Nike’s Sales Rise Amid Coronavirus Due To Online Shopping

Nike has seen an increase in its sales as more and more purchases are made online since shoppers are confined to their homes due to the coronavirus pandemic. Nike’s digital sales went up by more than 30% in Greater China thanks to the widespread quarantine. However, their physical sales dropped by 5% as a result of store closures nationwide.

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The brand made the decision to close all of its stores across not only China, but the U.S. and Europe earlier this month as well, as a safety measure amid the spread of coronavirus. “At a time when people were confined to their homes,” said Chief Executive John Donahoe, “we moved swiftly to leverage our digital app ecosystem and Nike Expert Trainer network.” As a result of these improvements, overall digital sales grew 36% in the third quarter, which concluded on February 29th, 2020. This equates to nearly a tenth of the company’s overall revenue in the fiscal year of 2019. Total revenue rose 5.1 % to a whopping $10.10 billion in the third quarter, beating the average analyst estimate of $9.80 billion, according to Refinitiv IBES data. Now, a reported 80% of Nike stores have reopened in China, with the region’s current-quarter sales expected to be flat.