Nike’s multi-million dollar crypto push is here

Quick Take

  • Nike is selling digital boxes with virtual sneakers for $19.82.
  • The first wave of the drop starts April 18.

It’s become a running theme: Massive brands are providing loyal customers with NFTs, but they're no longer calling them by that. 

Now, it’s a “collectible” or, in the case of Nike, a “creation.”

The shoe and apparel juggernaut announced that it is dropping its “first digital-creation collection” on .Swoosh, the blockchain-powered platform Nike announced late last year. Consumers will be able to buy digital images of virtual show boxes for $19.82, the company said. Each box will eventually unlock various digital versions of Nike’s “iconic Air Force 1” sneakers, which were first sold in ... 1982.

The move to leave crypto lingo like NFTs or blockchain out of the equation follows similar promotions launched by The Rolling Stones and Fox Entertainment. The trend away from using industry lingo may be a fallout from the series of crypto scandals that keep unraveling, or an attempt to mainstream the technology by using everyday language.

Who gets Nike's boxes?

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Nike said it will give every one of its more than 330,000 .Swoosh members an opportunity to buy one of the digital boxes. If the company sells at least one box to each on of its members Nike could generate more than $6.5 million in revenue. 

This isn't Nike's first digital foray. Late last year RTFKT, a digital fashion and collectibles firm owned by the company, released NFT sneakers..

The Air Force 1 boxes begin to become available from April 18 and can be purchased on Nike’s on digital marketplace.


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About Author

RT Watson is a senior reporter at The Block who covers a wide array of topics including U.S.-based companies, blockchain gaming and NFTs. Formerly covered entertainment at The Wall Street Journal, where he wrote about Disney, Netflix, Warner Bros. and the creator economy while focusing primarily on technological disruption across media. Previous to that he covered corporate, economic and political news in Brazil while at Bloomberg. RT has interviewed a diverse cast of characters including CEOs, media moguls, top influencers, politicians, blue-collar workers, drug traffickers and convicted criminals. Holds a master's degree in Digital Sociology.

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