Marketing And Promotional Initiatives For Outsourcing Of Production

Supply chains manage the movement of products from the acquisition of raw materials through production and finally distribution to the end user. A properly designed supply chain can create many opportunities to drive down cost and increase revenue opportunities. In order to create a supply chain that is sustainable and flexible it is necessary to identify and align company goals and initiatives with the manufacturing and distribution of products.

Businesses especially those that operate in the same industry always try to emerge the best in the market by adopting different strategies so as to become more competitive. In the retail industry where goods move in volumes, proper management of the inventory can make a big difference by making a company to be more competitive as compared to the others. In most retail business, manipulation of the supply chain functions is one of the strategies that are used to give a retailer a competitive edge over its competitors. This research paper will compare how TJ Maxx and Ross manipulate their supply chain functions to gain a competitive edge over each other. Based on the available facts, the paper will make a determination on which of the companies

2. It is challenging to design and operate a supply chain so that total systemwide

Since its creation, Nike has proven itself as a popular brand and it has created niches by selling products such as footwear, apparels and various types of sports equipment. This paper will attempt to trace the product development of Nike shoes from its origins in conception and design to the manufacturing and production process located in contract factories in developing countries to advertising and marketing of Nike as a cultural commodity and finally, the retailing of the footwear around the world.

Nike uses vertical integration strategy which is a form of a relationship oriented approach in coming up with effective and efficient ways of managing its supply chain. This is achieved through forming alliances and relationships rather than using pricing strategy with an aim of purchasing stuff as cheap as possible (Frisch, 2008). The company has managed to maintain its relationship with contract manufacturers for its foot-ware by having different types of suppliers. The strategy is used in pricing its commodities where they have participants at different channel levels so that they could control costs and influence practices of pricing. For example, there are tier 1 suppliers and tier 2 suppliers where the former are firms with a stronger relationship with Nike who act as more of a strategic

After sluggish focus and growth in the 1980ies, Nike experienced strong growth in the 1990ies and cemented the position as global recognizable brand. The increased international focus created strains on the supply chain, which was consider inadequate to cater efficiently to the organization and the rapid changes consumer demands . As a consequence of the afore mentioned supply chain problem Nike faced inefficient inventory management, problems in flow of goods and poor demand

The forces of Nike’s customer-supplier relationship is based on joint efforts of improved quality, mutually beneficial partnerships, reduced costs, and increased market share for both parties. According to Nike building customer-supplier relationship is one of the most important goals because it is the analysis of the value chain which is defined as the collection of all activities involved in designing, marketing, manufacturing, delivering and supporting Nike’s products. Having strong relationship with both parties helps Nike to predict and notice any problem at might rise in the supply chain; as a result Nike will be able to develop better solutions to avoid it (Wankel, 2009). The first tier supplier of Nike is located mainly in Taiwan and South Korea, which work closely with R&D personnel in Oreon making the most expensive footwear. Strategies have shown that Nike implements include the vertical integration strategy. In general, the vertical integration strategy allows a firm to gain control over distributors, suppliers and competitors (Nike report, 2015). Nike has implemented forward integration by having its own retail locations throughout the United States, foreign countries & online stores. Every partner has a hugely significant

Every year, about 900 million pieces of Nike footwear, apparel and equipment arrive at the right destination on time. The complex process involves more than 50 distribution centers, a network of thousands of accounts, and more than 100,000 retail stores around the world.

A positive impact of Nike’s offshoring strategy was that it allowed Nike to meet the growing market demand of its customers that resulted from global economic growth. It created convenience so customers in other parts of the world could easily acquire Nike’s products and increased customer satisfaction as a result. Moreover, their strategy had a positive impact on the quality of the products offered in various markets. Since labor in Asian markets was able and very willing to meet the quality standards of Nike’s demands in order to retain production contracts, they could meet the expectations that Nike customers presented (Locke, 2002).

The first tier supplier of Nike is Located mainly in Taiwan and South Korea, which work closely with R&D personnel in Oreon making the most expensive footwear. Corporate level strategies that Nike implements include the vertical integration strategy. In general, the vertical integration strategy allows a firm to gain control over distributors, suppliers and competitors (Nike report, 2015). Nike has implemented forward integration by having its own retail locations throughout the United States, foreign countries & online stores.Every partner has a hugely significant role to play in the relationship because any partner/member pulling out would normally mean that the supply chain wouldn’t be completed. Nike takes all its partners seriously and tries most of the time to make sure that all the firms are in a close working relationship. While backwards integration is a strategy that seeks control or ownership over a firm’s suppliers,but this is not implemented by Nike currently. Horizontal integration refers to a strategy of seeking ownership of or increased control over a firm’s competitors. Nike’s portfolio of wholly owned subsidiaries (Cole Haan, Jordan Brand, Nike Golf...) is evidence that Nike engages in horizontal integration strategies since they are the ones that make the company remain competitive in the market. Nike’s level of inventory is 4,337

Logistics is one of the main functions within a company, and the supply chain is a complex and sometime fragile global endeavor dependent on a network of independent, yet interconnected, moving parts. It requires professional management. Supply chain professionals order the product, build it, move it, ship it, distribute it, and drive the coordination processes with marketing, sales, engineering, manufacturing, finance, and information technology. In short, they make any business effort seem effortless.

The sportswear industry is dominated by Nike and Adidas, which together hold around eighty three percent of the industry’s market share in revenue (Biddnessetc). Since both have such a high demand of customers they have created multiple distribution centers in the United States and in other countries. To stay ahead of the other industries both companies concentrate on promoting and creating new and innovative products.

Today’s world great organizations are emerging in inventing powerful resources for a competitive advantage. It is called supply chain management and it includes all integrated activates which introduce to market place and maintain customer satisfaction. This supply chain management drives from multi- disciplinary departments such as procuring, transportation, manufacturing products, customer services, distribution of product into integrated program. Successful management will be in coordination and integrated in all these activate in an unbroken chain process. It supports and interconnected to all the partners within the organization, where these partners are merchants, third party companies, transporters, third party companies and product providers.

Nike is a multinational corporation that specializes in developing designs, manufacturing and distribution of accessories, footwear and sport apparels. With its headquarters in Oregon, the company has invested in the business to become among the leading suppliers of shoes for athletes. Additionally, diversification in the production of sports apparel has made it to be one of the leading supplier sport equipment in the world. Accordingly, the company recorded an estimated US $ 24 billion in 2012 and it had more than 40, 000 employees in the same year. Currently, the business employs over 70, 000 in its scope of business and the number continues to increase with significant growth over the years. Since its inception in 1964, the company has made significant strides in the production of Nike brand, which is among the leading products in its portfolio (Droms and Jay, 3). Ideally, the company is lucrative in that it has competitive advantage in distinct markets, distributes its products through various chains in various regions and ventures into different businesses. Additionally, the company has prospects in

Supply management is a complex function that’s critical to business success, responsible for delivering efficient costs, high quality, fast delivery and continuous innovation throughout companies’ entire supply chains. The strategic contribution of supply management is measured not only in savings made, but also in increased shareholder value (Niezen, Weller & Deringer, 2007). Nike and Adidas are two global companies try to improve their competitive advantage through strategically managing and utilizing their supply chain. The purpose of this report is to compare and evaluate the supply chain management practices of Nike & Adidas.