Consumers' perception of the Nike brand hasn't changed much over the past month, even as issues with the company's culture have come to light and a number of high-level executives have left the company.
Research firm YouGov BrandIndex has interviewed approximately 10,000 people over 18 since January to determine their feelings about the brand. It found that, except for a brief drop at the end of April, consumers' perceptions of Nike remained more or less consistently positive. Tap to view the data
It also found that, although much of the news has centered on the mistreatment of women at Nike, female consumers were generally more positive about the brand than men.
YouGov asks consumers: "If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, through advertising or word of mouth, was it more positive or negative?" From the survey, it generates a "buzz score" which shows how many more people, by percentage, said they had a positive view of Nike than negative.
The analysis from YouGov states that quick action by Nike CEO Mark Parker in response to workplace misconduct likely helped to preserve the brand's perception. Parker has ushered out at least six top male executives from the company since mid-March and acknowledged the workplace misconduct issues in an internal memo to staff and on Nike's most recent earnings call.
The report also revealed that the strength of Nike's brand historically helps during negative news cycles — Nike, it said, is consistently perceived more positively than most of the other nearly 1,600 brands it tracks. And, because consumers are less likely to regularly follow every piece of news, the fact that the executive exits at Nike have come one or two at a time has likely aided the brand's image.
The most significant drop in consumer perception occurred on April 26, a week after the exits of four senior managers, including heads of basketball and diversity, were reported.
The Portland Business Journal is a KGW News partner.