The Impact of Athlete Sponsorship In Helping Nike Develop a Nike Develop A Strong Brand (Research Paper Sample)

STRATEGIC RESEARCH
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INTRODUCTION
Nike international company is a United States based company involved in manufacturing sportswear and sports equipment. It has its headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon. Nike is the leading manufacturer and supplier of sportswear and equipment. Additionally the company is involved in running retail shops around the world that sells the company’s products. Founded in 1964, the company has grown over time and expanded its productions in order to meet the market demand. The company has also four main subsidiaries namely Cole Hannah, Converse Inc, Hurley international and Umbro that manufacture other popular products. Nike manufactures a variety of products. Initially they manufactured track running shoes. Currently, they make jerseys, shoes, shorts, and base layers used for different sporting activities. In order to make large sales Nike has contracted over 700 shops around the globe and over 45 countries with their offices. Most factories that manufacture Nike products are located in the Asian continent namely China, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Philippines.
Nike cooperation has a mission of being the source of inspiration and innovation to all athletes around the world. According to the founder of the company, Bill Bowerman, an athlete is defined as any person with a body. The company has become an inspiration by making people remain proud of using the Nike products. The inspiration can be drawn from the company’s efforts to protect the environment as a social obligation and manufacturing products that surpass the client’s expectation. The company also aims to be the centre of innovation by ensuring all its products are unique and meets the customers ever changing expectations. The company has a vision to carry on the legacy of thinking innovatively in order to develop products that aid athletes realize their potential, or create business opportunities and value for shareholders investments.
In the past, the Nike cooperation through proper governance has worked towards attaining its mission and vision. In pursuit of its mission, the company has produced quality products that have been widely accepted all over the world. The cooperation has also taken an initiative to sponsor athletes around the world, providing them with the support they need to be successful. The company has used the new technology to improve the existing products. In working towards realizing its vision, the company has since its inception build customer’s confidence by selling them quality products. It has created business opportunities by contracting other companies to make supplies of raw materials, employed people around the world to oversee the operations and sales. Since the company has goodwill, it is expected to make more sales. It is likely for more investors to invest in the company so that they may have a share of profits made by the company. This has lead for the company to rapidly expand and acquire strategic companies.
Despite of Nike cooperation having a strong market base, it faces stiff competition from other companies like addidas and Reebok. This makes it necessary for the company to have an analysis of the market and the ability to penetrate in the competitive market. It is therefore essential us to analyze the company’s current competitive situation through the porters five force analysis. On the supplier power, Nike cooperation has the power to determine the market price since it controls a large customer base. Secondly, the company faces the risk of losing its customers to other companies if they raise the price. This is because the customers have the power to choose the product of their choice. Thirdly, competitive rivalry would count if the other companies offer attractive offers like you do and have quality services. For example, if Addidas offers quality products similar to those of Nike then Nike is at a risk of losing its customers since they are likely to be indifferent. Another factor is the threat of substitution. If Nikes products are not unique there is a risk of substitution and lastly incase the industry has a treat of new entrants, the company is threatened its power to control the market. Due to the large initial capital and high marketing costs. Nike is likely to face threats of new entrants into the market. The five forces are essential in the decision making process since the company is able to determine the level of competition it is facing.
Intensive strategies are strategies that involve intensive efforts and energy t o improve a company’s competitive position in sales of the existing products. These strategies are crucial for the success of any organization. The main intensive strategies include market penetration, product development and market development. The Nike cooperation has sought to increase its market share of its products through intensive marketing efforts. The company has heavily invested in creating awareness of its products to the public through popular athletes and sportsmen. It has also sought to increase its market share by increasing the sales personnel and offering offers on their products. The organization has targeted areas that markets are not saturated and present usage of products can be increased significantly. The company has increased economies of scale in order to gain competitive advantage.
The second intensive strategy is that the company has introduced its products to new geographical areas. Since some of the markets like the United States and Europe have become saturated, Nike cooperation has sought for new markets in Africa to maintain a competitive edge. This is intensive since a lot of research is done before an investment is done. The last strategy is product development. The Nike cooperation has developed its existing products through innovations. The company has invested on research activities on ways of improving the service delivery. The company has also spent a lot of money marketing the newly developed products.
A SWOT analysis of Nike international company reveals that the company has its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. These can be analysed as follows, the strengths include it is a professionally competitive cooperation...