Nike is reportedly working on anti-bot technology

The story that broke last week on the now-former vice president and general manager of Nike has left important aftermaths in the current and future policies of the Beaverton brand. After an article published by Bloomberg that spotlighted the reselling business of her son, known as West Coast Streetwear, his mother, Ann Hebert, decided to resign, despite the brand already knowing about her son's business since 2018. 

In these hours the brand has returned on the story, which was addressed in an internal meeting, reported today by Complex. John Donahoe, CEO of Nike, said that the brand's primary objective is to regain consumer confidence, particularly when it comes to the release of limited edition or highly anticipated sneakers, drops that have been controlled by bots and resellers for years. Donahoe revealed that Nike has been working on anti-bot technology for several years, which "will be part of the solution" and that the brand is willing to "double down their efforts" on this matter. Donahoe further explained that Nike will update its internal policy and make it clearer what is allowed for employees and their families.

The CEO explained that Nike is looking for new solutions to adapt to a constantly growing resale market, that has now reached a value of $6 billion and forecasts of continuous expansion. This is the first time that an industry giant has spoken so explicitly about reselling and bot issue. In fact, it can't be denied that none of the major brands in the sector, from adidas to Nike, not only have never openly addressed the issue of reselling - because the benefits and profits it guarantees are too many to give up - but it actually feeds the secondary market with limited releases and exclusive drops. As nss magazine reported last January in the interview to editor and collector Marco Rizzi, "The role of brands in all this has always been difficult to decipher, one could condemn the fact that companies are speculating on the growth of reselling, both in terms of production and distribution, but we would be forgetting that the goal of a company is to create profits, not to preserve or promote a subculture."

It will be interesting to see to what extent Nike will be able (and interested) to fix the problem.