Nike is one of the most popular brands in the world. But the prices for its clothing and footwear in Russia are, to put it mildly, unattractive. We once compared prices for Nike, Adidas, and Puma, and it turned out that on average when buying them in Russia you overpay by 45%. And that was a comparison based on the official websites (Adidas.ru vs Adidas.com, Nike.ru vs Nike.com). But in America there are even better deals. Of course, the Nike store has the latest collections, but if you check Amazon, eBay, or 6PM, you can get items for another one and a half to two times cheaper.
So it turns out that, as usual, when buying good clothing and footwear in Russia, you overpay almost several times over. For Nike and other top well-known brands (for example, DKNY), the problem is much more serious, because people will buy them anyway, so prices can be inflated however they like.
We’ll take a closer look at the scale of the savings with examples a bit later, but for now — why do people love and respect Nike so much in the first place?
Nike brand history
Nike was originally called Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS). It was founded in 1964 by University of Oregon track athlete Phil Knight and his coach Bill Bowerman. At first, the company sold its sneakers at running tracks and athletes' meets — directly from Knight's car.
Bowerman made the first pair of Nike sneakers for Otis Davis, a student athlete whom he coached at the University of Oregon. Later, he won two gold medals at the Olympic Games in them.
In 1964, during its first year in business, BRS sold 1300 pairs of sneakers and earned $8000. Back then, you could only buy Nike directly from its founders. But already in 1965, they hired several employees, and sales reached $20 000, and in 1966 they opened their first store in Santa Monica (California) and were able to earn $100 000 in a year. At the time, that seemed like a truly enormous amount.
The most recognizable logo in the world — the so-called "Swoosh" — was created in 1971 by Portland student Carolyn Davidson as freelance work. The first sneakers with the "Swoosh" were presented at the 1972 Olympic Games. For her work on the logo, Davidson received $35 at the time. Today, this emblem alone is worth several billion. But the designer was not left empty-handed either: in 1983, when Nike had become a market giant, Knight gave her a diamond ring with this black "checkmark" and 500 shares of the company.
Since the 1980s, Nike footwear and clothing have become an important aspect of Americans' lives. All young people started wearing tracksuits, pants, baseball caps, and sneakers with the "Swoosh." Air Jordans, Air Max, and Air Force became especially popular. Gradually, they began to be sold abroad as well. Many Europeans wanted to order such Nike from America, and later they even became sales leaders in China and India.
The company was also one of the first to start selling its products online. Nike's official website in America opened as early as 1994, and in 1999 the company became the first in the world to allow customizing footwear when ordering online — choosing a combination of colors, logo placement, sole shape, and much more.
In July 2019, a pair of Nike sneakers was sold at a Sotheby's auction for $440 thousand. These were the "Moon Shoes," created by the company's co-founder Bill Bowerman for US Olympic runners in 1972. At the moment, these are the most expensive sneakers in the world.
Why are Nike sneakers so popular❓
In 2019, Nike in the USA received an award as the most popular brand among young people — for the 9th year in a row. At the moment, this brand alone (the name and the “swoosh”) is valued at $37 billion. And the company itself — at more than $125 billion. It is also the second most recognizable brand among all online shoppers. The first is Amazon.
Why is everyone such a fan? There are three main reasons:
1. Sports. Nike is worn by many athletes. Especially in basketball and football. Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Totti, Drogba, Neymar, Ibrahimović, Kane, and many other top names. They are paid for this, but besides that, Nike sneakers are simply better than others. In the world of sports footwear, Nike accounts for about 62% of the market.
2. Innovation. The company is not afraid to move the world forward. For example, recently it started making shoes with self-lacing shoelaces (just like in the movie “Back to the Future 2”). It has sneakers that connect to a smartphone, sending all data there to an app. It makes Nike Air Max and Nike Vaporfly — unique shoes with a special sole that in 2019 allowed Eliud Kipchoge to run a marathon in less than 2 hours — which was previously considered physically impossible.
3. Price. In the store, everything costs quite reasonably (especially in the USA). Good shoes can be bought even without discounts for $100-$120, and with discounts on the official Nike website — for $80 or even cheaper. For such high-quality and heavily promoted sneakers, this is a very выгодное предложение. Less than six thousand rubles per pair.
Moreover, people understand that good shoes are no less beneficial for a healthy lifestyle than a proper diet. And Nike makes shoes for these needs. Their sneakers are comfortable for simply getting around the city and going to the gym. You do not have to run a marathon or step onto a football field. That is why the company also has a lot of shoes designed for women.
Where to buy Nike sneakers❓
- Nike.com — Nike’s American website, with prices on average one and a half times lower than Russian ones (not counting the Sale section), plus the biggest selection, including new collections.
- 6PM.com — the main discount store in the USA, with all shoes and clothing discounted by up to 70%. As a result, you can save several thousand rubles on every purchase, even including shipping. Great sneakers starting at $45 (2800 rubles), while the same models in Russia cost 6-7 thousand rubles. Free shipping within the USA to Pochtoy.com when ordering any two items or making a purchase of $50 or more.
- Amazon.com — more than sixty thousand options, any sneakers and clothing of your choice, including from old collections that can no longer be found anywhere else. Free shipping to Pochtoy.com warehouses for almost all items.
- Zappos.com — the most popular shoe store in America. With the best service. Thousands of sneaker options, and now also Nike clothing. True, there aren’t that many discounts. But shipping is always free for any order. They’ll even deliver a pair of socks across America for free.
Nike's most famous sneaker models
- Air Max. A line introduced in 1987 that still remains the company's most popular. The Nike Air Max Graviton model in 2019 was the most popular shoe in online sales. In America at 6PM.com, such a pair costs $50 (3050 rubles). In Russia — at least 6960 rubles, more than twice as expensive.
- Air Force. "High-top" shoes for athletes, first released in 1982. They are still used by NBA basketball players, but are mostly popular among young people, especially in New York. No other shoes are worn on the streets of Harlem. On the official website in America, the classic Nike Air Force is sold for $90 (5580 rubles). In Russia, this classic shoe is hard to find, but on average prices start from 8200 rubles.
- Air Jordan. Released in 1984 exclusively for Michael Jordan. And then, after he played several triumphant games in them, they were introduced to the public. One of the most popular and recognizable shoe models of all time. Now Nike Jordan is practically a separate one. With its own section on the Nike website, branded clothing, balls, shoes, and even the characteristic logo of jumping Michael. In Russia, Air Jordan 1 Mid cost from 9290 rubles. If you order in the USA from Nike even without discounts it will be — $110 (6800 rubles). Buying one such pair in the USA, even taking delivery cost into account, allows you to save about one and a half thousand rubles. Plus — you get a larger selection of interesting designs.
Where to buy original Nike sneakers in the USA cheaply with delivery to Russia and Ukraine?
First of all, pay attention to large chain stores. Very often they hold sales of popular models. To be honest, there is not a single day without sales in the USA. After all, real Americans buy only at discounts, because there is no sense at all in buying at full price something that can be bought at a discount.
To start shopping in American stores during sales, you need to get a US address for online shopping from Russia. After that, complete registration on the American website using the recommendations of our specialists. After that, all possible discounts and sales will be available to you.
Buying Nike sneakers in America from Russia and Ukraine
Very often it happens that an American website категорически refuses to accept payment with a Russian card. What should you do in this case?
Order purchase in an American store by link to Moscow and Kyiv from 10$.
It should be noted that the official nike.com and the official outlet are purchased from 15$.
You can entrust the purchase of your orders to our buyers.
Nevertheless, we strongly recommend correctly determining the American shoe size for shopping in America. This will reduce the probability of an error when ordering.
We recommend viewing our partner store pages.
6pm USA order and delivery of sneakers from the shoes category for customers from Russia and Ukraine.
