NBA M3 - Chapter 504: A Cash Cow: $600 Million in One Second (Patreon)

"WTF?! Sold out instantly?!"

"No way! I literally blinked, and you're telling me the Blake Su Generation is already sold out?! There's nothing left?!"

"Five million pairs! They sold out instantly! My God, is this even real? Did the site bug out or something?!"

"Hahaha, looks like you didn't get a pair either!"

"I'm seriously pissed. I waited all night thinking, with five million pairs available, there's no way I'd miss out. I figured I'd finish one game of LoL before buying them, and now they're gone."

"You actually played an entire game? You've got guts. I took one sip of coffee and still missed out."

"You had time to drink coffee? It was already over by then. I stared at the screen the whole time and still couldn't get a pair."

"What about me?! I was tapping the screen nonstop and still wasn't fast enough! What am I supposed to say? That sellout was way too fast!"

"Forget it. I practically cracked my phone screen tapping so hard, and I still didn't get one."

"Hahaha, okay, now you're exaggerating."

"Maybe you're using some ancient phone with terrible internet."

"Either way, five million pairs of the Blake Su Generation sold out instantly. Blake's popularity is absolutely insane!"

"Seriously."

"That's ridiculous."

"Sorry, guys, but I got mine.

"Actually... I got three pairs.

"And when it comes to internet speed and phone performance, I'm not targeting anyone here specifically.

"I'm just saying...

"You're all trash!"

"Damn you!"

"You smug little punk, just wait. I'm coming through the internet cable to beat you up."

"You're bragging about three pairs? I had five people using twenty phones and got all twenty pairs.

"Sorry, professional scalper here. DM me if you want one."

"Reported!"

"Already reported!"

"Wait! Let me buy a pair from him first, then report him!"

"Oh no!"

The moment midnight arrived, all five million pairs of the Blake Su Generation were gone.

The instant sellout unleashed a flood of frustrated fans who hadn't managed to get a pair.

Complaints filled the internet.

...

Meanwhile, at Adidas headquarters, the sales department was in complete disbelief.

"Oh my God!"

"Unbelievable!"

"Amazing!"

"This is insane!"

"Are you kidding me?!"

Every possible expression of shock echoed through the office.

The instant all five million pairs of the Blake Su Generation sold out, Spane, Leviton, Wagner, and the rest of the staff froze.

They were even more stunned than the fans outside.

Because they understood exactly what those numbers meant.

They had already considered two million pairs in the first hour a phenomenal launch.

Three million within two hours would've been enough to establish the Blake Su Generation as a runaway success.

But while everyone had been waiting to see whether sales would meet those projections...

All five million pairs disappeared instantly.

That was beyond anything Sales Manager Spane had expected.

Beyond anything any of them had imagined.

For several moments, the entire office was speechless.

Wagner was the first to recover.

His eyes lit up.

Then...

"Hahahaha!"

"Hahahaha!"

He started laughing.

Not just laughing.

He was practically howling with delight.

He had planned this launch for a long time.

He had waited patiently, and more than once, circumstances had nearly ruined the entire strategy.

But in the end, everything had unfolded exactly as he'd hoped.

In Game 7 of the Finals, "The Emperor" Blake had delivered an almost unbelievable performance and hit the championship-winning shot.

He had won the title while putting on the ultimate individual showcase, sending his popularity through the roof.

A championship.

Finals MVP.

And an unforgettable performance.

Put all three together, and the result was five million pairs of the Blake Su Generation selling out instantly.

"Incredible!"

"Absolutely incredible!"

Spane slapped the desk in amazement.

"Blake is a rookie, and five million pairs of his first signature shoe just sold out instantly.

"I've never seen anything like this.

"Even Michael Jordan, the 'God of Basketball,' never had a debut launch like this.

"And the craziest part is that Blake is a center.

"Centers have never been the easiest players to market through signature sneakers.

"But Blake's popularity is on another level.

"This is phenomenal."

"Hahaha!"

Leviton laughed as well.

"There's nothing we can do about it. Blake entered the league and immediately became a superstar.

"His ability is extraordinary, and now his popularity is too.

"If you're talented enough and popular enough, your position doesn't matter.

"Fans will want your shoes."

Wagner laughed.

"I still say Blake isn't really a center."

Everyone paused for a second.

Then the entire room burst out laughing.

Wagner continued.

"And there's another reason the Blake Su Generation became such a massive hit.

"Blake already has an enormous fan base back home, and that market definitely contributed a lot to these sales."

"Absolutely."

Spane nodded.

"That market has always been extremely important for the NBA, and Blake's popularity there is enormous.

"It was bound to have a major impact."

Leviton sighed happily.

"Either way, the Blake Su Generation becoming this successful is great news.

"All those long days and late nights finally paid off.

"Everyone did a great job."

"Yeah!"

The staff nodded.

Applause broke out across the office.

This time, they were applauding themselves.

It was their reward for all the work they'd put in.

Then Wagner suddenly remembered something.

"By the way, Spane.

"If all five million pairs of the Blake Su Generation sold out instantly, how much money did Adidas just make tonight?"

"Uh..."

Spane thought for a moment, picked up a calculator, and started entering numbers.

"The average price is $120 per pair.

"Five million pairs comes to $600 million in revenue.

"After production costs, wages, and other expenses, we're looking at roughly $450 million.

"After taxes, around $270 million."

$270 million in profit overnight.

Wagner sucked in a breath.

Then a smile spread across his face.

After all, he had been the one who planned the entire launch.

His bonus wouldn't be small.

"One night...

"No, one second.

"Blake just generated $600 million in revenue for Adidas.

"This rookie really is a cash cow.

"When we signed him to that huge contract, some people thought we'd overpaid.

"Looking at it now?

"Not even close."

Spane laughed.

"Exactly."

Wagner nodded.

"But Blake isn't doing badly either.

"With his profit-sharing agreement with Adidas, he's about to make a fortune too."