MU will debut Jordans 28 against Pitt

[keefe]

They once said that about Red Ball Jets.

Punk Band. Saw them with Shady Jim Schade who did the Mug Rack concerts for ASMU in Milwaukee spring 1980 at that place near MU with "Ballroom" in the name. Also on the card were Pearl Harbor and the Explosions, Oil Tasters, Dead Kennedy's, and Scott Puffer. It was a night of raw unbridled teenage angst.





Pearl Harbor and The Explosions



Oil Tasters



Dead Kennedys



Red Ball Jets



Scott Puffer

[Avenue Commons]

Good God! Is this a reference to Easy Ed Rousseau??

No. Eric "Easy-E" Wright of the great N.W.A. Rap group. Straight Outta Compton is one of the Top 20 most influential Anerican albums of all time.

[keefe]

No. Eric "Easy-E" Wright of the great N.W.A. Rap group. Straight Outta Compton is one of the Top 20 most influential Anerican albums of all time.

NWA? Did they open for Jewel back in the '90's?

[Avenue Commons]

NWA? Did they open for Jewel back in the '90's?

Please tell me you're kidding and just forgot to use teal.

I know finance guys aren't the hippest cats on the block but......

[only a warrior]

No. Eric "Easy-E" Wright of the great N.W.A. Rap group. Straight Outta Compton is one of the Top 20 most influential Anerican albums of all time.

maybe influential rap albums of all time but not of all albums.... please.  Just remember that rap is short for crap

[Avenue Commons]

maybe influential rap albums of all time but not of all albums.... please.  Just remember that rap is short for crap

Most INFLUENTIAL. Easily. Absolutely. There isn't even a debate and anyone that makes one knows nothing about pop culture over the past 30 years. You don't have to like something to appreciate its significance.

[reinko]

Most INFLUENTIAL. Easily. Absolutely. There isn't even a debate and anyone that makes one knows nothing about pop culture over the past 30 years. You don't have to like something to appreciate its significance.

+1

[setyoursightsnorth]

You have to be smokin the "good stuff" to pay $250 for those wrestling boots. Jordan is prepping for stardate 2113.

You'd have to be smoking the "good stuff" to buy any freakin' basketball shoe. It seems that all the athlete's have their own sneaker and I'd be surprised if any one of them is below a $100. But then again, our players did not have to pay for them and they probably were given another $1500 dollars worth of Jordan-Brand apparel for free (simple gym shorts, not the MU gameday white/blue/yellow shorts, but a simple black short with a MU logo and Jordan Jumpman go for $60 bucks at the Spirit shop). Any time you can be sponsored by the greatest basketball player ever, I would take that. No matter how ugly the shoe is. Very few schools debuted those, as stated before. It's almost a badge of honor.

[keefe]

Please tell me you're kidding and just forgot to use teal.

I know finance guys aren't the hippest cats on the block but......

I was effing with ya...

Although NWA opening for Jewel would be one of the world's greatest mind f@cks for their respective fan bases

[warriorchick]

Back to the shoes....

One thing about them that I thought was kind of cool (and I don't think you saw if you were watching on TV) is that you can unzip the outer covering of the shoes and fold the top part down at the ankles. The inside lining is white and there is a big Jumpman logo on the part of the lining that covers the front of the shoe when it's folded down.  Most of the guys were wearing it that way until actual game time.

[4everwarriors]

Father's Day is comin' up.

[keefe]

Greatest Shoe Moment in Marquette History: Dec 1990 vs KU. LA Gear shoe disintegrates on National TV Kind of made US look cheap and shoddy...

[Avenue Commons]

Greatest Shoe Moment in Marquette History: Dec 1990 vs KU. LA Gear shoe disintegrates on National TV Kind of made US look cheap and shoddy...

You're a Harvard man. Isn't there a HBR article on that debacle?

Or was it Ad Age case study? I know it was a well documented occurrence.

[keefe]

You're a Harvard man. Isn't there a HBR article on that debacle?

Or was it Ad Age case study? I know it was a well documented occurrence.

There were several cases done on LA Gear and its founder, Goldberg (?). Guy caught lightening in  a bottle marketing a curious blend of "Venice Beach Fitness Chic" combined with "Bel Air glamor" to women just when that whole '80's leg warmer, yoga, chix in body tights fitness craze hit in the '80's.  Their Biz model was their core competency was design and their balance sheet reflected that. Everything was outsourced so they had few employees and virtually no capital assets. For a design house they weren't particularly savvy about driving fashion and when tastes changed, Kurt Cobain and grunge took over from LA glitz, they got stuck with a ridiculous amount of inventory. Since they didn't control their distribution their out-of-style product started showing up in the mass channels. As time went on it began appearing in the deep discount/outlet channel. You can imagine what this did top their brand equity which was functional Bel Air glamor. (Jane Fonda don't shop at K Mart...)

But there were more basic structural problems. They are interesting because their revenues went from zero to a billion in a short period of time and Wall Street loved them because of that aggressive growth but also that their lean biz model yielded much higher margins than their more traditional rivals at Nike, Reebok, Adidas, et al who had significant investment in staff and corresponding PPE. They initially focused on women and performed well mining that niche. Since their sales flattened over time they needed to tease the Street so they diversified their product portfolio by addressing men, kids, and performance athletic and non-athletic (mimicking Reebok with Rockports and Cole Haan) footwear. They then mimicked the big guys by launching clothing. They really had no business metrics staff so their forecasting was to look at their own high growth phase in women's footwear while also figuring their stylish lines would significantly cannibalize Nike/Reebok's more plain, performance-based lines. They therefore took on huge inventory that ended up getting dumped at a loss.

Fact is they had zero design expertise. Unlike the other players, who hired from the leading design schools - RISD, Pratt, Stanford's D School, Parson's, Cooper Union, Hong Kong Poly - and therefore drove fashion tastes, Goldberg's design expertise was to copy what the majors did. Thus, when the majors saw micro cultural and economic changes happening they began to shift their design efforts in subtle yet significant ways and were therefore poised to address changed consumer tastes early on. This was the Bush recession when Reagan era conspicuous consumption fell out of favor and there was a general shift from "Class to Mass." Nike was best poised to move as they had a utilitarian performance positioning while Reebok put more emphasis on style and fashion. LA Gear saw none of this occurring and so when consumer taste shift became seismic they had significant capital tied up in out-of-date WIP throughout south China. All of that inventory shipped and buyers from their established points of distribution avoided it like the plague as it was no longer in style. Unlike the majors, especially Nike, LA Gear did not control its distribution and therefore had greater exposure to changing tastes.

Another significant factor was that the majors invested in off-shore infrastructure to ensure logistics, design integrity, and quality control. Goldberg never did and what you saw happen with Marquette's shoes is a direct result. LA Gear focused on earnings and their target demographic was initially much less concerned with performance and durability. Their ignorance of Six Sigma and Juran caught up to them as product failures became more pronounced. In boom times and with new joiners to fitness durability were not distinguishing product characteristics. In a recession and as consumers became more discerning in terms of performance/quality problems in these verticals began to drive consumer satisfaction. So the lack of off shore infrastructure compounded both design and quality problems. HK Poly became a leading design school because of all the fashion production in S. China. The majors had Six Sigma protocols in place in plants in Shenzhen and Zhuhai and designers based in HK to oversee production to design and quality. If a product didn't meet Nike standards for quality and design integrity they refused to accept the product. A key factor was that the majors had depth and breadth in product portfolio so if something was rejected they had other skus to fill that void. LA Gear had a very broad but very thin portfolio so they needed to accept everything in order to flesh out retail plan-o-grams.

Not having logistics or traffic staff in HK or S. China was also a huge mistake. You really do need your own people to ensure your product gets consolidated, trucked, and on-loaded. It is criminal to rely on your Chinese manufacturer to make things happen. Because he doesn't give a sh1t. Really. His concern is getting it manufactured. His span of control is limited to what transpires within the four walls of the Golden Treasure Factory Number 6 in Zhuhai. Once it hits his loading dock it is your problem. And don't think you can rely on Buyer's Consolidators or any of the other steamship companies staff to get your stuff to the port. Space in containers and space on ships is limited, especially with the Christmas season. Companies will place their first order for Christmas in the Spring and that hits the water for the two week transit to Long Beach in August. The trade places their orders late summer and this gives you a chance to place a second order to meet refined market demand. This is retail's second inventory bite and needs to ship by October in order to hit their DC's. LA had none of this expertise on staff so they missed seasonal shipping windows, or only did one shipment in August and therefore didn't refine to seasonal demand. In both cases LA either didn't order enough or ordered too much. And in all cases they lost product in the vast wasteland that is south China.

In terms of Marketing expertise the best way to illustrate is through the endorsement war that characterized the performance shoe sector in the '80's. Nike signed Jordan and we know how that worked out. Reebok signed Shaq and that too was a success. LA Gear wanted a Laker so they signed the greatest of them all Kareem. Problem is that Jordan and Shaq are accomplished on the court but, from a product management perspective, they are magnetic, attractive appealing personalities. Jabbar on the other hand is a sour, dour, grumpy a$$hole. He has no personality. Picture Jordan or Shaq and they have electric smiles and know how to work a crowd. Picture Kareem and he is scowling. And Goldberg couldn't figure this out? He couldn't because he spent zero researching it. No panel, focus, or walk away tests. Never spent a penny with Nielsen or IDS or NPD or Scarborough. I have cut checks to all of these firms because it is an investment. Goldberg was always pinching pennies because he was obsessed with earnings. Idiot.

All of this was a recipe for disaster but the key point is that Goldberg was a fraud in that he had zero expertise other than copying others and knowing where to get stuff made cheaply under contract in China. Wall Street saw aggressive revenue growth with the industry's best earnings so the stock rocketed. At some point in the '90's the business collapsed simply because their Balance Sheet was completely dicked up - No capital assets and huge inventory.

The Goldberg family punched out and started Skechers - with the SAME business model as LA Gear! But that's another case study...

I read a few cases on this back in the day but I was also living in HK in the mid-90's so I saw this unfolding with a front row seat at the American Club bar. There are many other factors that led to their demise but this should give you some insight into why LA Gear went the way of the Pullman Coach Company.

[only a warrior]

Most INFLUENTIAL. Easily. Absolutely. There isn't even a debate and anyone that makes one knows nothing about pop culture over the past 30 years. You don't have to like something to appreciate its significance.

you are right - last 30 years I agree.  Your original statement said one of the most influential albums ever.  Still not buying it as albums have been out lot longer than that with many artists that have also made substantial contributions to the industry and society in gernal.

[Goose]

You know your stuff Keefe. Well done!

[Avenue Commons]

you are right - last 30 years I agree.  Your original statement said one of the most influential albums ever.  Still not buying it as albums have been out lot longer than that with many artists that have also made substantial contributions to the industry and society in gernal.

Try and name 20 AMERICAN albums more influential than Straight Outta Compton. It can't be done. Even Kurt Cobain said it was a massive influence on him. Just the Dr Dre production lineage alone of Snoop and Eminem makes it a massively influential album. I can't believe I'm even justifying an "argument" on this.

Next Ill hear Jimi Hendrix isn't one of rock's great guitarists..................

[keefe]

Try and name 20 AMERICAN albums more influential than Straight Outta Compton. It can't be done. Even Kurt Cobain said it was a massive influence on him. Just the Dr Dre production lineage alone of Snoop and Eminem makes it a massively influential album. I can't believe I'm even justifying an "argument" on this.

Next Ill hear Jimi Hendrix isn't one of rock's great guitarists..................

It can be done. In fact, I wouldn't even say it is the most influential Rap album. Public Enemy's Def Jam was arguably more influential. But here are several albums that had far greater impact on music and culture:

Blonde on Blonde, Highway 61 Revisited, Blood on the Tracks - Bob Dylan

White Album, Sgt Pepper, Revolver - Beatles

London Calling - The Clash

Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd

Offramp, Beyond the Missouri Sky, Imaginary Day - Pat Metheny

What's Going On - Marvin Gaye

Kind of Blue - Miles Davis

A Love Supreme - John Coltrane

Workingman's Dead, Steal Your Face, Europe '72, From The Mars Hotel - Grateful Dead (But let's face it, they were never a studio band)

Are You Experienced, Electric Ladyland - Jimi Hendrix

The Birth of Soul - Ray Charles

Born to Run - The Boss

Astral Weeks, Moondance - Van Morrison

Let's Stay Together - AL Green

Horses - Patti Smith

Otis Blue - Otis Redding

Trout Mask Replica - Captain Beefheart

Tapestry - Carole King

The Complete Recordings - Robert Johnson

Harvest - Neil Young

Innervisions - Stevie Wonder

Live At the Apollo - James Brown

Bach: The Unaccompanied Cello Suites - Yo Yo Ma

Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin

The Doors - The Doors

The Joshua Tree - U2

Abraxas, III - Santana

Never Mind the Bollocks - Sex Pistols

The Band, Music From Big Pink, The Last Waltz - The Band

Fillmore East, Eat a Peach - The Allman Bros

Rumours - Fleetwood Mac

Thriller - Michael Jackson

Who's Next - The Who

Blue - Joanie Mitchell

Let It Bleed, Beggar's Banquet - The Rolling Stones

Ramones - Ramones

The Anthology - Muddy Waters

Hotel California - The Eagles

Legend - Bob Marley and the Wailers

I Walk the Line - Johnny Cash

Appetite For Destruction - Guns N' Roses

Saturate Before Using - Jackson Browne

[keefe]

Father's Day is comin' up.

Is that a hint you want the Marquette Air Jordan boots or the NWA's Straight Outta Compton?

[reinko]

It can be done. In fact, I wouldn't even say it is the most influential Rap album. Public Enemy's Def Jam was arguably more influential. But here are several albums that had far greater impact on music and culture:

Blonde on Blonde, Highway 61 Revisited, Blood on the Tracks - Bob Dylan

White Album, Sgt Pepper, Revolver - Beatles

London Calling - The Clash

Dark Side of the Moon - Pink Floyd

Offramp, Beyond the Missouri Sky, Imaginary Day - Pat Metheny

What's Going On - Marvin Gaye

Kind of Blue - Miles Davis

A Love Supreme - John Coltrane

Workingman's Dead, Steal Your Face, Europe '72, From The Mars Hotel - Grateful Dead (But let's face it, they were never a studio band)

Are You Experienced, Electric Ladyland - Jimi Hendrix

The Birth of Soul - Ray Charles

Born to Run - The Boss

Astral Weeks, Moondance - Van Morrison

Let's Stay Together - AL Green

Horses - Patti Smith

Otis Blue - Otis Redding

Trout Mask Replica - Captain Beefheart

Tapestry - Carole King

The Complete Recordings - Robert Johnson

Harvest - Neil Young

Innervisions - Stevie Wonder

Live At the Apollo - James Brown

Bach: The Unaccompanied Cello Suites - Yo Yo Ma

Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin

The Doors - The Doors

The Joshua Tree - U2

Abraxas, III - Santana

Never Mind the Bollocks - Sex Pistols

The Band, Music From Big Pink, The Last Waltz - The Band

Fillmore East, Eat a Peach - The Allman Bros

Rumours - Fleetwood Mac

Thriller - Michael Jackson

Who's Next - The Who

Blue - Joanie Mitchell

Let It Bleed, Beggar's Banquet - The Rolling Stones

Ramones - Ramones

The Anthology - Muddy Waters

Hotel California - The Eagles

Legend - Bob Marley and the Wailers

I Walk the Line - Johnny Cash

Appetite For Destruction - Guns N' Roses

Saturate Before Using - Jackson Browne

He did say American...

Not too mention, The Doors and The Eagles suck.

[Aughnanure]

In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida anyone?

[ATWizJr]

What?  No Buddy Holly, Elvis, The Beach Boys, Dickie Doo and the Dont's, The Oneders?

[ChicosBailBonds]

I was effing with ya...

Although NWA opening for Jewel would be one of the world's greatest mind f@cks for their respective fan bases

Yeah, that would be a funny combination.  My wife and I saw Van Halen last year and Kool and the Gang opened up.  A rather bizarre combination fans, though at this point in the careers of both bands the fans are in their 40's and 50's and probably didn't give a rip about it as much.   

[StillAWarrior]

What?  No Buddy Holly, Elvis, The Beach Boys, Dickie Doo and the Dont's, The Oneders?

I see that thing you did there...

[ATWizJr]

I see that thing you did there...

Thanks, Shades.