> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bullished.co/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Nike Calls Caitlin 1 The Largest Women's Signature Launch In Its History — And Vows To Slash Jordan Retro Supply - URL: https://www.bullished.co/nike-calls-caitlin-1-the-largest-womens-signature-launch-in-its-history-and-vows-to-slash-8321cdc0/ - Published: 2026-10-01T23:51:04.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-04T11:19:51.000Z - Description: On Nike's first-quarter earnings call, CEO Elliott Hill said the Caitlin 1 launched in 5,000 doors while admitting Jordan has been oversupplied. - Author: Matteo Parrino - Tags: Earnings, NKE, Industry: Consumer Discretionary Nike President and CEO Elliott Hill used Thursday's first-quarter fiscal 2027 [earnings call](https://www.benzinga.com/news/26/10/62124853/full-transcript-nike-q1-2027-earnings-call?ref=bullished.co) to announce what he called the largest women's signature shoe launch in the company's history — the Caitlin 1 — while delivering a blunt admission that [Nike](https://www.bullished.co/tag/nke/) has been flooding the market with Jordan Retro product and will deliberately cut both volume and launch frequency to restore the brand's premium positioning. ## The Caitlin 1 Launch: 5,000 Doors, Twice The Signature Average Hill said the Caitlin 1 activated in 5,000 doors on Thursday — twice the average for a Nike Basketball signature shoe — backed by what he described as Nike's largest product campaign for the holiday season. "Today, we activated the largest women's signature shoe launch in NIKE's history, the Caitlin 1," Hill said on the call. The launch sits inside a broader push Nike has been making in women's basketball. Hill said Nike Basketball has grown its women's signature business [nearly 500%](https://www.benzinga.com/news/26/10/62124853/full-transcript-nike-q1-2027-earnings-call?ref=bullished.co) from fiscal year 2022 to fiscal year 2026, with the Caitlin 1 joining a portfolio that already includes the Asia and Sabrina signature shoes. Hill framed the expansion as a deliberate effort to "dimensionalize" the basketball business — an underdeveloped market Nike is now scaling aggressively using Caitlin Clark's cultural moment as the largest launch vehicle the company has deployed for a women's signature shoe. ## Jordan Brand: 'We've Been Oversupplying Our Iconic Retro Product' Hill was direct about the Jordan Brand's problems. "We've been oversupplying our iconic retro product asking them to do too much," he said on the call, and confirmed Nike will deliberately reduce the volume and frequency of specific Jordan Retro launches. The scale of the damage was visible in the first-quarter numbers. Jordan Brand represented 13% of Nike's global business in the quarter, with revenue falling by mid-teens. Hill said the supply reduction plan has already been discussed with wholesale partners, with the goal of restoring "a healthier, more profitable marketplace." North America, he said, will feel the biggest impact in the near term. Hill pointed to the Air Jordan 1 as the model for how the reset works — Nike has already applied scarcity discipline to that silhouette and views it as proof the approach can restore full-price selling. Hill said every sighting of the Jumpman should feel special and earned, and that every decision Nike is making is designed to ensure the Jordan Brand remains as coveted a decade from now as it has been for the past several decades. Analyst Robert Drbul of BTIG also asked Hill about the departure of a high-profile football athlete from Nike's roster. Hill confirmed the relationship had ended, saying Nike is ["proud of what we achieved together"](https://www.benzinga.com/news/26/10/62124853/full-transcript-nike-q1-2027-earnings-call?ref=bullished.co) while expressing confidence in the remaining football portfolio. ## Greater China Down 26%, With More Pain Expected Greater China added another layer of pressure. Hill said [revenue in the region declined 26%](https://www.modernretail.co/operations/running-was-a-bright-spot-for-nike-in-an-otherwise-gloomy-quarter/?ref=bullished.co) in the first quarter, driven by a deliberate cleanup of the digital marketplace — Nike is eliminating distribution through channels it says are misaligned with its strategy, concentrating its digital presence around flagship storefronts on Tmall, JD, and Douyin alongside Nike's own app and website. CFO David Denton told analysts that Nike's guidance assumes China's performance deteriorates further for the remainder of fiscal 2027 as the digital marketplace reset continues. Hill said the majority of Nike's partners' physical doors in Greater China have not been refreshed in the past seven years, and that the cleanup is expected to take multiple seasons. One data point Hill offered as evidence the strategy can work: Nike's House of Innovation in Shanghai has delivered 10 consecutive months of growth since shifting to a sport-led retail experience. ## Where Nike Is Growing: Running, Football, And The Sport Offense Against those headwinds, Hill pointed to the performance portfolio as proof the underlying strategy is working. Running grew double digits again in the quarter, with Nike saying it has nearly tripled its share of the max-cushioning category over the past year. Global football drove strong double-digit growth across all four geographies, with World Cup kit sales doubling compared to the 2022 tournament. Basketball was up double digits in North America, and both tennis and golf grew double digits. Nike Sportswear — which accounted for just under half of the quarter's revenue — was down low double digits, partly from a deliberate reduction in what Hill called "dock" revenue, which fell nearly 50% and created roughly a $200 million headwind in the segment. Hill also outlined a new operational program called Pace, designed to accelerate what Nike calls the Sport Offense. The program includes a new campus in Bengaluru, India; a reorganization into three geographic units (the Americas, Asia Pacific and Greater China, and EMEA); and workforce changes that Hill said will reduce the overall number of roles across Nike over time. Teams are expected to move into the new structure in fiscal year 2028. ## What To Watch: Investor Day In November Hill closed the prepared remarks by pointing to Nike's Investor Day in November as the next major disclosure event, where management plans to provide a fuller view of the company's long-term strategy. That event will be the first opportunity for Hill and Denton to detail how the Jordan Brand scarcity reset and the women's basketball expansion fit into Nike's long-term revenue algorithm — and whether the supply cuts are expected to stabilize Jordan's revenue trajectory by fiscal 2028. Nike shares closed Thursday at $35.15, down 0.71% on the session, with a market cap of about $52.5 billion (market data). ### Sources - [Full Transcript: Nike Q1 2027 Earnings Call](https://www.benzinga.com/news/26/10/62124853/full-transcript-nike-q1-2027-earnings-call?ref=bullished.co) — benzinga.com - [Nike NKE Q1 2027 Earnings: Aims to Improve Jordan Brand, China + More](https://wwd.com/footwear-news/shoe-industry-news/nike-nke-q1-2027-earnings-jordan-china-sportswear-1239302941/?ref=bullished.co) — wwd.com - [Nike: Fiscal Q1 Earnings Snapshot | The Seattle Times](https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/northwest/nike-fiscal-q1-earnings-snapshot-4/?ref=bullished.co) — apnews.com - [Running was a bright spot for Nike in an otherwise gloomy quarter](https://www.modernretail.co/operations/running-was-a-bright-spot-for-nike-in-an-otherwise-gloomy-quarter/?ref=bullished.co) — modernretail.co - [Nike (NKE) Reports Q1 Earnings: What Key Metrics Have to Say](https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/nike-nke-reports-q1-earnings-210001891.html?ref=bullished.co) — finance.yahoo.com ### More on Nike - [Nike CEO Says He Underappreciated Sportswear Segmentation As Full-Year Revenue Guidance Points To High Single-Digit Decline](https://www.bullished.co/nike-ceo-says-he-underappreciated-sportswear-segmentation-as-full-year-revenue-guidance-e52eeb47/) - [Nike Revenue Falls 4% To $11.2 Billion As Greater China Plunges 22% — And The Company Launches A $2.5 Billion Restructuring](https://www.bullished.co/nike-revenue-falls-4-to-11-2-billion-as-greater-china-plunges-22-and-the-company-launches-d4297238/) [All Nike (NKE) coverage →](https://www.bullished.co/tag/nke/)