Starbury One - The Cheap Shoe
Finally I can say the “New York Knicks” and “cheap” in the same sentence but it’s not what you think. That roster is still fudgin’ expensive! New York Knicks point guard Stephon Marbury agreed to endorse the “Starbury One”, an NBA star endorsed shoe at a cheap price of $14.98. The shoe is a product designed by Steve and Barry’s University Sportswear, an apparel company known for its low priced products.
Though Marbury is endorsing the shoes, he is not going to be paid for it. Instead he will receive compensation depending on the performance of its sales. This is a good thing too because I wouldn’t want to risk spending big money on endorsements if I was strategically positioned as a low cost brand. You’d be killing yourself if you’re trying to match the deals Nike and the other industry bigs come up with. (Just between you and me: At least if it flops, they won’t lose as much :devil horns: )
I do hope this cheap shoe experiment is successful because it’s always nice to have cheap alternatives out in the market to provide some healthy competition. My fear is that (I hope not) this will start to bother the industry giants who could launch a price war wherein this low cost company will not be able to cope and be forced to shut down. (I doubt they even make that much of a dent in terms of market share anyway so…pheww)
This is a very good thing Marbury is part of but my only concern is, in fact, Marbury. Being the star of the one of the league’s most ridiculed teams surely doesn’t add to the kind of PR you’d want in endorsing a shoe. Oh well, I guess Knicks fans are as loyal as they say they are - they’re with you all the way even when you’re losing, they’ll just make it a point to tell you good!
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POSTED IN: NBA Basketball
2 opinions for Starbury One - The Cheap Shoe
archangel joseph
Aug 19, 2006 at 8:01 pm
If the shoe fits, put it on. What is this? A trend towards non-traditional shoe endorsements, like what Shaq did in China?
This may cause some heads to turn in Nike and Adidas land, not to mention some of the many other shoe manufacturers who practically fall over themselves to get top rate stars to endorse their products.
Maybe someone should manage to put up an accurate tabulation of which shoe manufacturer really has the edge and whether endorsements bring in the bacon.
Charles Edward Frith
Aug 26, 2006 at 11:31 pm
Nike haven’t been cool for about a decade. Design is OK sometimes but the swoosh kills it. Style aficionados wouldn’t be seen dead in them but these Starbury shoes rock with attitude and I’d love a pair please Starbury. cefrith at hotmail dot com if you know your stuff. :)
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