Nike sale of Bauer confirmed

[walkerdb7 20]

Altough there are alot of Swoosh haters out there...

Does no one else think that Nike's devotion to R & D was a good thing? Would the vapor line ever have existed without Nike? (probably, but maybe we would be on the vapor 10 today)

My point... we may miss Nike's innovation and R & D...

[JGraz15 55]

Altough there are alot of Swoosh haters out there...

Does no one else think that Nike's devotion to R & D was a good thing? Would the vapor line ever have existed without Nike? (probably, but maybe we would be on the vapor 10 today)

My point... we may miss Nike's innovation and R & D...

I think people forget how much the R&D changed hockey gear, mainly led by NBH. If you compare a Vapor XXXX to a a pair of Supreme's (1000's?) prior to Nike's acquisition, the differences are light years...lightness, comfort, break-in period, and I'll say it..durability, is far better superior today.

[hockeyfreak 0]

If Nike did less marketing do you think their skates would be so popular? If everyone didn't see the pros wearing the skates, would they be so popular? I think that if skates were only bought on word of mouth Nike wouldn't be nearly as popular. As much as people don't like to admit it, so many kids just buy these skates because they see pros wear them. And the models the pros wear are all custom so it doesn't really matter what skates they wear.

[icingboy 0]

Why do you think Graf made in Switzerland has over 30 procent inncrease in sale in Europe this season?

Sad that the biggest market is in the Us and Canada, we have so mutch better products and quality in Europe but no companies is willing to overpay for endorsment deals!

is it harder for you shop owners in Canada and Usa to sell other brands of skates than bauer Nike, have you tried, is it to much work when the kids is asking for the skates that the pro use to sell him something you know is better, funny that other skate brands sell so many skates in other parts of the world!

Mission, Graf and Easton is not given a try , maybe the bauer parties is better and more fun to join in and makes the stores work less for there money?

[usahockey22 0]

I think people forget how much the R&D changed hockey gear, mainly led by NBH. If you compare a Vapor XXXX to a a pair of Supreme's (1000's?) prior to Nike's acquisition, the differences are light years...lightness, comfort, break-in period, and I'll say it..durability, is far better superior today.

I agree with you here, except for the issue of durability...10 years ago you could buy Bauer 4000s or CCM tacks and still be skating on it today without any issues. Now you're lucky to get 2 seasons out of a pair of skates. I'm not saying this is a bad thing though, because trends do change. It's pretty easy to see that people would rather have lightweight, high performance skates and are willing to sacrifice the durability for these features. It's just a change in preferences.

Overall, I think Nike did as good a job as they could have. They did change things up for the better, and that's always good. They came a long way since they first came out with those horrible Nike aluminum sticks, and now it's just time for them to move on.

Mission, Graf and Easton is not given a try , maybe the bauer parties is better and more fun to join in and makes the stores work less for there money?

Ehh, you can't blame the shop owners. Most customers know what they want, and that usually happens to be what the pros are wearing and what is popular. There's nothing wrong with Nike Bauer's products that I can see, but sure there are other brands that might make a product better suited for people. It would be foolish for shops to stock up on other equipment when there is low demand...just a waste of money.

Also, I'm skating in my Easton S-15s and think they are great. I've seen lots of other people wearing Eastons too, who all say the same thing. One thing that turned me away from Graf skates is all of the customer service horror stories, and the general impression that there is no one there to talk to if something goes wrong with your skates. At least if you buy NBH or Easton, or any other brand from what I've heard, they will take care of you if something goes wrong.

[Chadd 916]

They paid 200 Millions for a company selling for 160 Millions a year, bauer is a lot different now than when Nike grabbed it from Canstar for 380 Millions some 14 years ago,

They do not own a lot of factories, mostly all products are made in China by third parties manufacturers

bauer has closed down there hockey stick factory in Finland thie year and sold it to Frontierhockey in Eastonia,

What we have is a marketing company in need of help from third parties for all products made in the future, this is not a bright future

i think this will make it even more easy for Mission and Easton and not to mention RBK to be the biggest player in this industry very fast

How many factories do you think Mission and RBK own compared to Bauer? Better yet, what percentage of their own product does each of them produce?

[JR Boucicaut 3810]

Altough there are alot of Swoosh haters out there...

Does no one else think that Nike's devotion to R & D was a good thing? Would the vapor line ever have existed without Nike? (probably, but maybe we would be on the vapor 10 today)

My point... we may miss Nike's innovation and R & D...

It wasn't Nike. The R&D team isn't going anywhere.

They paid 200 Millions for a company selling for 160 Millions a year, bauer is a lot different now than when Nike grabbed it from Canstar for 380 Millions some 14 years ago,

They do not own a lot of factories, mostly all products are made in China by third parties manufacturers

bauer has closed down there hockey stick factory in Finland thie year and sold it to Frontierhockey in Eastonia,

What we have is a marketing company in need of help from third parties for all products made in the future, this is not a bright future

i think this will make it even more easy for Mission and Easton and not to mention RBK to be the biggest player in this industry very fast

How many factories do you think Mission and RBK own compared to Bauer? Better yet, what percentage of their own product does each of them produce?

Don't feed the trolls, Chadd. Obviously icingboy is mis-informed.

[Wolfpack_1986 154]

finally... been waiting for this to happen

[lampliter87 8]

my old man still has a pair of bauer supreme 5000's he's had for 10-12 years... still in great shape

i literally tore up a pair of vapor XX's in little over a year

[-brady2 0]

It wasn't Nike. The R&D team isn't going anywhere.

good news

[hockechamp14 0]

Altough there are alot of Swoosh haters out there...

Does no one else think that Nike's devotion to R & D was a good thing? Would the vapor line ever have existed without Nike? (probably, but maybe we would be on the vapor 10 today)

My point... we may miss Nike's innovation and R & D...

It wasn't Nike. The R&D team isn't going anywhere.

JR, I remember seeing in last months (I think) hockey business news something about how bauer was pretty much already self-sustaining. Is there really going to be much of anyone leaving the company unless the new owners give them the X?

[TBLfan 25]

Where's that horse?

[JR Boucicaut 3810]

Guys, just hold onto your questions - trying to get Steve in here to answer all of your questions. Can't get past the NBH firewall to get into the Chat but will try from home tonight. He really wants to set the record straight - we should feel privileged that a representative of NBH contacts us right after it is announced and wants to be on record on our site.

[xaero604 0]

As long as the RnD facility at St. Jerome is going to stay put, bauer still has a future. In this day and age, hockey is technology driven so if bauer doesn't push the performance envelope, another company will.

[JR Boucicaut 3810]

Steve Jones, who is the Global Brand Director for NBH is in the Chat room as we speak. Stop in if you guys want to discuss the deal. He'll be in tonight and tomorrow night.

[Rustyhole 1]

most of Bauer's R&D people were are probably there BEFORE Nike, so I see no reason why they'd clean house. the only variable is level of funding

chat didn't work for me :(

i think Norton was blocking stuff as I got a ton of "Symantec has blocked a threat to your system" messages when i tried to log onto the chatroom

hopefully JR or one of the mods can put up a transcript in a few days

**edit- transcript up, thanks JR

[hunterphfr 12]

At least we'll be rid of some of those hideous skate designs that Nike had tried to market. It toke them almost ten years to market a skate that actually worked to some degree on the rink. The last few models are'nt too bad but I've heard durability isn't one of their strong points. I do like the fit though, something they seem to have incorporated into the newer Vapor line.

Years ago I saw a 60 Minute special on Nike footwear (running shoes) back in MJ's prime. 80s type stuff when guys were getting killed for their sneakers. Nikes' designers weren't footwear specialists or engineers, they had gone outside the box and were using artists and architects to design their sneakers. I can't help looking at their skates, shoulderpads and some other equipment and think they're still there. Not talking about my SBD IIs, god I love those thing but they were designed by Cooper. But look at the current model SBD functional and basic. I'd buy a pair tomorrow for twice what they sell that transformer looking exoskeleton crap for but they won't sell it to me.

[hellaavangard 33]

I'd always hoped to see a skate done up with the look of Nike Dunk high tops... bummer

[Portlandman 0]

I also believe if I'm remembering this correctly that the CEO or head of Bauer is going to stay with them. Just something I heard from someone so don't hold me to it.

[DBLMINR 0]

i am also happy to see nike out of the hockey biz. now if we could just get rid of RBK

[DarkStar50 680]

The brand names, the equipment, and the people working on the inside with these vendors have all been interchangeable for a long, long time. Nike contributed in more positive ways than negative ways over their short career in the hockey business. I wouldn't be surprised if they were missed in a few years more than most people will ever admit.

[walkerdb7 20]

The brand names, the equipment, and the people working on the inside with these vendors have all been interchangeable for a long, long time. Nike contributed in more positive ways than negative ways over their short career in the hockey business. I wouldn't be surprised if they were missed in a few years more than most people will ever admit.

I second that

[carterb 0]

I may be one of the few to see this as bad news, I may be a bit bias as I use a lot of Nike-Bauer product. But I guess, for me, it's seeing a major sport product producer leave the sport I play. As I think that the more producers the merrier we are all. I want choices, not just RBK Pumps in white or black.

Nike was running solo (at least brand wise) for quite a long time, is that something that they will continue? Or is Nike completely done with hockey? I love my Swift jerseys. :(

[Wolfpack_1986 154]

i believe in the chat a few days ago, it was mentioned Nike is going to keep their jersey program.

[carterb 0]

i believe in the chat a few days ago, it was mentioned Nike is going to keep their jersey program.

Well, then the split doesn't matter, that's what Nike did best.