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by Brendan Dunne
Sonny Vaccaro is one of the most influential people in the history of sneakers.
He singelhandedly started the trend of sneaker endorsements for college teams. he's spent years working for brands like Nike, adidas, and Reebok, and he is even credited with convincing a young Michael Jordan to sign with Nike.
Vaccaro is the subject of ESPN's latest 30 for 30, titled "Sole Man," which delves into his personal history and long career in the business of basketball and basketball footwear. This segment provided bits that weren't really out there before–like the story from Nike's Peter Moore that Sonny first got involved with the Swoosh while trying to pitch them on some sneaker designs. Watch the clip below and stay tuned for new chapters of the doc as they get updated throughout the week.
In the second episode of the "Sole Man" ESPN 30 for 30, Vaccaro and co. break down how they got Michael Jordan to sign to Nike.
Vaccaro explains that originally Nike wanted to sign Charles Barkley, Hakeem Olajuwon, and John Stockton from the 1984 draft class by splitting up the money it had for endorsements among the three of them. Instead, Vaccaro convinced the brand to go all in on Jordan, who was still leaning towards adidas.
The gamble paid off, as Air Jordan sales equaled $100 million in that first year, compared to Nike's overall sales of $150 million the year prior. "If Michael Jordan doesn't hit, Nike doesn't happen," Vaccaro said.
One of the biggest draws that Sonny used to lure Jordan to Nike was the premise of a signature sneaker, which adidas or Converse at the time was not willing to offer that to MJ at the time. However, Jordan did have issues with the red and black scheme of the Air Jordan 1, which he infamously referred to as "the devil's colors." Initially, Jordan wanted to wear his UNC colors in the NBA. Vaccaro and Nike creative director Peter Moore were able to convince him otherwise. Watch the clip below.
