VANESSA BRYANT BLASTS NIKE FOR UNAUTHORIZED ‘MAMBACITA’ SHOE
Written by Randy C on June 3, 2021
Vanessa Bryant is not happy about Nike producing a sneaker in honor of her late daughter without her permission.
Vanessa took to social media to blast the sports apparel brand after a fan posted a picture with the shoe that she designed herself.
“This is a shoe I worked on in honor of my daughter, Gianna,” she wrote on Instagram. “It was going to be called the MAMBACITA shoe as an exclusive black and white colorway on her daddy’s shoes. I picked the colors in honor of her uniform, the number 2 she wore just like her uniform, the inside pattern, Kobe and Gigi on the back in gold instead of Kobe’s signature, the inside shoe details (butterfly, wings, halo), etc.”
She continued, “The MAMBACITA shoes are NOT approved for sale. I wanted it to be sold to honor my daughter with ALL of the proceeds benefitting our @mambamambacitasports foundation but I did not re-sign the Nike contract to sell these shoes. (The MAMBACITA shoes were not approved to be made in the first place.) Nike has NOT sent any of these pairs to me and my girls.”
Vanessa Bryant added that she’s unsure how the person got their hands on it because it’s not supposed to be available in stores.
“I do not know how someone else has their hands on shoes I designed in honor of my daughter, Gigi and we don’t,” she wrote. “I hope these shoes did not get sold. @nike.”
