
Under Armour's Much-Ridiculed 'Chef Curry' Shoes May Be Blowing Up
Under Armour's (UA) - Get Report social media team may want to post a thank you message to the many comedians on Twitter.
Their collective ridicule of Stephen Curry's new white sneaker -- in effect driving free marketing for Under Armour -- may actually be leading to robust sales of the product.
"In our channel checks and discussions with industry contacts, the Chef [Curry] shoe has actually sold better than some of its predecessor color [styles], likely due to all the attention paid to it," said Canaccord Genuity analysts Camilo Lyon in a new note Friday, adding, "A quick scan of Under Armour's site shows that the Chef (white) has the second most sold-out sizes out of a total of six color [choices], which is not too bad given that it has been in market for about a week." Lyon maintained his buy rating on Under Armour shares.
Saying Twitter has had a field day with Under Armour's latest Stephen Curry sneaker drop would be an understatement.
The red-hot athletic brand recently released the "Chef Curry" version of the Curry 2 Low shoes, which quickly set the Internet ablaze for their lack of, well, cool factor. Mostly white with grey Under Armour branding, the sneakers look great for a nurse that has a sense of style or a grandfather who isn't consumed with death and still wants to dress 20 years younger.
Sales of Curry's basketball sneakers for Under Armour have proven to be top-sellers for the up-and-coming Nike rival. And since Under Armour officially signed Curry on Oct. 1, 2013, shares have skyrocketed about 87%, compared to a 25% gain for the S&P 500.
We did out own test drive of the Chef Curry sneaks to see if social media was right in their ridicule. There were both positives (their look wasn't all that bad and they were really comfortable) and negatives (a chunky sole and unattractive plastic around the heel) after spending time rocking the sneakers throughout the office.
All in all, the Chef Currys were better than we thought when we opened the box, and our takeaway was generally shared by crowds of people we interviewed (below) on Wall Street. While some offered up a dose of harsh criticism for the blandness of the sneaker and high price point, most said they would buy them.









