The sneaker world was taken by storm as details about Joe Hebert and his West Coast Streetwear reselling business exposed Hebert and his ties. Following the revelation that Joe was the son of then Nike’s VP of North America, Ann Hebert, outcry within the sneaker community surfaced in little to no time.
Ann Hebert stepped down just days after the reports that her son was using bots and other methods to flip sneakers.
Nike’s policy states that reselling is prohibited whether by an employee or family member. Nike, however, did not believe that Ann violated the policies but rather had poor judgment despite disclosing her son’s operation to the brand years ago.
Nike CEO John Donahoe addressed the controversy, followed by an announcement that Nike filled Hebert’s vacancy.
There’s no value more core to who we are than the trust our consumers put into us and our brand and our products. And the fact of the matter is, this incident has sparked questions in some of our consumers about whether they can trust us, particularly around launch product.
We’ve been working on anti-bot technology for the last several years. That is part of the solution, but we need to double down our efforts
John Donahoe, Nike CEO (via Complex)
While many believe that the saga was coming to a close, more reports about Joe Hebert and the double standard within Nike surrounding what was permitted and by whom have come to light.
Input Magazine reported that Joe Hebert was cited for abusing family discounts. However, the brand took no action. Read a snippet of the Input‘s reporting below and read the full report at Input Magazine.
Sources tell Input employees are outraged by the company’s ‘lack of transparency’ and ‘accountability,’ its efforts to downplay the seriousness of the situation, and what they deem was special treatment for Hebert — who, instead of being fired, they say, was ‘ushered out’ without facing any real consequences.
Based on internal Nike documents reviewed by Input, as well as information from sources familiar with the matter who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retribution from Nike, over the past few years Joe Hebert was reported several times to the company for abusing its family discount codes at stores across Portland and Eugene, both in Oregon.
However, sources said, Nike never followed up to look into his behavior and whether he was benefitting from his mom’s employment to buy sneakers at reduced prices and then sell them at a markup.
Edgar alvarez, Input magazine
