Mr Le Essay

The athletic apparel industry has shown a large increase in popularity. Global sales of sport clothing have increased from 146.1 billion US dollars in 2007 to 162 billion US dollars in 2012(Global Participative Sport as Consumption). Particularly in the United States, sales of sport apparel have increased by 7% from 2013 to 2014 (Wingus). There has been a large trend in healthy living, as “activewear accounted for $33.7 billion in sales and made up 16 percent of the apparel market” (Wingus). The industry is booming, as sportswear, specifically yoga pants, has transformed into people’s daily apparel. (Refer to Appendix Table 1) Huffington post noted, “people are wearing trendy workout clothes all day, every

acques LeCoq, a French practitioner and Augusto Boal, a Brazilian practitioner both aim to take their actors and the audience on a journey of discovery. Both Practitioners believed in ‘Freeing’ the body and making it ‘De-mechanicalized’ to enable full interpretation. LeCoq and Boal both use emotion, imagination, extensive body movement, playfulness and political matters to create their methods of theatrical practice.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. thrived off its 5 key elements in their growth strategy which helped to acquire a stronger revenue base that enabled them to have a differentiated product line,design and culture. Trademarked fabric and technology helped their brand loyalty which enabled them to get products in and off the shelves in a 2 month period. Additionally 95% of its inventory was sold at regular price. This was attainable because of the strategic multi-channel approach used to enhance its market presence

The fitness clothing market is growing rapidly. Customers’ new found inclination towards living healthier lifestyles has produced an increase in participation of people into various physical activities. Hence, the high levels of competition in the fitness and

The global women’s clothing industry is expected to exceed $621 billion in 2014, marking a 12% increase in five years, reports MarketLine. Clothing retailers account for the largest share of the market at almost 65% in terms of value. We will first seek customers locally, but will increase our range as we build our brand and are confident in our image.

Companies like Under Armour, Nike and Adidas/Reebok have high threats of substitute´s products. These companies share the sport apparel industry and are vulnerable to competitive pressure from the actions of buyers whenever they view that their products can be substituted for others. The availability of substitutes invites the costumer to compare performance, features, and ease of use as well as price. Under Armour’s major competitors are Nike and Adidas/Reebok because they have a similar or competing product offerings. The top sport apparel brands offer similar products and that is why each one of them needs to keep a high standard and produce good quality products in order for customers to keep buying their product.

Although the market for separates is certainly viable given promising growth in test markets, it is not a market that makes sense for Hart, Schaffner & Marx (HSM) to compete in. The trend certainly shows a divergence in how some customers view their needs with regards to semi-formal clothing, but the firm runs the risk of diluting not only the perceived quality of its clothing, but also alienating its current client base that is partial to the experience HSM offers in its stores. This experience includes personalized expertise on new fashions, custom tailoring, and the status associated with purchasing and wearing the company’s clothes.

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.

(2012) This leads me to question if fashion apparel is competing with industry’s sportswear markets by compromising the performance enhancing qualities for garments that are simply just aesthetically pleasing. (Morganosky, 1984) elaborates on this stating that consumers are willing to pay higher prices for apparel with a high aesthetic value regardless of the low functional value. Ko et al. (2012) agrees consumers’ value fashion and quality however argues they are not willing to pay a high price for something new and innovative. (Dickson & Pollack, 2000) add to this statement in relation to sports garments with female consumers regarding aesthetic aspects such as style and brand characteristics to be more essential than the functional aspects such as comfort and other physical performance-enhancing features. Similarly (Eckma et al., 1990) reports on the evaluation of purchase behaviour in women’s apparel. Style was chosen as more important in determining rejection or adoption of the garments. A visual criterion seems to have the greatest impact on selection of apparel such as fashion-ability or popularity, aesthetic appeal, and self-expression (Eckma et al., 1990). Although it seems there is a divide in opinion when it comes to retail pricing the majority of research studies seems to suggest there is a major emphasis on the aesthetic appearance.

The clothing industry in South Africa has always been an industry where there is intense rivalry between the companies. There are main companies in the industry namely Edgars, Woolworths Truworths, but there are smaller retail companies that enter the market that can satisfy the demand of the consumer’s better.

This case study is about Under Armour, a company that deals with the manufacture and sales of all forms of sportswear and accessories. The company has had great sales in most of its products like moisture-wicking shirts and athletics shoes. Despite this, the company still holds only 5% of the market shares, trailing behind Nike, Adidas and Asics. Moreover, the company posses low financial strength such that it cannot launch multiple products in multiple categories at the same time like its competitors.

Industry Needs/Target Market: Under Armour’s currently markets its product to people who have active lifestyles, into sports and all things physically active. Also, it is nationally (U.S.A) driven; only in recent years as it branched out internationally. The company needs to consider another segment of the market, which is those that are only interested in a more casual look. There is a need to shift from the traditional market of performance-based apparels to a more diverse product segment of sportswear. Under Armour’s narrow focus of only considering athletes has led to a loss of customers to its competitions such has Nike; that makes both athletic and casual wears.

The combined athletic-wear and sneaker industry is a highly competitive market. Currently, there is a low threat from new entrants due to the high number of entry barriers created by the traditionally dominant companies such as Nike and Adidas, Under Armours main rivals. Under Armour’s entry in 1996 is the most recent American brand to gain significant market share yet regardless, they still remain significantly behind their competitors in the global market (Strider).

There is a market segment that fashion brands and the public subconsciously ignore, which is the overweight people, the potential young customers who are “plus-sized”. In addition, the pricing strategy is still in relation to the purchasing power, which means it will still remain its high-end pricing in general, despite little pricing differentiation might be caused by the online & offline channel.

Moving into the SK markets presents itself as critical juncture point for any company that has attained a place in the global apparel markets. First, it will allow for companies in this position to ready themselves for entry into other Asian markets where product visibility by