Following Nike’s Boston Marathon backlash, competitors jumped on the opportunity to define “movement” on their own terms, beyond the marathon run.
In the days leading up to Monday’s Boston Marathon, Nike installed a series of signs near its Newbury Street store, including one that read, “Runners welcome, walkers tolerated.” The message drew immediate criticism online, with runners calling out the wording as exclusionary, particularly given how common it is for participants at all levels to walk parts of a marathon.
On April 17, Nike removed the sign. In a statement released the same day, the company said, “We want more people to feel welcome in running—no matter their pace, experience, or the distance. During race week in Boston, we put up a series of signs to encourage runners. One of them missed the mark. We took it down, and we’ll use this moment to do better and continue showing up for all runners.”
The response from competitors in the running space was swift. Japanese running shoe brand Asics installed its own messaging in Boston over race weekend, with a billboard reading, “Runners. Walkers. All Welcome,” alongside the line, “Move your body, move your mind.” The phrasing echoed the brand’s broader campaign, which emphasizes the mental benefits of movement alongside physical performance, but its timing positioned it as a direct counterpoint to Nike’s misstep.
Danish shoe brand Ecco, meanwhile, used the moment to introduce a longer-term change in how it talks about movement.
Over the marathon weekend, in Boston, the brand launched “Walk Your Walk,” a global campaign centered on everyday movement, rather than performance sport. The campaign is anchored by the line, “No run intended. Walk your walk,” and positions walking as a primary use case rather than a secondary one.
Ecco’s global CMO, Ezra Martin, said the timing was not coincidental, though the brand’s aim was not to directly criticize Nike’s billboard.
“We always pay attention to what’s happening in culture,” Martin told Glossy. “We all saw what other brands were doing and saying in the space. Walking became sort of the centerpiece of the cultural lexicon in that moment in time,” which made it a natural platform for us to have a point of view.”
Walking has become more culturally relevant in recent years, driven in part by trends like “hot girl walks,” coined on TikTok during the pandemic, and the wider move away from high-intensity workout culture and looksmaxing. At the same time, analysts including Circana have pointed to growing demand for comfort-led, everyday footwear, as shoppers look for products that fit into daily routines and a softer approach to fitness rather than just peak performance moments.
“Walking is becoming a symbol of accessible well-being,” Martin said, pointing to its physical, mental and social benefits. According to the National Library of Medicine, walking 9,000–10,000 steps a day can cut mortality risk by about 40% and cardiovascular disease by more than 20%, while even 10–30 minutes of brisk walking daily supports heart health, mental well-being and longevity. “Consumers are prioritizing longevity and quality of life,” said Martin.
The campaign also marks a new approach to brand building for Ecco.
“This marks a very purposeful movement into more of a brand-led conversation,” Martin said. “We want to build upper-funnel brand equity and not just do very product-led storytelling.”
Early signals suggest the message is resonating. “We saw record numbers of traffic hitting our site,” Martin said. “It showed that people were going beyond just liking something. They were sharing it, saving it, visiting the website and making a purchase.” The launch post has generated more than 123,000 likes on social, according to the brand, and driven a surge in engagement. The brand has 658,000 followers on Instagram.
On the ground in Boston, Ecco paired the campaign with light-touch activations, including product-trial moments.
“People really connected with the simplicity and inclusivity of the message,” Martin said. “The magic in our shoes is that the technology is invisible — we don’t have visible airbags or exaggerated outsoles like a Hoka, where you look at the shoe and immediately think it’s comfortable. Ours looks like a well-designed shoe, so the best way to understand it is to actually try it on.”
