My Take-Aways From the Movie “Air” – What the Air Jordan Story Teaches

I recently watched the movie "Air". From award-winning director and actor Ben Affleck, the movie is about Nike and how it managed to sign Michael Jordan and create the Air Jordan brand, from which Jordan still makes billions.

Besides being highly entertaining, there is much to learn from this movie about how to conduct effective business. Here are key take-aways everyone should learn from the movie Air.

Think differently from everyone else

Jordan wanted to sign with Adidas, and Nike had a certain budget for multiple players but with the small amount of money it had, clearly it could sign only three mediocre players.

Then it had an idea. Instead of using all that money to sign three decent players, it decided to take it all and attempt to sign one amazing player, Michael Jordan. The out-of-the-box thinking ended up saving the company.

See what others can't see

My favorite part of the movie was when Sonny Vaccaro, played by Matt Damon, recognized Jordan's potential before anyone else.

Jordan was only a rookie but only looked at the video of Jordan hitting a last-minute shot over and over and he didn't just see a person hitting a buzzer shot; he also saw a young confident player whom the coach chose to take the last shot and eventually win that game.

Sometimes, flexibility is necessary

Nike had the money to sign him but when Jordan was in discussions with the company, he made a demand that execs had never heard before. Jordan's reps proposed that he get a cut of every sneaker Nike sold, which was something the shoe company didn't typically do. But Nike wanted Jordan so badly, it had to compromise and make a deal the likes of which it had never even thought of.

Internal politics can ruin companies

As mentioned, Sonny wanted Jordan but no one was supporting him and everyone said it was impossible. So he risked everything and showed up at the Jordan home to persuade Jordan's mom to consider Nike.

Everyone got mad at him for bypassing his manager and Jordan's agent, but at the end of the day, he managed to get the Jordans to Nike HQ and to ultimately close the deal.

Storytelling is everything

The way Nike ended up closing the deal was not with some lame deck or promo video but with an inspiring speech by Sonny. Storytelling is everything. On top of this, through its astonishing storytelling, Air illustrates the power of believing in yourself and your vision despite whatever odds and obstacles seem to be challenging you.

A shoe is just a shoe until someone steps into it

This quote is repeatedly stated in the film. “A shoe is just a shoe until my son steps into it.” said Deloris Jordan, Michael Jordan’s mother. That’s literally the definition of branding. Without a brand to give its meaning, a shoe is just a commodity.

With Nike’s brand associations and Michael Jordan’s greatness, Nike’s Air Jordan has become a symbol that many people resonate with and aspire to have as a part of their identity. Within its first year, Air Jordan made $126 million in revenue.

The movie triggers some conversations that build the brand's mental availability and may influence future buyers of the brand, and that’s one of the ways brand can grow. And again, companies shouldn’t adopt brand purpose to increase revenue but should treat it as their compass to hold on to and to guide them throughout the unpredictable journey.

Brand purpose can be the company’s greatest weapon

Brand purpose has become a buzzword lately, with many businesses adopting brand purpose, not for the sake of purpose but profit. However, brand purpose only works when the brand truly believes in it, even at the cost of profit.

Like Nike, many businesses have their ups and downs. But at the end of the day when the going is tough, it is their North Star, or what Simon Sinek calls the ‘Why’, that keeps them going, reminding them why they came to exist in the first place.

Nike’s purpose wasn’t about themselves (eg. We aspire to be the #1 sports brand). It was about their fans and followers. Nike’s goal is to empower everyone because everyone has an athlete within them, and all their messaging has always been around this, including the famous tagline ‘Just Do It’.

When a brand creates a purpose that its people and customers can resonate, growth comes naturally.

Bigger brands may benefit from many laws of branding but small brands have more rooms to grow

The movie started with Nike being #3 in the market, following Adidas (#1) and Converse (#2). Nike acquired Converse in 2003 for $315 million and has now become the number one sports brand with annual revenue of $49 billion, almost double of Adidas’s.

Small brands have to work harder if they aspire to be number one. They could steal the share (capturing existing market) or grow the market (generating demands and capturing future demands). Nike did both.

What really drove Nike’s growth over the year is their brand, demand generation and how they define their customers. Rather than focusing on serving athletes only, Nike thinks bigger and positions itself to serve everyone because everyone can be an athlete. They created a demand that wasn’t previously there, which grows much more in volume than the existing market as time progresses.

As well, with less to lose, Nike took a risk on Michael Jordan and it worked out for them phenomenally.

Ambitious small brands have a lot to learn from Nike.