Nike, Adidas and Skechers Among Top 20 US DTC Footwear Brands, According to Similarweb

Shoshy Ciment
·3 min read

Nike’s plan to grow its DTC capabilities appears to be on the right track, according to recent data from Similarweb, which analyzes web traffic.

The Swoosh earned the top spot among U.S. footwear brands with a large DTC presence. This digital ranking from Similarweb was arranged in order of total unique visitors to each brand’s sites between January and August 2023, and included year-over-year percentage changes and market share of the top 20 DTC shoe brands. Only companies with a major footwear presence (20 percent of business or more) were eligible for the list, which went live late last week.

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With more than 201.94 million total unique visitors in the outlined time period, Nike earned the spot as the top U.S. DTC footwear brand. This marked 9.21 percent growth from the same period the prior year and gave Nike about 25 percent share in the market of the top 20 brands.

In recent years, DTC penetration has been a top priority for Nike. The company rolled out its “Consumer Direct Acceleration” in June 2020, which involved zeroing in on DTC and digital channels and pulling out of some wholesale channels. As part of this push, Nike terminated multiple partnerships with certain retailers and cut back on the amount of product it offered existing vendors.

In its recently reported first quarter, Nike’s direct revenues were up 6 percent to $5.4 billion, with growth seen across all geographies. Wholesale revenues were flat at $7 billion on a reported basis.

“The 25.05 percent market share captured by Nike.com further solidifies its dominance in the online space, indicating that a quarter of the digital traffic within the U.S. footwear industry is directed towards the brand,” read the report, written by Similarweb insights manager Sneha Pandey. “This significant market share not only attests to Nike’s enduring popularity but also highlights the brand’s emphasis on direct-to-consumer sales and digital strategy over the last few years.”

Similarweb also analyzed audience loyalty, branding, marketing cost and consolidation to determine that the DTC footwear industry has a “highly competitive market difficulty score” compared to other markets in the U.S.

After Nike, Adidas and Skechers nabbed the next two spots on the list, with 86.4 million and 60.31 million visitors, respectively. Both posted notable growth from the prior year, with Skechers up 30.15 percent and Adidas up 17.62 percent. Both of these brands have emphasized a focus on their direct channels in recent quarters as well.

Under Armour and Crocs rounded out the remaining top five DTC brands, ranking fourth and fifth, respectively. Notably, On and Hoka, two fast-growing running brands in North America, nabbed the 10th and 15th spots, with both brands posting more than 70 percent growth year-over-year.

Only three brands on the top 20 list — Vans, Steve Madden and Reebok — posted declines in unique visitors compared to the prior year. Merrell posted 5.81 percent growth, but dropped out of the top 20 (to the 21st spot) with 11.03 million unique visitors.

According to Similarweb, Merrell’s website has “faced challenges in maintaining its digital standing.”

“While the brand shows a 5.81 percent year-over-year growth, it falls short compared to competitors, indicating the need for strategic reassessment to regain lost ground,” read the report.

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