Nike expects its wholesale business to strengthen across global markets as CEO Elliott Hill accelerates product launches and rebuilds retailer relationships damaged under his predecessor, he said in a Bloomberg TV interview this week.
The company has already restored growth in North America through its wholesale channel, which rose approximately 20 percent in the most recent quarter. Hill now expects similar momentum in Europe and Asia as the brand applies the same strategy of restoring depth and newness to retail partners’ assortments.
“We have a joint consumer and they want access to our brand,” Hill said during the interview recorded from Milan. “When we’re driving growth and profitability for our retailers, that’s how we take market share.”
Hill’s remarks underscore his belief that the playbook which restored North American wholesale can work globally—a notable shift from his predecessor’s approach. Under former CEO John Donahoe, Nike’s pivot towards direct-to-consumer sales strained longstanding retail partnerships and ceded ground to rivals such as Adidas, On Holding and Hoka.
Wholesale represents approximately 60 percent of Nike’s revenue, making retailer relationships critical to the company’s recovery. Hill, a 32-year Nike veteran who returned from retirement in October 2024, has made rebuilding these partnerships central to his “sport offense” strategy.
North America overall revenue grew 9 percent in Nike’s second fiscal quarter, with the running category up more than 20 percent. The results marked the region’s return to growth after several quarters of decline.
However, analysts remain cautious about the turnaround timeline. Cristina Fernández of Telsey Advisory Group said the recovery “will take longer to execute, require greater investments in areas like brand marketing, and result in lower sales and profitability over the next 12 months.”
Hill acknowledged that restoring product depth remains a challenge. “We’re having to pull a lot of our products forward to really drive that innovation and that newness and freshness,” he said. “We have an opportunity around depth that we’re still working through to make sure that we have the depth to drive the revenue and profits that they expect from us.”
Nike’s turnaround also faces headwinds from tariffs, which represent a $1.5 billion cost pressure, and weakness in China. In the same interview, Hill emphasized that Nike’s scale and three-brand portfolio—Nike, Converse and Jordan—position the company to execute its sport-focused strategy across 190 countries.
