Nike hires new CMO as part of leadership changes

Nike has a new top marketer. The sportswear giant announced that Nicole Hubbard Graham, a former Nike veteran who last worked at the company in 2021, will return to the brand in January as chief marketing officer. A marketing veteran, Graham formerly worked at Nike for 17 years, directing brand marketing in Europe and basketball, before leaving in 2021 as VP of global categories and consumer direct marketing, according to her LinkedIn profile. Related: Gen Z fuels women’s sports’ marketing growth Graham spent the last two years at Adopt, a minority-owned brand and creative agency centered on athletes and sports which she co-founded with other former Nike executives. Graham succeeds Dirk-Jan “DJ” van Hameren, who is retiring next year after spending more than three decades at Nike. See all of Ad Age’s Breakout Brand Leaders here Graham’s appointment is one of a host of executive changes taking place at Nike. The Portland, Oregon-based company also announced the promotion of Chief Design Officer John Hoke to chief innovation officer. Martin Lotti succeeds Hoke as chief design officer and was promoted to the role after working as chief design officer of the Jordan Brand. In addition, Nike hired Amazon executive Dr. Muge Erdirik Dogan as chief technology officer. The C-suite appointments come at a time of employee upheaval at Nike, according to a report in Footwear News. Earlier this week, several staffers announced layoffs, including many in the brand creative department. For its most recent quarter, which ended Aug. 31, Nike reported a 2% rise in revenue to $12.9 billion, compared with the year-earlier period, alongside a 6% rise in its direct-to-consumer business. CEO and President John Donahoe cited “innovation” and “storytelling” as helping to fuel the rise. While Nike was profitable for the quarter, net income, at $1.5 billion, was down 1% from last year. Like most retail brands this holiday season, Nike appears to be leaning into promotions, with a focus on driving its membership and loyalty program. Earlier this week, the brand offered members exclusive early Black Friday discounts to “shop ahead of the crowd.”

Nike hires new CMO as part of leadership changes

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