Michael Jordan Violence

Michael Jordan was one of the greatest, if not the greatest basketball player of all times. During his 15 years career he was able to inspire and earn the respect of millions of fans. After retiring in 1999, he has been focused on different business opportunities including his own sneaker brand, Air Jordan. The brand has had huge success among MJ fans and the general public alike. Still, there has been some controversy surrounding the brand because every time they release a new sneaker, fans flock to the stores sometimes turning to violence when they can’t get the sneakers because of the limited number of merchandise that is distributed. It’s hard to discern who is responsible for such tragic events – is it the brand, nike, or Michael Jordan

It would be almost impossible to control such a crowd. The scene is reminiscent of black Friday sales and a lot of the violence originates from the pushing and shoveling that is created when stores open their doors and everyone wants to rush in. in addition, some of the violence stems from people getting impatient and wanting to cut the line. For example, according to an article posted by USA today, “in suburban Seattle, police used pepper spray on about 20 customers who started fighting at the Westfield Southcentral Mall. The crowd started gathering at four stores in the mall around midnight and had grown to more than 1000 people by 4 am, when the stores opened”. Thus, the stores are unable to meet the demand causing some customers to become angry and to turn violent. The reason the company doesn’t increase the number of sneakers it ships to stores is to justify the high price of the sneakers based on exclusivity. Ordering the sneakers online would eliminate the need for people to wait in long lines and to potentially turn

Therefore, selling them online will allow more users to get their hands on the coveted shoes. Nike has been strongly criticized for only releasing a limited number of Air Jordans despite the high demand. When talking to ABC 13 about his experience with the Air Jordans, Thomas Nauls, a shoe store owner expressed: “I don’t think that Jordan is doing enough to protect the integrity of what Jordan represents. Part of the problem is the [Small] number of Air Jordan shows released. It creates the hysteria and its great from a marketing standpoint, but they don’t think of the ramifications”. The limited number of sneakers that are released creates an opportunity for those people whom get a chance to buy the shoes when they are first released to re-sell them at an astonishing price. By releasing the sneakers online both Michael Jordan and Nike would be taking a clear stand against the violence that originates whenever they make a new pair of Air Jordans available. In an article written for Complex Magazine, Joe Sherman, stated: Jordan’s silence about the dangers that have become associated with his sneakers conveys –rightly or wrong- that he places greater importance on his financial welfare than the safety of the communities that it’s damaging”. Meaning, the violence caused by his brand could actually start