Nike Swoosh- Sarah Johnson

The terms trademark and copyright are a huge part of Nikes immense success. Their swoosh logo, and slogan ¨Just Do It¨ are both known across the globe. Nike has copyright on both of these things, making them infamous in the advertising world, as well as the real world. Without these two trademarks, the Nike brand would just be another average shoe company. Nobody would recognize them, and they certainly would not be making the money they do today. While celebrities like Michael Jordan and and Tiger Woods have added to the success of Nike, the designs and symbols used by Nike are original to the company itself. This makes it a standout from other companies. The simple logo makes the company look fresh, and appeals to the public. The slogan is used in daily conversation, inadvertently making consumers Nike advertisers. The idea isnt original. It is the branding that puts Nike into its own category, and has given it the success it has today.

Nike Assignment

Nike Assignment

2. Should Phil Knight/ Nike be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture their products? Why or why not? Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least 8-10 sentences. 

Nike has grown so much within the last 30 years. Signing big name athletes like Michael Jordan has brought in bountiful amounts of money and for the company to keep expanding sometimes spreading to other countries is the only option. But, even though Nike feels as though the only way it can they can keep producing their product is using cheap slave labor, it still is morally incorrect and shouldn't be used. A company as big as Nike can have the fact that they use cheap slave labor brushed under the rug and no one will make a fuss about it. All of the popularity that the company has can cover up their wrong doings. If it were any other company, having cheap labor overseas would ruin their revenue. So, I feel that Nike should stop using slave labor. Even though no one else is making a fuss about it, they should still stop because it is just immoral. To add, paying workers overseas just a little more than they are now wouldn't even make a tiny dent into the revenue of Nike.

Adam Geibel

Nike Assignment

2. Should Phil Knight/ Nike be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture their products? Why or why not? Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least 8-10 sentences. 

Nike has grown so much within the last 30 years. Signing big name athletes like Michael Jordan has brought in bountiful amounts of money and for the company to keep expanding sometimes spreading to other countries is the only option. But, even though Nike feels as though the only way it can they can keep producing their product is using cheap slave labor, it still is morally incorrect and shouldn't be used. A company as big as Nike can have the fact that they use cheap slave labor brushed under the rug and no one will make a fuss about it. All of the popularity that the company has can cover up their wrong doings. If it were any other company, having cheap labor overseas would ruin their revenue. So, I feel that Nike should stop using slave labor. Even though no one else is making a fuss about it, they should still stop because it is just immoral. To add, paying workers overseas just a little more than they are now wouldn't even make a tiny dent into the revenue of Nike. 

  2. Should Phil Knight/Nike be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture
            their products?  Why or why not?  Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least
            8-10 sentences.

Nike is a huge company that has become international in its production and needs space to grow. For this reason I believe that there should be labor and work overseas for the company. However, I do not think these people should be getting paid less than workers in America or elsewhere. Even though Nike feels that the only way to maintain itself and keep progressing forward is to have cheap labor and even slave labor, this doesn't mean that it is morally correct. However it is easy for Nike to get away with this because of how big of a company they are. People don't think about the cheap labor because of how powerful they are. If it were to be a smaller company it would be easier for them to get prosecuted for cheap labor but a company as rich as Nike has all the best lawyers, all the best minds, all the best everything. Overall I think Nike should not have cheap labor because it is morally wrong, but it will because of how powerful it is.

Niko Kapetan

  2. Should Phil Knight/Nike be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture
            their products?  Why or why not?  Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least
            8-10 sentences.

Nike is a huge company that has become international in its production and needs space to grow. For this reason I believe that there should be labor and work overseas for the company. However, I do not think these people should be getting paid less than workers in America or elsewhere. Even though Nike feels that the only way to maintain itself and keep progressing forward is to have cheap labor and even slave labor, this doesn't mean that it is morally correct. However it is easy for Nike to get away with this because of how big of a company they are. People don't think about the cheap labor because of how powerful they are. If it were to be a smaller company it would be easier for them to get prosecuted for cheap labor but a company as rich as Nike has all the best lawyers, all the best minds, all the best everything. Overall I think Nike should not have cheap labor because it is morally wrong, but it will because of how powerful it is.

Niko Kapetan

  2. Should Phil Knight/Nike be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture
            their products?  Why or why not?  Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least
            8-10 sentences.

Nike is a huge company that has become international in its production and needs space to grow. For this reason I believe that there should be labor and work overseas for the company. However, I do not think these people should be getting paid less than workers in America or elsewhere. Even though Nike feels that the only way to maintain itself and keep progressing forward is to have cheap labor and even slave labor, this doesn't mean that it is morally correct. However it is easy for Nike to get away with this because of how big of a company they are. People don't think about the cheap labor because of how powerful they are. If it were to be a smaller company it would be easier for them to get prosecuted for cheap labor but a company as rich as Nike has all the best lawyers, all the best minds, all the best everything. Overall I think Nike should not have cheap labor because it is morally wrong, but it will because of how powerful it is.

Niko Kapetan

Swoosh: Inside Nike - Jackson Fisher

The terms 'Copyright' and 'Trademark' are immensely important to Nike's success, since they held make the brand what it is. As a competitor in the shoe and sports equipment market, it's important to cement itself as separate, individual, and better from other companies like Adidas. Copyright and Trademarks allow Nike's products to remain Nike's product. With the threat of others copying their product, its easy to put their logo on their products in order to spread the 'I need Nike products to be successful' mentality. A good example of a product like this is Air Jordans. Because of Nike's copyright, no other company can make them; they are Nike's product line and theirs alone. Its legacy continues to be successful, which in turn improves Nike too. Overall, Copyright and Trademarking allowed Nike to grow and make its mark on the shoe marketing world.

-Jackson Fisher, Period 7.

Molly Maloney's Response to Swoosh: Inside Nike

The terms "copyright" and "trademark" play into the success of Nike's products. This is because of the advertising slogan of "Just do it." It is one of the most recognized tag lines, "an international phenomenon." Nike's advertising campaigns and connection with famous athletes has definitely influenced their popularity but a large amount. Nike's ads were new, real, and let people know exactly what they were buying. The Nike Swoosh is one of the most recognizable logos, and many people are more likely to buy a product if they see the swoosh on it. When people see their favorite athletes wearing clothes and shoes with the swoosh, they are likely to want to buy their own of those clothes and shoes. The Logo is everything, and that trademarked swoosh is what makes Nike, Nike.

Phil Knight/Nike should not be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture their products if the workers are too young to say they do not want to do it. Nike is not only forcing children into labor that could be considered child abuse, but they are not paying them well for the amount of work they put in. If the cheap labor is coming from adults, that agree to what they are doing, it is a very different story, because they should be old enough to make their own decisions. Nike should be allowed to use cheap labor if it can get it, wherever they can get it, as long as their are not forcing children to do the work for them. The cheap labor will help them build up more of a profit margin, which actually keeps the prices lower for the consumers, so there is a benefit from cheap labor as long as it is morally right and fair labor. 

Jordan's are still being purchased because the branding of the shoe. According to Jordan's coach, Michael Jordan brought in the fans with his basketball skills, but they stayed for the shoes. They shoes became seen almost as a designer or high end brand. They were originally meant for people to play basketball in, like Jordan did, but they turned into a stylish shoe that people see as a representation of class and style. It is believed by many that having Jordan's proves some sort of worth. Many people even turned to violence just to get a pair of them, which is partially because of their high price. The shoes ended up becoming collectables with release parties. Jordan's bond with Nike had become a real love, relationship. 

Nike Questions: Evan S

How do the terms “copyright” and  “trademark” play into the success of Nike’s products?
 Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least 8-10 sentences

Copy rights and trademarks have made the Nike business what it is today. Copyrights and trademarks allow a company to have ownership of something. For Nike, that is an ownership of a typer of shoe. But their ownership goes farther than that. They own the idea that their shoes are the best in the athletic world. They use athlete names (like Michael Jordan) to show that their shoes are the best. This use of copywriting and trademarking has allowed the company to have the amount of power in the shoe world that they have today. Without those things, they could never brand the way they have, and they would be nowhere near as profitable or popular.



Should Phil Knight/Nike be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture
            their products?  Why or why not?  Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least 
            8-10 sentences.

No, they shouldn't. Even if the company makes more money with this method, it is deeply unethical. There are several things that make it unethical. Often, these places with cheap labor also have harsh conditions and don't treat their employees well. The other issue, is that it can be inefficient, especially when there are strikes. The low pay and forced overtime causes these strikes. If they moved their work to America, they could make huge amounts of American jobs. This would add to the economy, and help the country in general.



Why is the Air Jordan brand still so successful today?  In your answer, please refer to 
            Michael Jordan’s (and others interviewed) responses about branding and how the
            elite athlete endorsement process has changed since the time Michael Jordan first
            formed a relationship with Nike.  Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at 
            least 8-10 sentences.

Jordan says that his air Jordan's are popular, because they represent what he did to basketball. His breakthroughs make people want to be more like him. In this wanting, they take the shoes that he wore, and they try to wear shoes that are as similar to his as possible. The popularity of these shoes has changed a lot since they started. They have become crazily popular. So popular, that customers will wait outside the stores for over five days to get the shoes as fast as they possibly can. Now, everyone wears them. Even people who are wearing tuxedos as big events wear Jordans.

Nina Laurent - Manufacturing

Nike began as a small company run by a few geeks out of the back of a truck. Before the company became popular, most people wore Adidas and Converse. The creator wanted a light, sturdy shoe that would work for track as best as a shoe can. After college he took his blueprints to Japan and his passion and drive became a reality. He wanted to be the best, and it became a battle with Adidas for just that. Their branding became a way of life, and that means growing in the world market place. To compete on this global scale they had to make cheap products, which meant cheap labor. Nike has to work with overseas manufacturing if they want to keep up with their demands and image, they have to do so by any means, and that means cheap over seas labor.

Kayla Lesch

   

1.         How do the terms “copyright” and  “trademark” play into the success of Nike’s products?
 Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least 8-10 sentences.

Trademarks help Nike because as Nike becomes more popular, more and more people see clothing and products with the trademark. Because the trademark is popular, people want to buy and wear products with the trademark because this is "cool". Also, because it is copy righted, other companies cannot copy the Nike symbol onto their own products and sell it for cheaper. This way, Nike has a monopoly on products with the Nike trademark.

2.      Should Phil Knight/Nike be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture
            their products?  Why or why not?  Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at least
            8-10 sentences.

Phil Knight/Nike should not be allowed to use cheap labor in overseas locations to manufacture their products. The plus to getting to use cheap labor overseas is that companies can make their products for cheap and sell them for cheap but still make a large profit. However, I am doing my Junior Research paper on modern day slavery and not all but many companies that do this use child labor and sweatshops. Nike is one company that has been accused of this. Back in the 1990's it was found that workers in Nike factories were being exposed to toxic fumes and that it exploited many child laborers. Although since then Nike has promised to follow stricter health codes and employ older workers, it is not clear that they are actually following through. Nike always give advanced notice to factories before they are checked for toxic fumes, giving them time to remove the fumes. Also, there is still questionable evidence over whether Nike uses child labor. 

 3.       Why is the Air Jordan brand still so successful today?  In your answer, please refer to
            Michael Jordan’s (and others interviewed) responses about branding and how the
            elite athlete endorsement process has changed since the time Michael Jordan first
            formed a relationship with Nike.  Please explain your answer in a full paragraph of at
            least 8-10 sentences.

The Air Jordan brand is still so successful because Michael Jordan, and other famous athletes, are so publicized. When a consumer sees a product, such as Air Jordans, with Michael Jordan's name on it, they immediatly connect the product to Jordan. Jordan is connected to fame, success and being cool. Especially among younger children, people are influenced by what others around them are wearing, and seeing an endorsed player wearing Nike influences consumers to want to wear Nike clothing. This helps keep the Air Jordans so successful.  Also, Air Jordan's stay successful by constantly coming out with new shoes. People who like the Air Jordans want to keep up with the product and will continue to buy the newest shoe, kind of like buying new iPhones.