Nike vs. Adidas

How does sportswear market impact the nature of brand management?

To sump up previous articles, the sportswear market has increased since the 30 last years, with huge competitiveness and new consumer’s behaviors. In addition, sport becomes more global due to big events like The World Cup of Football or The Olympic Games for instance.

All these parameters of our market have impacted the nature of brand management of our main actors in different ways.

Firstly, the sportswear brands have to innovate creating and developing more collections in order to fight the competitive environment and to be at the top. So, companies do not hesitate to invest a lot of money in research and new technologies because they want to offer the best products and the best performance not only to professionals but also to amateurs of sport. For instance, Nike has launched Volt Collection with the Zoom Victory Elite baskets, which they are the lightest baskets in the world. Thanks to this product, people could improve his score.

Then, brands pay attention on the global events in specific sports. Indeed, they target football, rugby, tennis, cycling, F1 and swimming because they represent the most popular sports that people likes watching or playing. So, brands use sport events in order to associate their values to the associated sport.

In another way, sportswear brands sponsor some events so as to show quality and performance of their products and using the “naming” concept. Adidas was brand partner of all the selected players and staff of the French team in the Olympic Games in 2012.

Nowadays, sportswear brands do not show poster advertising only because there are too many brands present on events. So, brands have to bring added value to consumers or fans. This concept is called brand experience. The main aim is to touch consumers introducing and improving the every daily life of them. For example, Nike came to light the FuelBox experience during the World Cup of Football in 2014. 

Finally, sport attitude have influenced other sectors like fashion sector or luxury sector. So, brands, like Puma, adapt their offers associating sport and lifestyle in their collections.


Sources: 

• "Comment le marketing sportif peut-il contribuer au succès des nouveaux produits?", Pr Thierry Lardinoit and Pr Emmanuelle Le Nagard.
• "Sport, articles de sport et marché du sport", Jochen M. Schaefer, OMPI magazine, 2012.
• Sponsoring sportif, entrée dans une nouvelle ère", Jean Watin -Augouard, 2012.