When your sneaker brand becomes so massive that the parent company appoints you as its iconic figure, it’s a clear indication of your immense success. Michael Jordan achieved exactly that when he inked the deal in 1984. Although his shoes didn’t experience an immediate explosive surge in popularity within the first few seasons, MJ still performed exceptionally well during his initial years in the industry.
Now, Jordan Brand makes almost as much in one day as it used to make in a year. Sometimes, when they announce collaborations with famous athletes or celebrities, even more, they metaphorically break the internet, all over a pair of shoes.
Jordan knew the amount of effort he put in to make his name a household commodity. So when his daughter, Jasmine Jordan, asked for Skechers, he was bound to be livid. Skechers? The brand that blatantly copies other brands? The same brand that makes off-brand Nikes? No way!
Michael Jordan was always taking it personally – He wasn’t going to let family slide
Nike signed the athlete to a contract, putting his name all over their merchandise. So it made logical sense to not want his kids to wear his competitors’ shoes. not even Adidas, his favorite company. Well, at least it was until Nike made him a billionaire.
But someone of Mike’s stature could get an exception for his kids to flaunt “cool” shoes at school. She was a kid; what did she care about brand endorsements? All she wanted to do was be as cool as her friends!
Kids do not care about brand names; they care about the coolness factor. And when you saw your peers wearing Skechers with lights in them, you wanted them too. Heelys? Heck yeah!
He did begrudgingly allow it but always played the reverse elf to the shoemaker. He would throw away those shoes after his daughter had her fill of them, just for a day! Talk about being petty!
Did those actions make MJ a bad father?
Not really, but it did show his kids what a salty man he could be. or a stickler for rules, if they meant not breaching contracts. Money is the ultimate power, and breaking the promise to the overlord means no more power.
Jasmine grew up to be a fine young lady who got a chance to design her own shoes with JB. She is her own woman now, working as a field representative for her father’s brand. Michael Jordan taught her well, and she represents the family business to the dot of the i.
She may be the most successful of the kids, considering how the others have always been under the black light of the entertainment world. With her brother doing the unthinkable to her father’s best friend’s ex-wife (wow, that is a mouthful), she is a model family member.
Throwing away the Skechers appears to have paid off, as she is now an advocate for 13 other WNBA stars to sign up for Jordan instead!
