SWOT Analysis: Under Armour
History:
• Founded in 1996 by former University of Maryland football player Kevin Plank.
• Originally started with a simple plan to make a t-shirt that provided compression and wicked perspiration off your skin instead of absorbing it.
• “Under Armour’s mission is to make all athletes better through passion, design and the relentless pursuit of innovation.”
• In 1999, Plank and his team signed on to supply product for the film Any Given Sunday. In the film, the football team wears Under Armour apparel and accessories in key scenes. Later, Plank bought his first print ad in ESPN the Magazine, and this risk ended up being a great decision as it generated awareness and resulted in a $750,000 increase in sales.
Strengths:
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• Have created partnerships with professional sports leagues like Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, and the Baltimore Marathon.
• They offer a wide range of apparel, which appeals to a larger number of people.
• Positive responses from customers in their target markets.
Weaknesses:
• In early development, Under Armour shoes weren’t able to hold up after continual wear and tear and they were ripped apart. Many people lost respect for that area of the company and this has hurt them as that stigma still sticks with them even after further innovations.
• Under Armour has not yet completely extended into the world markets yet, so they will be able to increase their profits once they become a big force in those markets.
• Recently there was a feud between Kevin Plank and other stock holders over a proposed stock split that would guarantee he would stay in control of the company.
Opportunities:
• Like I mentioned in the last section, Under Armour hasn’t become a big force in foreign markets yet. Doing so is a huge opportunity to grow their brand and sales significantly.
• Under Armour needs to continue to innovate in order to remain competitive with other companies like Nike, Adidas, and
Under Armour’s primary strength lie behind it's product quality and innovation. This quality of the product provides high performance and ultimately a strong brand image and loyalty. Another strength would be Under Armour’s ability to develop
Theodor Seuss Geisel “The more that you read, the more things you will know, the more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” said by the famous Theodor Geisel or also known as Dr. Seuss. He has changed the world greatly by writing books that would make kids think and imagine things in a light they never had before. His books were always illustrated with eye catching colors, popping pictures, and interesting titles that made you want to read. All of his books are easy for any level of reader to read.
Competitors in the industry can wreak havoc on the bottom line for a company. With rivals, a price competition usually ensues, which benefits the customers but hurts the competing businesses that share a common strategy. In reviewing rival sellers, many competitors exist within the sports apparel and footwear industry, but most of them are unable to compete with the industry giants, Nike and Adidas. They are well seated in the industry and their sales reveal this ultimate strength, however, Under Armour is putting pressure on these mammoths. In 2015, global sales of sports clothing and footwear equated to $250 billion, of which Nike grabbed $30.6 billion, Adidas held in its grasp $18.8 billion and Under Armour had a much smaller piece of the pie, at $3.9 billion globally. In reviewing these numbers, it looks like Under Armour is really subpar to the industry giants, but this is not exactly the case. Under Armour in the past couple of
Too much ambition can be disastrous. The word “ambition”generally has a positive connotation, however, it is not always a positive thing Too much of a “good thing”, in this case ambition, can be catastrophic. Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth, and Tim Burton’s film, The Nightmare before Christmas, use characters, conflict, and plot events to convey the universal theme that too much ambition can alter one’s judgement of right and wrong, causing them them to becomes treacherous or deceitful to achieve their goals.
Under Armour is a very popular and well-known brand throughout the world, there are many reasons why this is the case and why they are very successful as a company. Under Armour creates value for their customers in many ways, one of these ways is with their basketball shoes. Customers wouldn't want to buy shoes if they didn't think it would be durable and a good shoe. Customers can trust Under Armour’s basketball shoe because it is a shoe that somebody in the NBA wears. This shows that someone is willing to trust their million-dollar contract with their shoes to help them get their well-earned money, and that shows to confidence in Under Armour. Under Armour also gives many different options that the customer can choose from. They offer different technologies, materials, and articles of clothing. There are many different technologies they have, but I will only list a few. One of these technologies is cool switch, this helps athletes perform longer because the clothing will keep them cool and save them from sweating as much which helps save energy. Also, they offer many different materials in case a customer is allergic to a certain type of material there is always another so that they don't lose a customer. They also offer all different types of clothing so that whatever you need they'll have. Based on this research it proves that Under Armour has done so much to get where they are and be as successful as they are.
Other clothing brands have the ability to start manufacturing athletic apparel to take away market share and diversify their portfolio. Thus, existing apparel companies could enter the performance apparel market if they decide to invest capital for advertising and building product demand. Under Armour has weak patent protection over its product; hence, there is a threat of different unexpected entrants who want to reiterate on their proven formula. Overall, the threat is less imperative to their continued success since other issues are more pertinent and likely.
Under Armour, Inc. is an American sports clothing and Accessories Company. The company is a supplier of sportswear and casual apparel. Under Armour began offering footwear in 2006.
a. Under Armour’s approach towards innovation is very unique, they think and plan out their projects thoroughly in order to create a one of a kind product that could be appealing to their consumers. The company has been extremely progressive throughout the years in order to stay ahead of the other competitive companies in their targeted industry. By constantly updating and coming up with different product lines, such as compression shirts and cleats, Under Armour is able to compete with other top athletic wear company’s in their market. If
The company Under Armour (UA) was founded in 1996. The founder Kevin Plank invented a new type of clothing that included microfibers, which was something completely new to the sports equipment industry. It helped the skin to breathe better during physical activity, allowing the body to better regulate its temperature. This revolutionary product was the try card for Under Armour into the sports industry.
Under Armour's mission was '' to make all athletes better through passion, design and relentless pursuit of innovation''.
Identifying influencing factors of a company’s macro-environment helps in the strategic development and management within a company. The macro-environment outlines an industry and the competitive environment as seen in figure 3.1, (Gamble, Peteraf, Thompson, 39). Within the macro-environment there are the political factors, economic conditions, sociocultural forces, technological factors, environment forces, and legal/regulatory factors. All of these factors blanket the habitat an industry and its competition thrive in. Inside the industry and competitive environment there are five factors that influence an individual company. The five factors are suppliers, rival firms, new entrants, buyers, and substitute products. The biggest impact on a company are these five factors. For example, Under Armour focuses on their industry and competitive environment to survive and grow. Their strategy to win over the market share from Nike and Adidas consists of expanding a stable and original brand within record time, taking an innovative approach to their product line-up and brand-name appeal where the market seemed to be barren, and lastly, the company enters in the foreign market early on to establish its brand and influence markets outside of the US.
Founded in 1996 by University of Maryland graduate Kevin Plank, Under Armour has become the leading supplier of the athletic performance apparel industry. Under Armour began with simple idea to create a t-shirt that would enhance athletic performance by regulating body temperature and removing perspiration
Under Armour’s business strategy towards market segmentation is broken down into three different basis; Age, Gender, Uses. The first major market segmentation is by age, different age groups demand different products and Under Armour has produced certain merchandise to appeal to each generation. The second is Gender, both male and female respectively make up roughly 50% of the market equally.To appeal to females UA produces apparel in brighter colo, as a fashion forward athletic wear. While for males they they cater toward masculine vibe of tight fitting and resistant to wear and tear. Lastly, UA segments by the range of uses for their products.
Resources and Capability: Under Armour has been able to grow its revenue at an average rate of 15% over the past 5years. This is because it has been able to minimize its level of debt and profits are reinvested to develop new products. This financial resource creates a key competitive advantage for Under Amour, as very few companies are able to enter into a market such as this; that is majorly capital intensive. To enter a market outside the United
The sports apparel and accessories industry has a highly competitive market. Businesses are constantly competing for elite athletes to sponsor, raw materials, and every opportunity to expand. Under Armour is able to not only survive but thrive in this market because of their ability to think outside of the box. They are constantly creating new and exciting products that help athletes everywhere. Under Armour’s overall mission is “to make all athletes better through passion, design and the relentless pursuit of innovation” (Under Armour Mission, Vision & Values, 2013). Under Armour also has many other goals, both short term and long term. One such goal is to have total revenues reach $4 billion