Nike Embraces Chaos with New Corteiz Air Max 95 Ad, Has Experts Raving

Nike has collaborated with Corteiz to create the Corteiz Air Max 95 shoe and their campaign has ad experts raving. 

The London-based streetwear company released a three-minute commercial featuring vignettes that depict a world where the shoe is no longer released. These include clips of breaking news reports from around the globe, a crash in the stock market, a short football showcase using the shoe, and several other scenes that emphasize the demand for the new Air Max model. 

Despite the length and chaotic nature of the video, experts have praised its creativity and strategy, dubbing it an effective, non-traditional ad campaign full of energy and emotion.    

For Matter Consulting CEO Steven Morris, the two brands have done a brilliant job at “playing to the core emotions that drive product want: scarcity.” 

“The simple strategy of “you can see, but can’t get this shoe” taps into the primal human desire to want something you cannot have,” Morris added. 

For marketer and entrepreneur Michelle Chuang, the video ad has challenged all rules of the marketing playbook with its length, structure and composition. “The result of the video presents an effect that “we may not understand the video, but we certainly want to buy one, so we can be as energized or hip" as the people in the commercial,” she explained.  

For others, the ad has showcased the footwear giant’s creativity and willingness to take risks for its marketing campaigns. CEO at The HOTH, Marc Hardgrove called the ad “one of a kind,” explaining how it incorporated chaotic elements in its storytelling.  

“The different scenarios are juxtaposed and form a continuity gripping for the viewer... By declaring that Corteiz rules the world, the ad is trying to make the audience subconsciously approve of the same, which I find as a marketing specialist absolutely genius,” he added.  

Meanwhile, watching the ad has left SporesMD Chief Executive Officer Chris Looney in a state of “utter shock and amusement,” calling it a game-changer for advertisers. “No longer can we rely on the same old tired marketing strategies and tactics. We must be bold and daring, willing to take risks and push the boundaries of what is possible.”  

In 2021, Nike filed a lawsuit against the streetwear brand, claiming that its name resembles one of Nike’s most famous shoe models, the Cortez.  

Eventually, the lawsuit was dropped, leading the two brands to create an uncanny collaboration that shocked many sneakerheads. 

The Corteiz Air Max 95 will be released on Friday, March 10, in the Corteiz website.