NIKE RUNNING CLUB + NIKE TRAINING CLUB
Building commerce into Nike’s fitness apps
A research-led path to NRC and NTC’s first personalized shops—connecting members with the right gear without interrupting the workout experience.
Launched to 100m+ monthly active users
123% YoY increase in buying members
01 / BUSINESS CHALLENGE
Turn a high-engagement audience into confident buyers.
Nike Running Club and Nike Training Club members were highly engaged in their fitness routines, but fewer than 10% of active users purchased through the Nike App or Nike.com. The opportunity was clear: meet members with product recommendations tailored to their routine, without making trusted training spaces feel like a sales channel.
Key Research Questions
Where could product marketing and shopping feel most compelling in NRC and NTC journeys?
How can recommendations be useful—not spammy?
What does a frictionless purchase experience look like outside a dedicated commerce app?
02 / METHODOLOGY
Three phases, one continuous learning loop
02
Evaluated concepts
In-person and remote interviews, alongside cross-functional synthesis workshops, tested the value exchange behind product recommendations and shopping moments.
03
Refined prototypes
Unmoderated remote sessions and iterative design sprints evaluating a broad range of inputs to train predictive models and the product recommendation engine.
03 / INSIGHTS + OUTCOMES
Personalization needed guardrails to reduce friction.
The work established that relevant product moments had to be contextual, timely, and grounded in a member’s routine. That learning shaped NRC and NTC’s first Personal Shops, a personalization engine playbook and guardrails, and a more focused content and notification strategy across Nike’s apps.
+123%
year-over-year increase in buying NRC + NTC members
$32m
incremental revenue—doubling what the apps previously generated
Insights + Research | Turning complexity into clarity
John Douglass