00:03Milan Italy one of the design capitals of the world it's narrow and winding medieval era
00:09streets now doubling as global runways of luxury Gucci Prada the Russo Miani among the glitzy
00:16storefronts but beyond the outdoor catwalks the Via Montanapoleone Brera and Tortona US-based
00:23sportswear company Nike is choosing to strut its stuff in a revival for its all-conditions gear
00:29line an almost 40-year-old sub-label that in February was elevated to a standalone brand
00:34akin to Jordan or to Converse it's a formalization of ACG as a dedicated outdoor performance brand
00:41that Nike CEO Elliot Hill felt was best appropriate to unveil at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Italy
00:50these sport moments are critically important to our brand and frankly to the industry they're
00:55tentpole moments whether it's a an Olympics and a Winter Olympics a World Cup a Super Bowl an NBA
01:02all-star game and frankly they're really I think galvanizing moments for our teams internally it's
01:09also a reflection of the core ethos Hill has pushed since taking over as CEO in late 2024
01:19everything Nike does should focus on the athlete and athletic performance we thought there was no
01:25better place to do it than here in Milan when the eyes of the world were watching there's no question
01:30that there is a movement to getting outdoors whether it's in China or Europe or in the United States and
01:36we looked at the overall outdoor market and the opportunity that exists there the growth of outdoor
01:44sports think ultra marathons rock climbing mountain biking it is in fact booming posting a record 181
01:52million participants in 2024 with trail running a key driver and that is exactly where Nike sees
02:00opportunity opportunity opportunity in its outdoor comeback so we decided to go after that through the lens of trail running
02:06which is a point of strength from us where we can bring innovation to the market and newness and freshness
02:13and decided to do it with the ACG brand because there is some awareness already around that brand ACG's roots
02:21they go back decades
02:23to the late 1970s when mountain climbers Rick Ridgeway and John Raskelly scaled K2 in Nike long distance vector running
02:32shoes legend has it that they mailed the worn out shoes back to Nike with suggestions for how to make
02:39the more rugged
02:39and durable for extreme outdoor conditions that correspondence led to the introduction in the early 80s
02:46of the lava dome the approach and the magma though the actual ACG branding that didn't come
02:52about until 1989 the line partly because some of the marketing decisions Nike made would eventually suffer
02:59from consumer misperceptions about what ACG was exactly supposed to be it was later discontinued then
03:07relaunched more than a decade ago but struggled to regain its footing within the quirky counterculture
03:13community of outdoor enthusiasts. ACG has been through some fits and starts and I am curious as to why there
03:20hasn't been that continuity in the brand. With anything it comes down to positioning we're going
03:25for the wild ones so you think about the outdoor world with a little bit of an attitude and a
03:30swagger
03:30with an element and an approach around design and innovation. Are you at risk of maybe alienating some
03:37of those folks who just kind of want to be on the fringe? No I think I think that's an
03:42opera that that is a risk
03:43if we just showed up as the big bag Nike but I think this team they live and breathe this
03:49space so they
03:49understand it deeply. One of those team members is Martin Lottie, Nike's chief design officer. In a push of
03:57the button you can just release the air and then it adapts to your needs. From the inflatable air Milano
04:04jacket to the radical airflow shirt worn by ultra marathoner Caleb Olson, the design team at Nike is
04:10relying on yes design but also on science and technology to make a mark. It goes from bigger holes to
04:17smaller holes and it creates hundreds of air vents. So these holes aren't just for show they're not just for
04:25design.
04:26It's literally physics in play here of imagine air being funneled through a funnel and it actually
04:34helps you to cool down the body. The balance of physics and fashion is central to Nike's
04:39process under Lottie. He is after all the man behind that iconic little black dress that Maria
04:46Sharapova wore at the 2006 US Open. It was a thin head turning tennis taboo breaking garment that was
04:56both athletic performance wear and a statement of high fashion. Lottie has walked that line for decades.
05:03This year creating a custom head-to-toe look for Italian tennis phenom Yannick Sinner. Lottie's work,
05:10it reflects an effort to stand out in a crowded marketplace. One where industry surveys show trail
05:16runners are increasingly opting for competitors like Patagonia, Hoka and Smart Bowl.
05:21If you think about the outdoor industry it's pretty serious, very top of mountain. So with ACG it allows us
05:28to
05:28bring an attitude to it with high performance all at the same time. You've been with the company for
05:35what almost 30 years now as a designer. There was a period in recent years where a lot of people
05:41said
05:42the company kind of got a little boring. Maybe it wasn't being as risky if you will. And I do
05:48wonder
05:49under the new leadership and under the new conditions that we're seeing right now, are you taking risks?
05:54You know, if you think about our heritage of the brand, it's about taking calculated risks. Athletes
06:02take a calculated risk every single time they go on the court pitch or on the ski slope. Well, so
06:09do we.
06:09Like if we truly listen to the voice of the athletes, that's what we do. That's part of our DNA.
06:14I don't think you can ever just elbow your way in. You have to be authentic to the sport. And
06:20small cross-functional teams working against a consumer segment, in this case, trail running.
06:27We have a really talented team that comes to work every single day and thinks about the
06:32trail running consumer. I mean, there are a lot of names that already dominate.
06:36Solomon, Smartwool, Patagonia. Is this strategy of going for that outdoor consumer,
06:43is that actually playing offense or are you catching up to the rest of the folks?
06:47We're always on the offense. We have a, we actually have a maxim that says on the offense
06:51always. And so the team's definitely approaching it from an offensive perspective and trying to
06:56make certain that, you know, that we're coming with something new, fresh perspective.
07:01You can tell me if this is true and forgive my French, but there was some mantra going around,
07:05some memo saying create epic . I guess I can confirm that is true. That's one of the
07:10mantras coming out of that building. And frankly, I love it. I love the irreverence of it. I like the
07:15attitude of it. I like the commitment around it. And I keep telling this team, run,
07:19don't ask for permission, ask for forgiveness. And they're bringing some really interesting things
07:23to the marketplace.
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