Why Nike’s DEI Fight Matters

Good morning, friends! Welcome back to The Kicks You Wear. Thanks so much for reading today. I appreciate you giving me a bit of your time. Hope you had a stellar weekend.

Guys. It’s been quite the week! The Washington Wizards are relevant in sports again! I cannot believe that is a sentence I just typed. I am feeling things I have not felt in years. This is my Super Bowl. We’re hanging championship banners by 2030. Probably? Idk. Forget I said that.

Quick hits:

• The NFL and Abercrombie are hosting their first fashion show together for Super Bowl weekend. Typing that sentence, like, 5 years ago, would’ve been unimaginable. What a time.
• Brooks announced a ninth consecutive year of growth this week. That’s insane. We should really talk about this brand as the king of running more.
• Bad Bunny is back in the BadBo, folks. We’re going to see a lot of this shoe at the Super Bowl this weekend.

Alright. Let’s dive in.

All Eyes On Nike’s EEOC Battle

Nike is now the Trump administration’s latest — and maybe biggest — pawn in its battle against diversity, equity and inclusion.

What’s happening: The sportswear brand is in the crosshairs of the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission after the government watchdog filed a subpoena enforcement action against it. The agency says it’s investigating DEI-related intentional discrimination from the company against white employees, according to the EEOC’s court filing.

The filing describes what the EEOC calls “disparate treatment” against white employees and requests information relating to Nike’s processes with job applicants and trainees in hiring, demotion, layoff and career development decisions. The information the commission requested from Nike dates back to 2018.

Between the lines: Nike called the EEOC’s decision to call for a subpoena a “surprising and unusual” escalation to its inquiry. I’d argue that the inquiry itself is actually quite unusual.

• The complaint stems from a commissioner’s charge filed in 2024 by current chair Andrea Lucas, not a Nike employee.
• The EEOC’s requests are extremely granular. The commission asks for specific information about each Nike layoff dating back to 2024, all documents pertaining to each layoff, the names and job titles of each employee laid off and more.
• Nike has already provided some of the requested information and data to the court, according to the official court filing.

Lucas’ filing is based on public disclosures of what the EEOC says are “potentially discriminatory” practices. Think moments like when Nike committed to achieving goals of 35 percent representation for ethnic minorities and 50 percent female representation for women in 2021, following the killing of George Floyd.

Be smart: It doesn’t really take very much digging to see just how hollow these accusations are.

• Nike has backed away from highlighting its DEI initiatives — at least publicly. It doesn’t publish impact reports anymore and it’s scaled back high-profile DEI initiatives. The brand hasn’t released a Black History Month collection in years.
• According to Nike’s latest publicly released demographic data for its 2024 fiscal year, 57 percent of its employees are white. That number increased to 64.5 percent when considering director positions and above.

We’re not sure what the numbers currently look like for the 2025 fiscal year following the company’s recent rounds of layoffs, but it’s hard to imagine a world where that’s vastly different.

The big picture: It’s obvious what’s happening here. As my colleague, Sheena Butler-Young, pointed out in her initial piece about this, President Donald Trump entered office in 2025 with a vigorous anti-DEI agenda, vowing to “end the tyranny” of it. The EEOC is pushing that agenda forward here with a high-profile target: Nike, a company known for being one of the more progressive sportswear brands and for its long history of supporting high-profile non-white athletes.

The company’s decision to run a Colin Kaepernick ad in 2018, essentially backing the former quarterback’s protest in the NFL, is the perfect example of that. It was essentially the moment that kicked off the run of corporate activism we saw in the late 2010s through the early 2020s. Conservatives turned sharply on Nike immediately after this moment. What we’re seeing today is a political escalation of that.

Why that matters: This will be a very important battle for the sportswear industry and beyond. DEI policies have been under fire during President Trump’s administration, but there hasn’t been a moment like this one. It sends a clear signal that diversity policies are now a courtroom liability for just about everybody, if a company of Nike’s size and scale can be targeted in this way. The mere thought will cause brands to peel back even further.

That’s quite a shame, because diversity in the workplace is important. That’s been proven over and over again. Not only can it bring new, fresh ideas to the table, but it can also prevent scandal — both extremely beneficial for any business.

Diversity, equity and inclusion have never been about handing someone a job they didn’t deserve. It’s about getting a foot in the door to give them a chance to earn it.

Calling that into question here feels ridiculous.

The Shiffrin Spotlight

The 2026 Milano-Cortina Olympic Games are set to begin today, but Adidas got the spotlight warmed up a bit early with superstar skier Mikaela Shiffrin.

What’s new: The brand launched a new ‘Illuminated’ docuseries episode about Shiffrin’s journey to stardom on its YouTube channel ahead of her 2026 Olympic debut.

• The piece features Shiffrin’s mother, Eileen, talking through her daughter’s rise to stardom and what it was like to coach her as she grew.
• It also dives into Shiffrin’s life story, her relationship with her mom and how she inspires her.

If you’re looking to whet your whistle before diving deep into the Games this year, this is something that might interest you.

Between the lines: This is also a good look at the kind of content Adidas might produce around the Olympics, as the brand tries to spotlight itself as much as possible throughout the competition.

This sort of behind-the-scenes content about Olympians was once taboo when the International Olympic Committee’s rule 40, which barred athletes and brands from marketing products, was stricter. But, as my colleagues and I explained in our Olympic marketing primer earlier this week, things have relaxed a bit. Now, we’re able to see an athlete like Shiffrin grab hold of the spotlight during one of the biggest moments of her career.

That’s a pretty cool thing, if you ask me.

Tommy Hilfiger’s F1 Fanwear Arrives

Tommy Hilfiger’s partnership with the Cadillac Formula 1 Team is finally beginning to round itself out. The brand finally launched the team’s fanwear collection on Thursday.

What’s in it: The pieces included were fairly wide-ranging.

• There were several classic merch items like T-shirts and ball caps as well as some more out-of-the-box pieces.
• Two of the more interesting pieces included was the $259.99 bomber jacket and a coach jacket with the team’s logo on the back for the same price.
• A special event replica bomber with the Hilfiger brand’s classic red, white and blue stripes was also included for $399.99.

Why this matters: I’m so interested in how this will all work. The collection will change and evolve as Cadillac F1’s season progresses, following its start in early March. The “always on” approach to the partnership is one of the more unique strategies we’ve seen in the sports and fashion space.

I wonder if other fashion companies would have the bandwidth to attempt something like this? If the Hilfiger brand sees some success here, we’ll find out the answer to that question.

Rich Paul’s Basketball Shoe is Incredible

New Balance’s biggest headliner for NBA All-Star weekend won’t be a basketball player. Instead, it’ll be an agent.

What’s new: Rich Paul — the head of Klutch Sports agency and the agent of NBA superstar LeBron James, among others — has a new running shoe coming with New Balance. My immediate take is it looks like one of the best on the market.

• Paul and New Balance are launching a new exclusive colourway of the brand’s AC Runner, a newer model that launched at the top of 2026.
• The new colourway has Klutch Sports branding on the tongue and insole.

My take: This has been one of the strangest partnerships in the sports and fashion space that I can think of. But it’s also really good. Paul has put together some of the best New Balance collaborations we’ve seen in the last few years — up there with names like Action Bronson and Ronnie Fieg.

Needless to say, I’ll be interested in seeing how people react to these.

#TheKicksWeWear

This is the community section of the newsletter where you (Yes, you!!!!) send me your best fits and kicks from the week. Feel free to send submissions to michael.sykes@businessoffashion.com or shoot me a message via social channels @MikeDSykes

First, the homie Storm got us popping with some New Balance and Puma love. Those Salehe’s are calling me.

The homie Saoirse came through with these AJ 13s and a SWEET pair of Air Max 95s. What a sneaker.

Then the homie JD took us home with a whole bunch of Jordan 3s. Those J Balvin joints on the top right, y’all. Man. BEAUTIES.

Good stuff, gang. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for reading, gang!

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, reach out to me via email at michael.sykes@businessoffashion.com or shoot me a message @MikeDSykes via socials.

Peace and love. Be safe, be easy, be kind. We out.

-Sykes 💯