How AND1 Almost Beat Nike in Basketball Market Share

In 2001, AND1 was second only to Nike in US basketball market share. Founded in 1993 by three Wharton School students—Jay Coen Gilbert, Seth Berger, and Tom Austin—the brand initially sold t-shirts from a car trunk. Its name comes from NBA commentary slang for a free throw earned after a foul. AND1 targeted streetball players, using street slang and trash talk on apparel. In 1994, a coach gave them a video of Rafer Alston (Skip to My Lou), which they turned into the first Mixtape in 1998, distributing 50,000 copies and later 200,000 more via FootAction (now FootLocker), selling out in three weeks. The Tai Chi sneaker, worn by Vince Carter at the 2000 Slam Dunk Contest, became iconic. Nike responded with the Freestyle commercial featuring Carter, Lamar Odom, and Rasheed Wallace, mimicking AND1's mixtape style. Carter had just won the dunk contest in AND1s but then signed with Nike, accelerating AND1's decline through multiple acquisitions and ownership changes.