NKE Nike Inc

By Sara Germano 

LeBron James may be king of basketball shoe sales, but perhaps not for long.

Newer NBA stars like Kyrie Irving and Stephen Curry are heating up the footwear market, with nimble, athletic styles of play exciting new audiences and signature shoes at more affordable price points.

That is the phenomenon being witnessed at Foot Locker Inc. stores and by athletic shoe analysts, at least. On a call with analysts Friday, the retailer name-checked Mr. Irving and Mr. Curry as players who are resonating with customers more readily these days.

Regarding models for legacy NBA stars like Mr. James and Kevin Durant, Foot Locker CEO Dick Johnson said feedback from customers suggests "that we need a little bit more innovation, a little bit better price value relationship" on their products.

Price points for Mr. Irving's Nike Inc.-made signature shoe on FootLocker.com hovered around $110 on Friday, while Mr. Curry's Curry 2 from Under Armour Inc. are selling for about $130. Prices for recent signature models of shoes for Mr. Durant and Mr. James are closer to $200 on Foot Locker's website.

Neil Schwartz, vice president of business development for industry tracker SportsOneSource, said there are a few reasons for the shift, including the lower price points and that younger consumers are relating better to younger players. "These shoes are less about collectors and the Sneakerheads and more about the real fans and players," he said.

While Mr. James and Mr. Durant have dominated the market for signature basketball shoes for active players in recent years, signature shoes for Mr. Irving and Mr. Curry, last year's MVP, have each been introduced within the past year.

Matt Powell, sports industry analyst for NPD Group, said the market isn't yet tired of LeBron or KD shoes, both of which are made by Nike. Both are still strong sellers, he said, "It's just that the new guys are new and fresh."

Asked if the new stars could dethrone sales of their more established rivals, he said, it is "certainly possible for Curry and Irving to sell at high levels, but it will take time."

On Friday, Foot Locker said sales at existing stores jumped 8.7% in its latest quarter, outpacing the performance of fellow sports-retailers Dick's Sporting Goods Inc. and Hibbett Sports Inc. "We are heading into the holidays with very fresh and distinctive assortments to drive full-price selling," said Chief Financial Officer Lauren Peters.

For the quarter, Foot Locker reported a profit of $80 million, down from $120 million a year earlier. Excluding a legal charge stemming from a pension-related suit that shaved 43 cents a share from earnings, profit rose to $1 a share from 83 cents a share. Revenue increased 3.6% to $1.79 billion.

Lisa Beilfus contributed to this article.

Write to Sara Germano at sara.germano@wsj.com

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 20, 2015 14:36 ET (19:36 GMT)

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