Nike plans to relaunch its Kobe line of shoes on August 24th, 2023. According to TMZ Sports Nike’s CEO, John Donahue revealed this information during one of the shoe giant’s earnings calls. Affectionately known to the sneaker community as Kobe Day, the date contains the two numbers that the late Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant wore during his playing days. Nike and Bryant enjoyed a good relationship, however, the deal expired in 2021, and his widow Vanessa Bryant did not agree to a new deal with Nike before it expired. In March of 2022, she released a statement reading: “We’re excited to announce our partnership with Nike is going to continue! I am so proud that my husband’s shoes are still the most worn by players on NBA courts and that the demand for his shoes remains so desired by his fans around the world. With this new partnership, fans will soon be able to have access to Kobe and Gigi Nike products for years to come and with Nike donating 100 percent of the net proceeds yearly for Gianna’s shoes to our Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation”
Kobe and his daughter Gianna “Gigi” Bryant were tragically killed in January of 2020 in a plane crash that also claimed the lives of John Altobeli, Keri Altobeli, Alyssa Altobeli, Payton Chester, Sara Chester, Christina Mauser, and Ara Zobayan. The Kobe line of Nike shoes is, as Mrs. Bryant declared, one of the most popular lines for players to wear with many citing comfort and shoe design as factors in their choice. PJ Tucker, a forward with the Philadelphia 76ers has been one of the players leading the charge on that front as his player edition versions of Kobe Brand shoes have taken the internet by storm over the last few years, helping to keep the Kobe shoe brand at the front of shoe enthusiasts minds.
Shoe collectors like Darryl Glover have detailed the impact that the death of the basketball illuminary has had on the shoe market domestically, telling Footwear News: “Prior to 2020, I could generally get my hands on every Kobe release. Now, it has been nearly impossible…With the help (of) family and friends, I have been able to get my hands on (a) few pairs, but without them I would have been unsuccessful.” In addition to this, Nike’s distribution model for the shoes in the past has been one of scarcity, essentially inflating the value of the shoes by decreasing their availability to the public, something that the Bryant family is not a fan of. There is also another view of the shoe announcement, collector Matt Powell thinks that this is Nike making a play to increase sales and he also thinks that if Nike increases the units it sells, it could backfire: “It’s exactly the wrong thing to do here in terms of sustainable long-term business…If they kept the quantities relatively tight, I think it would keep consumer interest up, it would help support the resale market and this shoe could go on for a while. If they put a lot of pairs in the market, if the kid isn’t going to be able to get the multiple on the resale price, I think interest will wane very quickly.”