Nike has unveiled the Vegam Run, the first running shoe it has designed specifically for the Indian market. Announced on Wednesday 28 October, the shoe is priced at ₹3,795, roughly $40, and goes on sale through the e-commerce platform Flipkart from 1 November. Nike says development took about five months.
The launch follows Nike’s announcement earlier in October of a new campus in India and reflects a wider push to build products around local demand rather than adapting global designs. The company has not detailed the shoe’s materials or construction in the information released so far, but the price point places it far below the brand’s usual performance range.
The commercial context is significant. Nike’s sales in China, around 15 per cent of annual revenue, have fallen for nine consecutive quarters, and the company’s shares have lost more than 40 per cent this year. Chief executive Elliott Hill is relying on a revamped product pipeline, which analysts say will depend heavily on locally led design in key markets.
Running is one of the few bright spots. Nike’s global running business has grown by double digits for six consecutive quarters, although Hill acknowledged that the “Nike performance business is not yet large enough” to offset pressure elsewhere, including sportswear, the Jordan brand and Greater China.
Nike is pitching the Vegam Run at the growing Indian running market, where an affordable entry-level shoe is the obvious route in. Whether the Vegam Run can win those customers from established local and international rivals will become clearer once it reaches shoppers on 1 November.