Case Analysis : Pink Zebra

Due to a strong commitment to customer service and the outdoors, L.L. Bean is recognized as a quality manufacturer and retailer of quality outdoor apparel. Likewise, the company’s focus on the stakeholders begins with caring for employees who in turn serve the customer which ultimately results in profits. L.L. Bean serves customers through multiple channels, but originally began, and continues to excel, in catalog sales. However, due to a changing operational environment, the organization needed to invigorate their business model. Using the total rewards program, the company was able to disperse new strategic goals throughout the organization leading to much needed change and revitalization.

Customers make purchasing decisions based on the information they have among products and the values of goods a company offers. For that reason, companies have to promote their products to increase products awareness. In order to achieve organizational goals, companies must understand the market’s needs to ensure the success of their businesses. Such information can be gained through research. The industry that will form the basis of this paper is Western Canadian Shoe Association. The three brands under study are Reebok, Adidas, and Nike.

The women's apparel market is highly competitive. With the launch of a new active-wear line from Harrington Collection's, more and more competitors will start to realise the potential value in in producing an active-wear line of their own. The active-wear market is growing so rapidly (expected to double turnover from 2007 to 2009), that eventually all of Harrington's competitors would likely be expected to launch a line of their own, relying on existing brand loyalty and high-scale advertising campaigns to capture market share and move units.

Harlequin Enterprises has been able to capture 80% of the series romance market. Our great existing strategy (see exhibit 1) has allowed us to be the biggest player in the series romance market. Now we face the opportunity to capture a rapidly growing market of single-title women 's fiction novels. I recommend that Harlequin aggressively pursue the single-title market, using its extensive back list collection to reissue novels by best-selling authors.

Lululemon is a large company, making clothing for athletic activities, not only are they in the women’s athletic range, but they have hit the men’s market and youth range as well. A SWOT analysis will be used to break down Lululemons strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to the business. Strengths which Lululemon have achieved include multi-faceted and community-based approach strategy, making customers feel part of a community through marketing strategies like there “ambassador program, social media, in-store community boards and grassroots initiatives” (Lululemon, 2016 Annual Report, 2016, p. 3). Touchpoints which have been a part of this multi-channel include Lululemons websites www.lululemon.co.nz and ivivva.com which is based around female youth active ware. With Lululemon having 12,500 full-time employees worldwide (Lululemon Athletica Inc. (LULU), 2017) with 406 stores (Lululemon, 2016), their large market capital of $8.33 billion (Lululemon Athletica Inc. (LULU), 2017), shows the total value of Lululemons shares of stock. Lululemon having $581.1 million in net revenue, this is an increase of 13% while their gross profit increased by 17% rising to $297.4 million. (Lululemon Athletica Inc. Announces Second Quarter Fiscal 2017 Results, 2017). This shows a steady increase in profit for Lululemon for 2017 which is a strength for them.

As the brand name of Nike continue to soar, other companies in the industry; learning from the success Nike has experienced, start focusing more on brand development to keep up with the increasing levels of competition. These companies resort to brand maintenance, which has become the main target in this industry due to product differentiation made by Nike. Nike, being market-advantaged, produces an extensive range of products, through which it gains a balanced level of profits. This has influenced rival companies to initiate a new range of products in their businesses too. Previously these companies had high risks of failing in business, if their single products did not appeal to the market. Due to the impact of Nike’s business strategy, the other companies are also enlarging their product range,

Although their unconventional business approach can in no way be exactly measured to determine the effectiveness of it, the company succeeds at making the experience of purchasing one of their products special because the consumer knows they are getting a high quality product that was made in a environmentally friendly process. This unique positioning that Patagonia has in the outdoor apparel market, allows it to sell its products two to three times the average price of their competitors like Uniqlo. What differentiates Patagonia from its main competitors, The North Face Company and Columbia Sportswear, is that Patagonia has found and connected with a niche market that wants not only a high quality product but also a product that was made in an environmentally sustainable

Nike’s main strategy revolves around product branding. Their brand compromises of a swoosh logo which is accompanied by a message of “just do it”. The logo was imprinted on all of their products with the message developed to express the individuality of their target group. The branding was further promoted by Nike’s relentless approach on the quality of their product as demonstrated when considering overseas business opportunities, quality must not be compromised in order to do so. This ensures consumer satisfaction and loyalty towards Nike.

Understanding customer needs will help Nike to define new market opportunities and drive innovation and revenue growth in every aspect of its organisation. The most basic concept underlying marketing is that of human needs. Human needs are states of felt deprivation (Kotler and Armstrong, 2006). Customer logic is derived from evaluation of a company and its product based upon customer needs, customer benefits, and product features. For branded athletic shoes, Nike has to understand customer needs on a global level as the products are sold

Apart from marketing strategies Nike has embellished on the expanding market of technology. In efforts to collaborate with issues of climate change in business the challenges and opportunities that growing organizations seek, Nike has designed a tool to advert such issues. They released a version of their Environmental Apparel Design Tool back in December 2010 in hopes that companies would use it and build from it. In efforts to stay competitive within their market and sustain leadership of sports apparels, Nike has given designers this tool to gather

Zappos.com, established in 1999, has rapidly become a strong competitor in online apparel and footwear sales. With the original corporate vison of offering the absolute best selection in shoes; the vision has evolved over the past several years to include the goal of being the retailer that “provides the absolute best service online -- not just in shoes, but in any category” (Zappos, 2014). The online retailer stocks millions of reasonably priced footwear products; carrying thousands of hard to find brand named shoes, handbags, apparel and accessories via the company website and 7,000 affiliate partners. In recognizing their rapid success, Zappos credits it to their commitment to the customer, stating,

Luxottica Group are the world’s largest eyewear company, based in Milan, Italy. Their long-term corporate strategy is to create the best possible eyewear to satisfy its clients, and expand their market share by growing its various businesses, whether organically or through acquisitions1. The Company will continue to focus on the following strategic pillars: vertical integration, design and technological innovation, brand portfolio management, market expansion, financial discipline and the development of talented and committed employees1. Building strong brands that create enduring relationships with consumers is key to how Luxottica plans to sustain its business in the future.

Considering NEXT’s product orientation, the organization sells moderately priced clothing and target customers are stylish women and men from 20 to 40. It also updates low price fashion products frequently. It shows that the price of NEXT products is acceptable for the public.

New Balance is the second largest athletic footwear manufacturer in the U.S. and the fourth largest in the world. The company has had a strong focus on corporate social responsibility (CSR) since its inception 100 years ago, although until recently it has not necessarily been adept at making the public aware of its “doing what’s right” culture (Veleva, 2010).

Report on the Case Study Nike This report has been produced to provide an insight into the consumer decision-making process, buyer behaviour factors that consumers of Nike are influenced by. The report also details recommendations based on the findings. 2.0 Summary = =