Caddix lacrosse cleats fill crucial need in women’s market as Nike eyes lacrosse space

The GIST: Nike netted a multiyear agreement with the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) and the Women’s Lacrosse League (WLL) yesterday as the official apparel partner of both leagues. This includes Nike-designed uniforms and sideline apparel, but doesn’t include cleats, a white space in the women’s lacrosse world — one that Caddix, a new USA Lacrosse partner, is busy filling.

• In March, we spoke with Caddix lacrosse director Suzy Emerson to learn how the cleat brand has created lab-tested, cutting-edge designs beloved by women and men in football, soccer, and especially lacrosse, where no other cleat designed for women exists. Let’s explore.

The brand: Founded in 2020, the cleat company creates football cleats for men and soccer and lax cleats for women and men. The patented tech in these cleats allows for better pivoting, reducing ACL injury risk. While Adidas and Ida Sports also have women-specific soccer cleats, no one else has a lacrosse cleat for women, which is why many WLL stars have bought in.

• Caddix is essentially letting the product speak for itself: Emerson noted that the cleats aren’t available in any retail locations, so Caddix is doing a lot of “boots-on-the-ground” work spreading the word in youth markets by appearing at lacrosse events so athletes can try on their cleats.

The white space: Fortunately for Caddix, the Nike deal is non-exclusive with cleat brands, meaning WLL players will be able to continue sporting their Caddix cleats. This is important, because until recently, sports apparel giants largely ignored the concept of sports shoes designed for women — a gap that startups like Caddix, Ida Sports and Moolah Kicks have quickly filled.

• But bigger brands are responding, with Adidas dropping its first-ever soccer cleat designed for women last year, using prominent brand ambassador Trinity Rodman to shape and promote it. On Nike’s website, there’s only one lacrosse cleat available in men’s and women’s sizes — that could change after this deal.

Zooming out: Nike may have the bandwidth and relationships to institute a league-wide deal, but Caddix and its landmark deal with the sport’s governing body proves there’s opportunity for smaller, niche competitors to carve out space and build brand affinity, especially with the direct co-sign and approval of athletes themselves.

• And Lexie Hull recently shed light on why women athletes genuinely endorsing products matters: People trust them, and women love learning about new brands from their friends and role models. Like it, love it, gotta have it.