of the NYC Marathon. Will be interesting to monitor.

Allen Homer wrote:

And by the way Gene, Emma nor Allie are moving any needles for your tired brand.

Moving the needle by setting world records? No.

Moving the needle by attracting more clicks? Yes.

Asics hasn't been any good for at least 5 years. The only shoe they came out with that was OK was the first Dynaflyte. For years before this they had been reducing the amount of gel to the point now that combined with the Flytefoam makes for very firm stiff shoe and a platform that just feels like you're slapping the ground with some wooden flip flops on, it's horrendous. I just don't understand why a company that did well making shoes that felt soft would think that making the shoes hard would work at all. I don't even want to mention the death of the hyperspeed and DS racer either. The worst part about the VF is the fact that expensive racing shoes being the norm killed the production of simple inexpensive flats entirely, it started before the VF I think around the time the adios boost and flyknit racers came around was when companies realized you could charge a lot for flats but at least the adios has great durability. RIP to the T7 racers as well.