ABSTRACT
This paper endeavors to recommend a viable marketing plan for the footwear giant, Nike. The plan has been adequately substantiated with thorough research on different factors affecting the firm along with various ways of addressing future challenges. This research paper highlights that Nike is confronted with multifarious issues which need to be negotiated amicably. Result of the study concludes that there is still a world waiting for the Nike to be exploited, outsmarting its competitors employing its innovative and creative business strategy.
MINI BUSINESS / MARKETING PLAN NIKE, INC.
COMPANY OVERVIEW
In 1962, two individuals from the University of Oregon established a small company with the name of Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS). In 1972, the company was renamed to Nike, the name adopted from the Greek goddess of victory. At present, Nike owns facilities in Oregon, Tennessee, North Carolina and The Netherlands. It also operates leased facilities for 15 Nike-towns, over 80 Nike Factory Stores, 2 NIKEgoddess boutiques and over 100 sales and administrative offices. There are approximately 23,000 people employed by the Nike, worldwide. The company's first year sales did not cross $ 10,000 however, its present revenues exceed well over $ 10 billion. [Facts, Nikebiz.com, page 3]
The Nike mission is "To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world". [Nikebiz.com, page 4] Nike research lab is constantly pursuing innovation in the field of sports. The research work in the lab is distributed into three categories including biomechanics, physiology and sensory/perceptual attributes. The research mainly focuses on differentiating factors like geography, gender, age and skill level. [Product Technolog...
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...rch?q=cache:YADvIs9G9cMJ:www.gsb.stanford.edu/CEBC/pdfs/C_EC_009B_Nike.pdf+Nike%27s+internet+initiative&hl=en
James A O'Brien, Management Information System, fifth edition, Chapter 1, page 25
Mark Kingdon, Cross-Channel Marketing, January 18, 2005, web-link
http://www.clickz.com/experts/brand/cmo/article.php/3458821
Mass Customization, Frank Pillar's website
http://www.mass-customization.de/glossary.htm
Mission, Nikebiz.com, page 4
http://www.nike.com/nikebiz/nikebiz.jhtml?page=4
Product Technology, Nikebiz.com, page 6
http://www.nike.com/nikebiz/nikebiz.jhtml?page=6&item=research
SWOT, Marketingteacher.com
http://www.marketingteacher.com/SWOT/nike_swot.htm
Steven Van Dusen, Nike vs. the Competition
http://www.unc.edu/~andrewsr/ints092/vandu.html
Yield management, Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yield_management
The blueprint of a Nike Shoe originates from the Nike Research Lab located at the Nike World Headquarters in Oregon. At the Nike Research Lab, researchers carry out various tests in biomechanics, physiology, sensory in order to customise the product to suit the best interest of the clients. In addition, various factors such as geography, age, gender are also taken into account in order to cater to appeal to the preferences and needs of different segments of the market. For example, according to the Lab, runners in the United States prefer hard surfaces while those in Europe prefer trails and thus this will affect the compositions of the footwear sold in different regions. The latest innovation of the Research Lab, the NikeFree Shoe enhanced overall athletic performance by stimulating the effect of running barefoot with added features which enabled the strengthening of muscles and lowering the risk of injuries.
Product: As an athletic shoes producer, they try to provide better quality and more comfortable shoes that fit to the sport player through research and development. By claiming their shoes meet the physics need of different sports, which help the sport player to maximize their ability by protecting them and reduce the sport harm.
Over the past 37 years, The Nike Brand has evolved into a successful multi-billion dollar corporation. It has also grown to be the world's largest marketer of athletic footwear and apparel. The company’s products are sold in over 180 countries worldwide and 20,000 retail stores domestically. Nike also operates retail stores overseas such as Nike Towns and factory outlets. Although Nike is involved in the design, development, and marketing of the product; the products are manufactured independently. In addition to its wide range of athletic shoes and apparel, the company also sells Nike and Bauer brand athletic equipment, Cole Haan brand dress and casual footwear, and the Sports Specialties line of headwear.
In addition, Nike is a worldwide known company and it is among the top empires just as Adidas and Puma. It has more than 900 factories which are located in an estimated 50 countries, they also have more than 660 000 workers which most of them are women. However, although they have a lot of factories around the world, their main manufacture factories are located in China, Indonesia, and Vietnam which are basically countries with the most minimum salaries rate given to the workers. Nike chooses these locations for their production of their merchandise because of the cheap ...
Nike Incorporated is the number one leading sportswear and equipment provider in the world. They manufacture anything from casual clothes to sports equipment, shoes to socks, and basketballs to golf balls. As a result of its massive success, Nike employs nearly 30,000 people worldwide while manufacturing in 700 shops around the globe and has 45 offices outside the United States. Its extensive reach into the global market has Nike producing more exclusive products than any other manufacturer in the world. Nike’s headquarters is located in the metropolitan area of Portland, Oregon.
Nike’s goal is to remain unique and different from others in terms of the items offered on the market. Arguably, Nike belongs to a monopolistically competitive market as there only a few organizations with the ability to regulate the amount charged for their product which means they cannot make their prices high as this is likely to make customers move on to other available choices (Nike, Inc., 2012). However, Nike can find a balance between the prices to charge for their products and remaining competitive with other companies in the industry. Nike has formed a distinction between the appearance and performance of their footwear and that of their competitors. Although products are differentiated from other companies, they still influence each other because they are items of the same
Many global companies like Nike, Inc. are seen as role models both in the market place as well as in society in large. That is why they are expected to act responsibly in their dealings with humanity and the natural world. Nike benefits from the global sourcing opportunities, therefore areas such as production and logistics have been outsourced to partner companies in low-wage countries like China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand. As a result the company is limited nowadays to its core competencies of Design and Marketing.
Nike’s Asian operations had previously continued to soar generating US$300 million in 1994 in revenues to a whopping US$1.2 billion in 1997. However based on the Asian economic crisis, this had adversely affected revenues, while regional layoffs were inevitable. Nike also performed well in the European market generating about US$2 billion in sales and a good growth momentum was expected, however, some parts of Europe were only slowly recovering from an economic downturn. In the Americas (Canada and the U.S.A.), Nike experienced a growth rate for several quarters. The U.S. alone generated approximately US$5 billion in sales. The Latin American market at this point was exposed to economic volatility; however Nike still saw them as a market with “great potential for the future”.
Nike, which is the Greek goddess of victory, was born in 1972, when BRS launched its first branded shoe at the U.S. Olympic track and field trials. Over the next decade, the company nearly doubled in size each year. In 1978, BRS officially changed its corporate name to that of the Nike brand.
Nike Inc. was founded in 1962 by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight as a partnership under the name, Blue Ribbon Sports. Our modest goal then was to distribute low-cost, high-quality Japanese athletic shoes to American consumers in an attempt to break Germany's domination of the domestic industry. In 2000 Nike Inc. not only manufactured and distributed athletic shoes at every marketable price point to a global market, but over 40% of our sales came from athletic apparel, sports equipment, and subsidiary ventures. Nike maintains traditional and non-traditional distribution channels in more than 100 countries targeting its primary market regions: United States, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Americas (not including the United States).
international markets. The company wants to generate more than half of its revenue from overseas. In my opinion, Nike’s strategies and tactics are to seek on the opportunity to do the marketing on its radical, rebellious and anti-establishment images to the international markets and to benefit from its use of overseas factories to outsource manufacturing processes. For example,
This project concentrates on the Nike Sports shoe; Nike is one of most significant shoe manufacturing company worldwide. Sportswear manufactured by Nike is known for quality and is most liked brand of athletes. (Daniel, 2011)
The marketing goals are: Increase customer retention, Increase eCommerce Sales, Increase our Community Involvement. The first goal specifically works towards reaching 60% repeat sales through different promotional strategies like emotional marketing and sponsoring different professional athletes. Customer retention is extremely important to maintain Nike’s market leader position. Increasing eCommerce is a major focus for Nike. Last year we were able to increase our eCommerce sales by a profitable 51%. Our second goal is to continue this trend by increasing online sales by 50% every year for the next four years. It is our belief that doing so will solidify Nike as a leader in the online athletic market. Nike truly believes that sport can change
Nike is the number one innovator in the world in athletic footwear, apparel, equipment, and accessories. This worldwide company operates in an extremely different organizational structure than other companies, such as Reebok and Adidas. Nike operates tremendous marketing strategies and develops inventive designs to inspire athletes around the world. This company is one of the largest suppliers in the world in athletic footwear and apparel, main producer of sports equipment, and making Nike the most valuable brand among sports companies. The task for Nike is to join diversity and inclusion to encourage ideas and innovation. Around the world, this company is a popular brand.
According to Blythe (2012), marketing is a management process which identifies and fulfils customers’ needs and at the same time, makes profit. By having appropriate marketing concepts, Charles and Keith manages to develop within few years from an unnoticeable small shoe store to an international footwear brand which occupies a significant place in the industry.