Rookie guard and Skechers partner to release the latest SKX Nexus colorway
Skechers has announced the third colorway of its SKX Nexus basketball shoe with the assistance of Los Angeles Sparks standout rookie Rickea Jackson. The SKX Nexus is Skechers’ fourth basketball shoe since entering the scene last year.
The 2024 WNBA All-Rookie forward is one of a few players to choose a company new to women’s basketball and the game itself. Most recently, Las Vegas Aces guard Sydney Colson signed to Creative Control as its first signature athlete, bringing the total number of active WNBA players with a shoe deal to seven.
“There’s more opportunity for more players, rather if it’s proactive by design or a choice to do something different,” Lindsay Kagawa Colas, the executive vice president of talent representation for sports, music, and entertainment company Wasserman, said. “Sometimes, that also includes considering companies that traditionally have not been in the space and within these deals, athletes have the opportunity to do different things and shape the deal how they want.”
Los Angeles Sparks forward Rickea Jackson partnered with Skechers to launch a new black/pink colorway of the SKX Nexus sneakers.Skechers
The marketing of signature sneakers, player edition sneakers, merchandise and endorsements has changed considerably since the release of the Nike Air Swoopes, the first signature shoe awarded to a WNBA player, four-time WNBA champion Sheryl Swoopes, in October 1995.
“Many players within the WNBA have dedicated fan bases and not just the ones that get all the coverage,” award-winning author and sports writer Lyndsey D’Arcangelo said. “Sydney Colson getting her sneaker is a perfect example of that. She’s not a top player, but she has her own following and her own fan base. There are other ways to get players who are not Nike-getters to endorse your product and opportunity for brands to get creative.”
The first 20 years of women’s basketball signature sneaker deals were limited to major brands such as Puma, Fila, Nike, and Adidas. Skechers has now entered basketball and hopes to give a WNBA player a signature shoe in the future.
“When you enter basketball, it’s dual-gender,” Skechers vice president of product development and merchandising Greg Smith said. “It took some time for us to find the right player. Rickea is an amazing player, a great brand ambassador and partner to work with. In our first year, we wanted to enter with [both NBA and WNBA players].”
Besides Jackson, Skechers ‘ basketball roster includes Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Julius Randle and LA Clippers guard Terance Mann.
When selecting a WNBA athlete to add, Smith said, the company wanted someone who would have longevity in the league. The company also wanted to partner with someone near Skechers’ headquarters in Manhattan Beach, California, and was willing to take a risk with a company that was new to the market.
“We were able to meet with her and she has a desire to give input into the product and process,” Smith said. “She was the perfect fit for us. There are a lot of great options in the WNBA, but we just feel like she was the best fit for us.”
In Skechers’ initial announcement, Jackson said, “I’m thrilled to be the first WNBA player to join forces with Skechers. While Skechers is a new player in the basketball world, their commitment to fit, support, and active collaboration with athletes is clear. The comfort and design of their footwear is truly impressive. I love training in these shoes and I’m eager to see what we can accomplish together.”
Kagawa Colas believes the coronavirus pandemic advanced the participation of WNBA players in sneaker deals. According to the Office of National Statistics, retail businesses took the biggest hit in 2020, but the pause allowed people to connect in new ways.
“While some companies were pressing pause, others were just discovering,” Kagawa Colas said. “For some, it was a pause, but for others, it was a launching pad for a lot of what you see today. People wanted to invest in things they were associated with, people wanted to know who they were and what they cared about. People would soon find out they had so much in common with these players.”
This pause felt around the world also contributed to an increase in social media usage. Social media is a way for fans to connect with players and for agents to show sneaker decision-makers how much interest fans have in their clients.
The black/pink colorway of the Skechers SKX Nexus sneakers is scheduled to be released Oct. 15.Skechers
“The tools that we have today that prove that women athletes give the biggest return on every dollar, tools being social media numbers, metrics and viewership monitoring, all prove that the WNBA is great business,” Kagawa Colas said.
The sports and entertainment global agency Octagon represents most brand deals for Washington Mystics players Shakira Austin, Ariel Atkins, and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough. When negotiating deals, there is almost always a social media element. Before agreeing to a deal, the agency determines how the content would look on their clients’ channel and whether it aligns with it.
“The hardest thing as of late has probably been budgetwise,” Octagon marketing and communications manager Jianni Smith said. “There’s still a disconnect between what the brand is willing to spend versus what they should actually spend on the player. There’s definitely a negotiation that goes on but before brands come to you there is usually already a brand alignment with our clients’ interests.”
Since the league’s inception, viewership numbers and ratings have been available to agents to include in their decks when pitching for their clients. Even with the record-setting increase in WNBA viewership this year, it is still half the battle. According to Kagawa Colas, a player’s popularity in social media is a significant factor in the uptick in deals for WNBA athletes.
“Women are often put in a position where they have to prove it before there is an investment, whereas [with] men, people will make an investment all day,” Kagawa Colas said. “They always need to prove it when it comes to seeing if something will sell with a woman.”
Now that brands have started marketing in women’s basketball, additional steps are needed for athletes’ longevity with the products. That includes making sure products are available and accessible, spreading the opportunities to more players and including causes that players care about.
While Skechers is currently focused on the WNBA, it is also looking to enter women’s college basketball. Since the brand does not have apparel rights for colleges or universities, it causes a slight obstacle to recruiting college athletes, while there are no limits on on a WNBA athlete signed with the company.
“We plan to continue to expand within the WNBA with more players and grow our business,” Smith said. “We’re going to have new shoes with more of Rickea’s insight and we think her perspective will help us create something for all. Rickea isn’t the end of us, she’s just the beginning. As we go on, you can look for us to sign more players.”
