Nike CEO John Donahoe to Step Down

Embattled Nike chief executive John Donahoe will step down from his position, effective October 13, Nike confirmed. Elliott Hill, who retired in 2020 after 32 years with the company, will return and replace Donahoe as Nike brand president and CEO on October 14.

Donahoe will also resign from Nike’s board but will stay on as an advisor until the end of January, the company confirmed.

The subject of Donahoe’s possible departure had burst into the open in recent months as pressure grew on the brand to address its declining sales.

“It became clear now was the time to make a leadership change, and Elliott is the right person. I look forward to seeing Nike and Elliott’s future successes,” Donahoe said in a written statement Thursday.

Donahoe became Nike’s top executive in January 2020, succeeding longtime CEO Mark Parker, and adeptly steered the brand through the Covid-19 pandemic. But a wave of departures from long-tenured executives followed while scores of other senior decision-makers were affected by multiple rounds of layoffs in the years since.

Frustrations with this leadership grew as Nike was criticised for a lack of product innovation, an over-reliance on retro sneakers and an acceleration of Nike’s pivot away from wholesale, which saw it lose customers and create opportunities for competitors. His status as a relative outsider to the brand and his non-product background — he was formerly CEO of Bain and eBay — became a growing point of contention for insiders and investors alike.

In recent months, Nike had begun to address some of the core issues critics said were hampering the brand, but by that point sales were on course to fall to a low not seen by Nike in decades. In June, Nike projected a mid-single-digit percentage decline for the year through May 2025, after reporting just 1 percent growth in its most recent fiscal year. If that forecast bears out, it will be the company’s worst performance in 26 years.

Hill, who began as a Nike intern in 1988, brings with him a wealth of Nike institutional knowledge, having held several regional and global management positions at the company up until his retirement in 2020. His most recent role was president, consumer and marketplace, leading commercial and marketing operations for Nike and Jordan h. Hill was elevated to the role after the departure of brand president Trevor Edwards in 2018, and was seen as a potential CEO candidate before Donahoe’s ultimate appointment.

He was not, however, the obvious candidate by any means this time around. Analysts and industry insiders had speculated in recent weeks that potential replacements included former CEO and executive chairman Mark Parker or president of consumer, product and brand Heidi O’Neill, or external candidates like Foot Locker boss Mary Dillon or recently retired Deckers CEO Dave Powers.

Hill’s appointment is the latest move of a wider initiative to restore Nike veterans across the company’s management. Nicole Hubbard Graham, who left the brand in 2021 after 17 years, returned as chief marketing officer in January this year — a move that has already yielded a distinct tone shift in the brand’s messaging. Tom Peddie, who retired in 2020, recently returned as vice president of marketplace partners to rebuild relationships with retailers.

Nike’s hope is that Hill will be able to turn the company around, though experts predict it will take some time for Nike to reverse its slump. The company’s stock is down 23 percent since the start of the year.

“Given our needs for the future, the past performance of the business, and after conducting a thoughtful succession process, the Board concluded it was clear Elliott’s global expertise, leadership style, and deep understanding of our industry and partners, paired with his passion for sport, our brands, products, consumers, athletes, and employees, make him the right person to lead Nike’s next stage of growth,” said Parker in a written statement.