The timing of this campaign could not have been better. Americans were buying
exercise equipment at a record pace in the mid 1980s, and body worship was at an
all time high. Nike tapped into consumers’ desire for a healthy lifestyle by
packaging it into a pair of $80 sneakers. The ads were often humorous, appealing
to the cynic in all of us, while imploring consumers to take charge of their
physical fitness. The ads made starting an exercise regime seem like a necessity,
and the way to start exercising was to buy Nike merchandise.