Short Case Analysis
Nike is a multinational corporation that is headquartered in the United States and that specializes in producing athletic apparel, footwear, and equipment. Nike’s athletic shoes can be discussed as the most popular product offered by the company. The reason is that its market share in the United States is more about 50%. Nike invests in developing innovative designs for athletic shoes with the focus on such properties as appearance (or fashion), comfort, performance, and quality. As a result, the two main reasons why people buy Nike’s athletic shoes are their appearance and comfort which are based on the applied innovations and improved qualities.
It is important to pay attention to the fact that Nike is a well-known manufacturer of sports footwear and apparel; therefore, the brand recognition and customer loyalty can be discussed as high. From this point, when consumers plan to buy Nike’s athletic footwear, they expect to receive fashionable and innovative shoes which have a remarkable design. As a result, buyers also expect that this product will satisfy their needs regarding the purchase of the most popular or trendy shoes.
Furthermore, it is important to note that, in most cases, consumers also want to experience the level of comfort which is associated with the professional footwear produced for famous athletes. In this context, Nike positions itself as manufacturing footwear that can improve athletes’ performance because of its comfort. Thus, this footwear is valued by athletes, but it is also available for other consumers.
Reasons to Choose Certain Product Characteristics
“Fashion” and “comfort” are selected as the product characteristics which are important to develop a perceptual map because they are helpful to reflect consumers’ attitudes to the appearance of athletic shoes and their qualities associated with comfort which can influence sales in the market of sports footwear. “Fashion” is used to represent buyers’ associations with the satisfaction to possess stylish and well-known brand shoes. “Comfort” is associated with possessing the footwear which characteristics can also satisfy the expectations of professional athletes.
Position Statement
For professional athletes, trainers, and all people interested in sports, Nike’s athletic shoes guarantee perfect experiences with the focus on ensuring comfort and following the latest fashion and research trends. As a result, innovations in research and design are applied to developing Nike’s athletic shoes which can satisfy individuals’ needs without compromising comfort or appearance.
Perceptual Map
The main competitors of Nike in the U.S. market of sports footwear are Adidas, Puma, and Under Armour, and they need to be discussed in the context of such measures as “fashion” and “comfort” which are selected for analyzing Nike’s position in the market. Therefore, the proposed perceptual map includes the data regarding the positions of Nike, Adidas, Puma, and Under Armour (see fig. 1).
According to the created perceptual map, Nike and Adidas remain to be the leaders of the U.S. market with the focus on such characteristics of athletic shoes as appearance (fashion) and comfort. It is important to note that Puma takes the leading position in the segment with high fashion and low comfort qualities. Under Armour is characterized by the focus on comfort, and it can be perceived as having lower qualities regarding the appearance of the product (fashion).