North American Digital sales grew 43 percent for Nike and the brand’s Direct business in the region expanded more than 45 percent in the period ended Aug. 31. Nike had both strong traffic growth and repeat buying member activity. Overall, Q1 North American revenues rose 15 percent to more than $4.87 billion and EBIT was 10 percent higher as results were bolstered by the Back-To-School Season and a return to sports. Regional apparel sales were 27 percent higher at $1.43 billion; Equipment sales were up 29 percent to $185 million. The Swoosh’s North American performance business rose “strong double digits,” led by running fitness and basketball.

“Our digital growth is led by outsized member buying, which has seen a penetration increase of 14 points since last year,” President and CEO John Donahoe said. “Our membership strategy is working as we increasingly use data and analytics to personalize member product offerings and experiences. And we’re seeing this come to life as repeat buying members grew more than 70 percent in the quarter.”

Despite its short-term supply chain woes, Nike will continue to push the interplay between physical and digital retail in the months ahead in all global regions.

“…We’ve already gotten stronger through this pandemic, and we’re going to emerge from it even stronger,” Donahoe vowed.