Nike has hired sports and fashion agency Radiator PR to promote its
revamped women's wear collection, which launches this month.
The move comes after Nike announced it was forming a new unit to focus
on women's footwear and apparel last August.
This is part of an effort to fend off competition from competitors in
the women's athletic market. Nike's women's wear has lacked the
fashionable status accorded to much of its menswear.
The agency, which was formed out of a merger between Radar and Hothouse
PR earlier this year, already looks after some Nike products, including
footwear and watches. It will now be promoting the new range to health
and fitness media, as well as positioning the collection with style and
fashion titles.
Last month a BBC Panorama documentary revealed that a Cambodian factory
used by Nike, along with The Gap, employed underage workers. This goes
against Nike's own code of conduct, and the company has pledged it will
pull out of the factory.
Radiator PR is headed by Lorna Milliken and Gaby Jesson, and has a staff
of eight. Neither Radiator nor Nike was available to comment on the
appointment.
- Radiator PR has also won the insurance company Skandia Life's PR
account, to assist with its sponsorship of the Cowes Week sailing
festival. The agency won a four-way contest in a joint pitch with
Hardwick PR.
It will develop the PR campaign for Cowes, which next takes place in
August 2001.
