Nike Recalls Disputed Logo Design

Supposedly, a logo design is considered to be a business tool that allows its prospective customers and clients to get a good first impression of the company. Before starting any business, it is very important to have a logo which should be designed according to the company’s name and the product or services of the business. The logo design has several advantages:

a)it promotes the business in the market
b)it attracts potential customers and clients in the market
c)it gives the company a unique identity
d)it is as important as the business name

In order to create a good logo, it should be attractive and simple. It must be designed using just simple short text and simple color patterns. For sure, a lot of logo designers know how to have a good logo design by incorporating all that they have learned through experience. However, some logo designers have overlooked the cultural aspect of logo design. This is the case with what happened with Nike Inc. and the Council on American-Islamic Relations last few years.

The Council on American – Islamic Relations was offended by Nike’s logo design – not the existing checkmark logo itself but another logo for a line of shoes that Nike was producing. It was a shoe with a logo design on the heel that similarly resembles the word “God” or “Allah” in Arabic. The logo design supposedly intended to be a flame marketed under the brand names Air Bakin’, Air Melt, Air Grill and Air B-Que.

The dialogue between Nike and the Council on American – Islamic Relations took a year before they finally completed an agreement which resulted to the recall of the shoes. Nike apologized to the Muslims for any unintentional offense they have committed. Aside from recalling the shoes with the mentioned logo design, Nike also promised to build three playgrounds for some Islamic Communities in the United States. In addition, Nike also has arranged to investigate how the imagery and design came about. In return, the Council on American – Islamic Relations agreed to urge Muslims around the world not to boycott Nike products.

Nihad Awad, the Islamic Council’s executive director says that many people may not understand how offensive it is to have the name of God on a shoe. He said that a shoe can get dirty. It can get muddy and sweaty. Thus, they believe that this is being disrespectful to the name of God.

However, even after the recall, there were still some issues that remained since such shoes with the disputed logo design still exist in markets outside the United States. Nike actually diverted around thirty (30) thousand pairs from Muslim countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Malaysia, Indonesia and Turkey to “less sensitive” markets.

Nike is the second shoe company which encountered similar issues with a logo design. Rebook International stopped their production for their Incubus women’s shoes after knowing that the name itself referred to a lascivious male mythical demon.