EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

My project topic is "Adidas" which is a shoe company and I am analyzing its Marketing Strategy. I have chosen this particular topic mainly for two reasons. Firstly since my childhood days I had great interest in the shoes and I like to !uy new shoes as and when it comes in the market. "he Shoe #ompany that I most admire is Adidas. Secondly adidas grows as one of the !est leading !rand in the shoes and other accessories which is admired !y all types of generation. $ence I have decided to do my project report on this company. "he Adidas mission has changed little since founder Adi %assler !egan making sports shoes in the &'()s* to !e the !est sports !rand in the world. "he history of Adidas is one of consistently meeting the evolving needs of the athlete. Focusing more on function and less on fashion Adidas strives to provide athletes with shoes that can make a noticea!le difference in their performance. Meeting athlete needs is what makes Adidas the !est. Adidas America has continued to !uild on this history. In Fe!ruary of &''+ Adidas ac,uired Sports Inc. a -S.!ased sports marketing company founded !y former /ike e0ecutives 1o! Strasser and 2eter Moore. Sports Inc. had !een working in conjunction with Adidas -SA on the design development and marketing of the Adidas 3,uipment line. "his line helped rejuvenate and reposition the Adidas !rand in the -nited States !y creating an e0clusive line focused on fulfilling the functional needs of the athlete and !y utilizing the !est materials and athlete input in the tradition of Adi %assler. It offered moisture management thermal insulation weather protection ease of

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movement and safety helping the athlete to perform more efficiently. After the successful creation and launch of Adidas America I have made a research on marketing of Adidas !y ,uestionnaire method. "he main aim of my research is to find out that how Adidas hold to the market and what are the areas in which Adidas can improve upon in the ,uestioner itself I have emphasis on the marketing of Adidas and also a!out the current position of Adidas in market. According to the response of my ,uestionnaire I have found that Adidas and /ike are main competitors !ut /ike is more preferred !rand then Adidas. "his is mainly for two reasons first /ike has more variety and good looks then Adidas and second there outlets are more then Adidas so the company must work upon these two thing to !e the world num!er one.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STU Y

"o study the marketing of Adidas and also a!out the current position of Adidas in market

"o find out Adidas and /ike are main competitors !ut /ike is more preferred !rand then others.

"o find out that how Adidas hold to the market and what are the area seen which adidas can improve.

COM!A"Y !ROFI#E
In the small 4erman village of $erzogenaurach the world !egan its love affair with Adidas 51yno6s #ompany $istory7. In &'() Adolf 8Adi9 %assler !rought to life those three little stripes. :ith his

!rother 1udolph %assler manufactured his first sports shoe made for training after realizing the need for performance athletic shoes. In&';< the %assler !rothers separated to form their own two separate companies. %assler formed Adidas and his !rother formed 2uma !oth head,uarters in $erzogenaurach. "he Adidas mission has changed little since founder Adi %assler !egan making sports shoes in the &'()s* to !e the !est sports !rand in the world. "he history of Adidas is one of consistently meeting the evolving needs of the athlete. Focusing more on function and less on fashion Adidas strives to provide athletes with shoes that can make a noticea!le difference in their performance. Meeting athlete needs is what makes Adidas the !est. Adidas America has continued to !uild on this history. In Fe!ruary of &''+ Adidas ac,uired Sports Inc. a -S.!ased sports marketing company founded !y former /ike e0ecutives 1o! Strasser and 2eter Moore. Sports Inc. had !een working in conjunction with Adidas -SA on the design development and marketing of the Adidas 3,uipment line. "his line helped rejuvenate and reposition the Adidas !rand in the -nited States !y creating an e0clusive line focused on

fulfilling the functional needs of the athlete and !y utilizing the !est materials and athlete input in the tradition of Adi %assler. It offered moisture management thermal insulation weather protection ease of movement and safety helping the athlete to perform more efficiently. After the successful creation and launch of Adidas America

$enera% Information
For over <+ years Adidas has !een part of the world of sports on every level delivering state.of.the.art sports footwear apparel and

accessories. "oday with total net sales of =.& !illion and net income of ()< million Adidas . Salomon is a glo!al leader in the sporting goods industry and offers the !roadest portfolio of products. Adidas.Salomon products are availa!le in virtually every country of the world. >ur strategy is simple* continuously strengthen our !rands and products to improve our competitive position and financial performance. "he company?s share of the world market for sporting goods is estimated at around &@ percent. Activities of the company and its appro0imately &)) su!sidiaries are directed from Adidas.Salomon A4?s head,uarters in $erzogenaurach 4ermany. Also located in $erzogenaurach are the strategic !usiness units for 1unning Soccer and "ennis as well as the 1esearch and %evelopment #enter. Additional key corporate units are !ased in 2ortland >regon in the -SA the domicile of Adidas America Inc. and home to the strategic !usiness units Aasket!all Adventure and Alternative Sports. "he strategic !usiness unit 4olf is !ased in

#alifornia. "he !usiness unit :inter Sports is in Annecy France. "he company also operates design studios and development departments at other locations around the world corresponding to the related !usiness activity. Adidas.Salomon A4 has appro0imately &+ ;)) employees worldwide.

T&rno'er and Brand Image

"he turnover of Adidas company has grown to ()Million -S dollar in year ())@.)=. Almost @+B of the turnover is from sale of apparel and accessories with the rest from footwear. "he Adidas !rand is one of the most popular !rands as determined !y a within !rand survey of sportswear !rands in the year ())C.

F&t&re !%ans
"urnover is e0pected to rise to (( Million -S dollar for Adidas India in ())=.)C cash !reak even is fore cast during calendar year ())@ and an operating !reak even during ())=. "he other Adidas D owned !rands salomon E taylor made are e0pected to hit Indian Adidas stores during ())@ and ())=.

MAR(ETI"$ STRATE$IES) A" OVERVIE* OF A I AS

Some of t+e t+eor, I +a'e &sed in m, -ro.e/t are as fo%%o0s T+eor,) 0+at is market resear/+ and 0+, it is im-ortant1
Market research is a method of collecting data which will make you 5as a !usiness7 more aware of how the people you hope to sell to will react to your products or services. Market research will answer ,uestions like* :hether your products or services are needed :ho might want to !uy your products :hat age se0 income occupation etc. are the people I want to sell to. If there are changes taking place and how this might affect what you sell $ow well your products or services might sell $ow much demand there is for what you hope to sell :hat price would people !e prepared to pay

Cond&/ting market resear/+

"here are num!er of ways in which you can carry out your research !ut you need to carefully consider why you made this choice and what you hope the evidence will suggest to you. Fuestionnaires and personal interviews are one of the most common ways in which you can conduct market research and there are many methods of gathering data this way* %irect Interview Mail Survey and "elephone interview. %epending on the type of data you hope to collect will have a impact on what you choose to use. I +a'e made &se of t0o t,-e of s&r'e, met+ods2 3&estionnaire and mai% s&r'e,1 I have asked some ,uestion a!out the company my mail and also !y direct contacts. "he Fuestion I have asked are given in 8,uestionnaire part9 !elow.

T+eor,) marketing mi4

"he Marketing Mi0 5"he ; 2?s of Marketing7

Marketing decisions generally fall into the following four controlla!le categories* 2roduct 2rice 2lace 5distri!ution7 2romotion

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"he term "marketing mi0" !ecame popularized after /eil $. Aorden

pu!lished his &'=; article T+e Con/e-t of t+e Marketing Mi4. Aorden !egan using the term in his teaching in the late &';)?s after Games #ulliton had descri!ed the marketing manager as a "mi0er of ingredients". "he ingredients in Aorden?s marketing mi0 included product planning pricing !randing distri!ution channels personal selling advertising promotions packaging display servicing

physical handling and fact finding and analysis. 3. Gerome Mc#arthy later grouped these ingredients into the four categories that today are known as the ; 2?s of marketing depicted !elow*

T+e Marketing Mi4

"hese four 2?s are the parameters that the marketing manager can control su!ject to the internal and e0ternal constraints of the marketing environment. "he goal is to make decisions that center the four 2?s on the customers in the target market in order to create perceived value and generate a positive response.

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!rod&/t e/isions
"he term "product" refers to tangi!le physical products as well as services. $ere are some e0amples of the product decisions to !e made* Arand name Styling Fuality

!ri/e e/isions
Some e0amples of pricing decisions to !e made include* 2ricing strategy 5skim penetration etc.7 #ash and early payment discounts 2rice fle0i!ility 2rice discrimination

istri5&tion 6!%a/e7 e/isions

%istri!ution is a!out getting the products to the customer. Some e0amples of distri!ution decisions include* %istri!ution channels Market coverage 5inclusive selective or e0clusive distri!ution7 :arehousing

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%istri!ution centers "ransportation

!romotion e/isions
In the conte0t of the marketing mi0 promotion represents the various aspects of marketing communication that is the communication of information a!out the product with the goal of generating a positive customer response. Marketing communication decisions include* 2romotional strategy 5push pull etc.7 Advertising 2ersonal selling E sales force Sales promotions

T+eor,) S*OT ana%,sis

"his theory tells a!out the company strength weakness opportunity and "hreats. "his theory is very important for the company !ecause this theory tell the weakness and the strong points of the company and if company knows it weakness and it strong points then company !ecomes easy operative and also the profits as well as the market share of the company get increased.

T+e Com-an,

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Adidas entered the Indian market in &''= !y setting up a &))B su!sidiary of Adidas A4 called Adidas India Htd. and announced its joint venture with Magnum International "rading #ompany Htd. on >cto!er & &''=. "he new joint venture D Adidas India Htd. D was incorporated with an initial investment of -S I ()@ million with Adidas India Htd. holding <)B of the e,uity and Magnum holding the !alance ()B. "his investment was raised to -S I =.; million with the e,uity structure remaining the same. #urrently the total investment stands at -S I &&.; Million with the e,uity structure changing to '&.;B !y Adidas and <.=B !y magnum.

Adidas8 Range of !rod&/ts in India

A month after announcing the joint venture Adidas India Htd. launched its range of sports footwear apparel and accessories in /ew %elhi on /ovem!er & &''=. Su!se,uently Adidas products were also launched in Mum!ai Aangalore #hennai $ydera!ad and #alcutta. #urrently Adidas products are availa!le in +) cities in India. "he range of Adidas products availa!le in India include sports footwear featuring some of the most popular innovations and technologies developed !y Adidas such as Feet Jou :ear "orsion system and adi wear. "he sports footwear availa!le in India includes a wide range of core categories such as adventure !asket!all cricket golf indoor running tennis training soccer and workout. Adidas has introduced in India a wide range of sports wear for !oth men and women. "hese include apparel for athletics !asket!all

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cricket golf running soccer swimming tennis and training for Men. "he women6s range includes apparel for athletics golf running swimming tennis training and workout. Accessories include !ag packs campus !ags medium and large kit !ags caps socks wrist and head!ands. Adidas Markets its products in India through a com!ination of mega e0clusive stores 5area of &))) s,. feet and a!ove7 e0clusive stores multi.!rand stores and distri!utors. At present Adidas is availa!le in <) e0clusive outlets out of which +; are company D owned with < new #ompany D owned stores planned for ())@ and in @)) multi.!rand outlets in India.

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MAR(ETI"$9MIX 6FOUR !8S7) A I AS

T+e !rod&/t
:hatever your athletic preference you can now purchase an e0tensive range of Adidas footwear and apparel online. From running shoes to !ase!all cleats eye wear to lanyards collegiate licensed jackets to good old fashioned cotton ".shirts all things sport are availa!le at the Adidas store.

Ho0 do adidas /reate its !rod&/ts

Adidas goal is to create a product that is honest D it must perform. "he rule is simple* form follows function. "echnology and functional design. A development team makes the actual prototypes. "hese prototypes are then presented to the retail market !y the marketing department. An Adidas product is the result of the intense thought and creative energy of many different people. "he following is a general outline of how we create our performance.!ased products. &. "he marketing department evaluates athletes6 needs and develops a !asic concept of how those needs should !e

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met. "his concept is then presented to the design department. (. Aased upon this concept from the marketing department the design teams sketch possi!le prototypes. +. "he people from design and marketing consider the prototype sketches together narrowing the selection to

those they anticipate will most successfully meet athletes6 needs. ;. "he development department then works with the design department to create an actual prototype from the selected sketches. @. "hree separate groups D marketing design and

development D meet and discuss how to improve the prototype. =. Samples are wear.tested to ensure the product meets Adidas standards for performance and dura!ility and stands up to the demands of the sport for which it was designed.

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2review samples are presented to key accounts and consumer focus groups for feed!ack. Aased upon this information final changes are made.

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Samples are distri!uted to Adidas sales representatives for presentation to retailers.

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"he finished product is delivered to retailers.

I1 As A BRA" At Adidas Dyou have got to !e sporty. At Adidas the !rand awarding is !een taken rather seriously at its head,uarters. Adidas wants to !ring inline skates into India. :hat that kind of stuff got to do with Indian marketK Jes it won6t really !e a hot seller !ut it will contri!ute a lot to Adidas !rand image. "hat6s the Adidas way of doing it D image is a critical part of !randing strategy the world over. "he idea of the company is to introduce performance specific sports shoes in the Indian market !y !uilding images around the world E at the same time create the need for these shoes at the ground level.

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Adidas already has heavy weight sportsmen such as Sachin "endulkar Heander 2aes E Mahesh Ahupathi endorsing the !rand in India. "hey had the image apart from endorsing the performance element in the !rand. Adidas steps out of crease with a clear sports positioning. Adidas will take on arch /ike with almost the same positioning. Its working with promising athletes to give them a taste of its products. Adidas nowadays is capturing an attitude that is sports related. Adidas in fact did go through a limited fashion phase. Adidas says D that you are tempted to make ,uick !uck !ut we would like to stick to the sports !rand image !ecause that make us fashiona!le.

II1 *ords of $1 (annan 6 ire/tor : Marketing7 8>ur Secret is our commitment to the sports process. :e develop shoes that take into account the needs of a particular sports E the role of this !rand is driven !y this factor9. 4ood news for Adidas is that even in the casual market the trend is towards !eing sporty. 4oing to 4ym is fast graduating from a mere fad to serious !ody !uilding strengthening E toning. "his is reflected in the clothes that people wear today.

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"he three stripes for instance is uni,ue property which can !e reinvented in various forms as trends changes. C1 For Adidas t+e -rod&/t -%a,s an eminent ro%e in t+e en+an/ement of t+eir /or-orate as 0e%% as s-orts image) A%I%AS SAJS D 8/othing compromised. "he most innovative Adidas products created specifically to help make you a !etter athlete. For Adidas product is not just a assortment of few items. Aut it involvesLdeveloping of the right product D which can then !e put to right place E sold with the right promotion E price.

VA#UE OF IT8S !RO UCTS FOR A I AS >ur goal is to create a product that is honest D it must perform. "he rule is simple* form follows function. As studied earlier an Adidas product is the result of the intense thought and creative energy of many different people. If a company sell an automo!ile is it selling a certain no. of nuts and !olts some metal sheet an engine and four wheelsK If a company sell a delivery service is it selling so much wear and tear on a delivery truck and so much operator fatigueK As

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per Adidas the answer to these ,uestion is instead what we are really selling is the satisfaction use or profit the customer wants. Adidas says that all the customer wants is that whatever

product they purchase should fulfill all their needs and preferences. "hey don6t care how they were made. Further they want that when they order something the don6t really care how much out of the way the driver had to go or where heMshe has !een. "hey just want their package. "hat means for them only the final service matters.
As per Adidas the idea of product potential customer6s satisfactions or !enefits is very important. Adidas says that the total product is not just a physical product with its related features !ut it includes accessories installation instruction on use the package perhaps the !rand name which fulfills some psychological needs a warranty and confidence that service will !e availa!le after the purchase.2HA#3 A/% 2$JSI#AH %IS"1IA-"I>/*

A) !%a/e Adidas is very much concerned a!out its second 8p9. as per Adidas place and physical distri!ution of the product is something on which almost every company spends a handsome amount of money.

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$ence Adidas takes a good care of its place and physical distri!ution process. Adidas has appointed marketing

specialists who are taking care of the supply of the product and their distri!ution channels and process. 2rocess used D assorting progress 3ntire range which is availa!le is put together to give a target market what it wants. Marketing specialists put together an assortment to satisfy some target market. $is is usually done !y those who are close to the retailers only. B) !+,si/a% distri5&tion As per Adidas nearly half of the costs of marketing is spend upon the physical distri!ution. "o take care of this pro!lem Adidas has appointed marketing managers who decides how the transporting and storing functions should !e divided within a channel. "ote) 2hysical distri!ution can !e varied endlessly in a marketing mi0 and in a channel system. TRUC(S In Adidas e0cept the e0port products trucks are considered to !e the !est medium for transport. "he fle0i!ility of trucks makes them really

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good for moving small loads for short distances. "hey can travel on almost any road. According to Adidas they can give e0tremely fast service. Also trucks causes less !reakage in handling. !ROMOTIO") Adidas is one of the India6s !iggest company of sports that spends nearly I&) million on its sales promotion and advertising in Indian Market. Adidas !elieve that it just cannot !e taken lightly. It is a very important aspect of products life cycle. It is the process which is responsi!le for the growth or decline in the sale of the product. Adidas thinks that promotion is communicating information a!out the product !etween the seller and the !uyer to change attitudes and !ehavior. "o handle the company6s promotional activities Adidas has employed marketing managers wherever the Adidas is located. "hese marketing managers look after process of the promotion of the products of their company. As per Adidas the marketing managers promotion jo! is to tell the target customers that the right product is availa!le at the right place and at the right time and especially at the right price.

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Adidas thinks that only taking the product to the customers is not a task of the company. Aut company takes a very important look a!out how the product works and this message is communicated to their consumers. Aecause a wrong message can lead to the end of their products life.

Sa%es !romotion
Adidas is the most popular amongst its rival for its e0cellent sales promotional activities.

As per Adidas they say that they themselves are responsi!le for the encouragement of the customer to !y their products. Adidas !elieves sales promotion tries to compliment the company6s selling efforts.

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STE!S THAT A I AS TA(E TO !ROMOTE SA#ES

In the last years the Adidas has almost given sale to its products = to C times i.e. almost twice in a year Adidas goes for discount on sales. "hey arrange contest. In order to motivate the employees of the company Adidas also prepares training material for the company6s own sales force. "hey even design the sales materials for the company6s own sales force to use during the sales calls. As per Adidas people see same message in different ways. "hey may interpret the same words differently. So Adidas always tries to deliver the message which everyone can easily understand.

A VERTISI"$
As per Adidas advertising can get results in a promotion !lend. 4ood results are o!tained at a cost of course. "he amount spent in the -nites States for advertising is growing. #ontinuously from :orld :ar II to &'<) it went from I& !illion to I@) !illion.

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Adidas also spends nearly I(.' million on its advertising throughout the world. Adidas in India is spending almost I&C million on advertising."he heavy weight players like Sachin "endulkar Heander 2aes and Mahesh Ahupathi are already attached with their ad.campaigns. !RICI"$) Adidas is clear it wants to !ecome the no. one sports !rand in India a choice !rand for all !rands. So far so good !ut how will it tackle a price conscious market like IndiaK Adidas feels that !eing a high energy !usiness Adidas introduces =)).C)) articles every si0 months D ena!les the !rand to remain fresh and !ring on an international and Indians the !rand from the price stand point. 2rice that6s the most critical factor in the Indian conte0t. Adidas !elieves it has to deliver a functional at an afforda!le price. It6s a tough jo! D to maintain the integrity of the performance and still come out with a product a right price point. 4lo!ally shoes start at I@). Aut in India as the perceived need is lower you have to make the product more afforda!le. "o tackle this Adidas came out with speed ())) a product priced at 1s.''@ with the help of local and $ong Nong source people. Adidas however feels that its just the matter of time

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!efore India coverage6s the world on this front. It is very difficult to operate on a lower price point and maintain integrity of product !ut its !een !arely + years since the sports market has taken off. "he original sector is just ()B of the total market and <)B of the volumes comes from sporty shoes. Aut our market is producing products at a price that is relevant to the consumers. Adidas feels that as the volume go up Adidas will try and work out price points as people graduate with !etter

understanding of ,uality and price perception. Oolumes are !ound to go up. Adidas started at the time when India had no strength out in the sports products market in &'<' D '). Its then licensing partner Aata and it had limitations of what it could have put !ehind the !rand. So company took the ne0t !est step when the licensing agreement ended to take a !igger share in !usiness. "o conclude we can say that Adidas is putting all efforts to !ring down the price consciousness in the Indian market. #ompany is trying to make products which are easy to afford and still maintain the integrity of their performance. 4rowth has !een phenomenal for Adidas even given the !ase is small. In ())( Adidas grew !y (@B ())+ !y over @)B and

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this year Adidas is e0pecting more than @)B in terms of value in !oth shoes and apparel while the industry growth as a !est case estimate has !een ().(@B.

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MAR(ETI"$ STRATE$Y : A I AS OTHER STRATE$Y

Adidas the !rand with three stripes seems to use the elements of high.tension in its ads. 1emem!er the Sachin "endulkar commercialK $ow everything is near.frozen and the shattering glass signifies release. 1elease of tension. Adidas gives you a chance to !ut the !oundaries D in every sphere. >nly now the setting is not the playground or the track or the court it is the ur!an landscape D with its omnipresent traffic jams crowded streets and so forth. "his way Adidas !ecomes a part of life. Anyone6s life. Jou don6t have to !e the high. voltage performer to !e a part of the Adidas family. And it goes !eyond that D Adidas !ecomes something that makes you !etter. /ot just as an athlete !ut as a sports person a !etter human !eing. >ne of the ad'ertisements ) "he spot featuring Aoldon shows him chasing a thief 5who6d stolen a "O set when its owner was in the !ath7 through the dark streets. "o help a man 5the owner in a towel7 in distress. And he uses all the power that he can to do what he has to do and what he needs to do.

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And Adidas helps him perform !etter than he would otherwise have !een a!le to. "his is perhaps shown in an o!li,ue way when the spot ends at the feet of Aoldon and the !ather. >ne is wearing a pair of Adidas shoes while the other is !arefoot. Adidas makes you !etter goes the !ase. In short the other man could have done as well as Aoldon. "he !ather reads any man. Any man who wears Adidas. And Adidas goes !eyond athletic performance D it !ecomes everyday life. In stark reality. "hough humorously and light meaning. it has a deep

MAR(ETI"$) A I AS
In &''C Adidas !ecame Adidas.Salomon with its -S I&.; !illion purchase of Salomon a French manufacturer of skis and other sporting goods. "he deal put Adidas one step closer to competitor and world market leader /ike and one step ahead of 1ee!ok. Salomon aside from its winter sport e,uipment also owns golf clu! !rand "aylor Made and cycle !rand Mavic. "he merger makes AdidasMSalomon the second largest sport marketer in the world and num!er one in 3urope. Salomon is currently very strong in /orth America and Gapan and Adidas has the largest market share in 3urope.

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Adidas is like /ike very active insuring sponsorships advertising deals with cele!rities. Some of the most famous are Martina $ingis 5tennis7 No!e Aryant 5!asket!all7 2eyton Manning 2aul 2almer 5swimmer7 jan -llrich 5racing cyclist7 and the /ew Jork yankees. %avid Aeckham 2atrick Nluivert and Pidane all wear Adidas !oots the 2redator Accelerator.

#EVERA$I"$ O" SACHI") O"E MAJOR !ART OF MAR(ETI"$ STRATE$Y I" I" IA
#ontinuing its association with trump card Sachin the local four.ad print campaign tries to connect Adidas6 product attri!utes with Sachin6s magic. 8Instead of presenting just one dimensions * "he first ad connects Sachin6s choice of a heavy !at with Adidas6 Falcon %orf light weight shoes. Says the headline* QSachin likes his !at heavy not his shoe.6 "he second new shoe range to !e introduced for the first time in India. Su!.!randed QAksu6 and priced at 1s ( ('' these are athletic sandals primarily meant for water.!ased adventure sports. Finally "he ne0t ad will convey that Adidas covers various price points !y promoting its

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e0isting 2ortland range priced at 1s & ;'' and & C'' 5the leather version7. "he importance of cele!rity sponsorship and events to Adidas is illustrated !y 1o!ert Houis.%reyfus6 letter in the company6s &''< annual report * 8:hen it comes to showcasing our !rands &''< was truly e0ceptional. 3arly in the year the :inter >lympics focused the attention of sports enthusiasts on /agano. In summer the Soccer :orld #up in France attracted more spectators than any single sports event !efore. :hen the French team promoting the three stripes won the :orld #up we could not have wished for more. "hese were great times for our !rand.6 Adidas has reached an agreement with ISH Marketing 4 of Switzerland to !ecome an official sponsor of the ())) -3FA 3uropean #hampionships. Adidas will have access to the official em!lems mascot and trophy for the design of its own products.. In &''< the overall Adidas !udget for promotion and sponsoring accounted for nearly &@B of turnover. "he positioning is !eing communicated through its glo!al campaign. released worldwide in Fe!ruary &''' !ut in India only in May.as well as through a four.ad print campaign developed locally !y 1N SwamyMAA%>. Says 4 Nanan general manager marketing Adidas*

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8:e are the only !rand with heritage in sports. As a !rand we6re not an attitude that6s fashiona!le. :e6re an attitude that is relevant all the time. "he campaign also introduces a new !rand line for Adidas* QForever Sport6. "he line sums up the 8deeply.felt9 and 8long.term love affair9 5it has !een involved with sports since &'(<7 that Adidas has with sport in all of its forms. Interestingly the new !rand line has !een introduced almost after a decade when it was using Q3arn your stripes6 as its tag.line. "he company dropped it during the late <)s after it found that it wasn6t connecting too well with its consumers. B&t t+e go%den 3&estion is t+at 0i%% t+e /am-aign make Adidas r&n; "he company e0pects the campaign to strengthen the image of the !rand since research had indicated that neither of the three multinational sports shoe !rands present in India had a clear image* most were perceived as diffused !rands and personality.led. Says Nanan* 8Sachin has and will play a major role in pushing the !rand. $e is important as there are certain values a consumer needs to know a!out Adidas. Aut after a certain duration we have to present a glo!al perspective too and hence the Forever Sport campaign.9

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Interestingly Adidas claims that it did not 0ant to 5e /a&g+t &- in t+e /%&tter of t+e *or%d C&- -romotions.and deli!erately chose not to associated with the :orld #up. Instead according to Nanan the campaign has !een !roken now to coincide with the peak season 5April.Gune7. 8"he :orld #up is incidental. It6s too large an event to make significance for us9 says Nanan. $owever the company is maintain a steady and dominant presence in the media during the #up* strewn over select channels like Star %iscovery and 3S2/ are the Sachin ads promoting Adidas. 8Star /ews is delivering good value while through %iscovery we can catch the elite customer9 Nanan says. Although Nanan admits that the sports shoe and apparel market is at a nascent stage he claims that Adidas has grown !y over (@) per cent from last year. As a company that takes pride in not joining the price !rawl Adidas does not intend to !ring down the prices of its products. Says Nanan 8:e don6t look at driving down the market !y lowering the price. :e are willing to wait for the market to evolve.9 For Adidas the real !reakthrough says Nanan has come through a com!ination of strategies* signing on Sachin Heander and AhupathiR e0panding its reach 5it opened ;@ stores last year7R a revamped range which covers a !and of price pointsR and support to the !rand. "8e

+(

!uilt.in value pricing in our products and supported them through sports icons who are looked up to. :e have realized that to have just one good guy endorsing your !rand is more important than having several unknown faces9 says Nanan "he company is enlarging the scope of its !usiness !y concentrating on apparel. 8Apparel is driving the !usiness. Most consumers start e0perimenting with the !rand through apparel9 admits Nanan.

3ssentially perceived as a male !rand Adidas however defends its range !y pointing out that currently it has @) items out of a total of (@) for women. Further Adidas is -%anning to add <= ne0 stores t+is ,ear . 8:e6re looking at driving the market through e0clusive stores9. Says Nanan. "he logic is clear* use Forever Sport to ensure sales forever. "e'er a/+ie'ed -rofita5i%it, and /o%%a-sed &nder t+e 0eig+t of its o0n &nrea%i>ed am5itions1 Adidas6s o!jective with the new line of footwear is to generate sales leads through its :e! site either through direct purchase or a retailer finder. Oillota says that every style of footwear has a story particularly those endorsed !y star athletes and it6s these stories that sell the shoes to !uyers.

++

:hile Oillota wouldn6t disclose how much of Aryant6s Adidas footwear is sold online he did say one of three visitors to the Aryant portion of the Adidas site demonstrated purchase intent !y clicking through to the store or to the retail finder. "he newest version of Aryant6s footwear hits the street /ov. & coinciding with the start of the ())+.()); /AA season. :hile Adidas won6t comment on the new site6s features citing competitive pressure Oillota says it is Adidas America6s most am!itious integration of :e! content and electronic marketing. "he Adidas . Salomon 30ecutive Aoard will propose paying a dividend of ## ).'( per share to the Annual 4eneral Meeting of Shareholders on May &) the same amount as in the previous year. "his decision to maintain a sta!le dividend level despite the 32S decline in ()); underlines Management6s confidence in its a!ility to achieve its ())@ targets. Management views ()); as a year of consolidation and restructuring and has increased the pay out percentage to reward long. term shareholders.

+;

THE A I AS #O$O "he 8"refoil9 was adopted as the corporate logo in &'C(. It represents the heritage and history of the !rand. In &''= it was decided that the "refoil would only !e used on heritage products. 30amples of product featuring the "refoil logo include the Stan Smith 1oad Haver A.&@ warm.up and #lassic ".shirt.

E3&i-ment
"he Adidas 3,uipment line was launched in &''&. "his line of footwear and apparel represents the most uni,ue and functional of Adidas products. 3,uipment is the ultimate e0pression of what is uni,uely possi!le !y design when form follows function.

+@

In Ganuary &''= the "hree.Stripes !rand mark !ecame the worldwide Adidas corporate logo. "his logo represents performance and the

future of the Adidas !rand. "his logo is used in all advertising printed collateral and corporate signage. Since &';' the T+ree9Stri-es have !een an integral part of our !rand and product designs. "his trademark has !ecome synonymous with Adidas and its dedication to producing high.,uality athletic products to help athletes perform !etter.

+=

A I AS) COM!A"Y8S FI"A"CIA# FACTS

For over <+ years Adidas has !een part of the world of sports on every level delivering state.of.the.art sports footwear apparel and

accessories. "oday with total net sales of S&<( million Adidas. Salomon is a glo!al leader in the sporting goods industry and offers the !roadest portfolio of products. Adidas.Salomon products are availa!le in virtually ever country of the world. >ur strategy is simple* continuously strengthen our !rands and products to improve our competitive position and financial performance. "he company6s share of the world market for sporting goods is estimated at around &' percent.

+C

S*OT A"AYSIS
Strengt+s)
"he main strength of Adidas is his 2roduct Fuality. "he ,uality and the material uses in Adidas is very good. "he company has a good !rand image in the market the pu!licity and the advertisement is also very good and lastly company hold a healthy market share in the market. Another strength of the company is its well efficient and effective management which works as a team.

*eakness)
"he major weakness in the Adidas is that the manufacturing of the products of Adidas is not done in India itself it is !eing import hence the cost !ecome high and the margin of profit !ecomes low that6s why company must give a deep thought on manufacturing their products in India. Another major weakness in the company is that it is not catering to all the segments which I have already discuss a!ove

+<

If these two weakness in the company can !e eradicated then the company may earn high profit and !etter market status.

O--ort&nities)
Adidas does have many products for the ur!an segment or poor people !ut there is hardly any product or we can say that there are no products for this segment. India is more a rural country in the total population of India major part of population lives in rural area and these people can not afford the costly products of the company like Adidas hence company must target this particular segment they must introduce the shoes and other product according to their demands. Also price is one of the major factor which may influence this type of segment hence company should make their policy accordingly. #ompany must also consider the range and the variety of the products as compare to /ike and 1ee!ok. In my opinion the company must introduce more rage or more variety in the market to compete with their competitors and also the customer have more choices to choice the product from.

+'

T+reats)
Adidas does not have strong distri!ution network as compare to /ike and 1ee!ok in India. /ike has more num!er of retail outlet then Adidas and 1ee!ok has a uni,ue distri!ution network the company 1ee!ok not only uses its outlet for the sale of their product !ut also use some other shoes company outlet like 8Aata9. In a Aata showroom u can find 1ee!ok shoes and other products. Aut this is not a case with Adidas hence 1ee!ok has an e0tra advantage over Adidas. Adidas do not have any competitive advantage as compared to /ike and 1ee!ok.

;)

RESEARCH METHO O#O$Y

STA$E O"E
"he project study started with collection of Secondary %ata. "he sources for the secondary data are as follows* ata So&r/es /ews 2apers Magazines Internet 2ress articles on Adidas.

Stage T0o I visited the Adidas India Htd. which is located In Mehrauli 5new %elhi7. I Also Met Some >f "he Marketing 30ecutives :ho $elped Me 4etting "he 1e,uired Information. I Also 4ot Some >f "he Information From "he >ther 1esources >f "he #orporate >ffice Hike * Com-an, Jo&rna%s Com-an, Cata%ogs ?&estionnaire 6Str&/t&red @ "on isg&ised7

;&

 And Ot+er Re%ated So&r/es1

!rimar, data) I have prepared a ,uestionnaire for the general pu!lic asking a!out the marketing strategy of Adidas in that particular ,uestionnaire I have asked some ,uestion give in finding and analysis section* 5the ,uestioner is filled !y <) people7.

;(

FI" I"$S
Com-an, resear/+ re-ort 6A7 Com-an, es/ri-tion
Adidas.Salomon A45A%I%AS7. 2roduction and marketing of sports e,uipment footwear and apparel under the !rand names of Adidas Salomon "aylor Made and Mavic. Sales of Footwear accounted for ;@B of ()); revenuesR Sales of Apparel +@B and Sales of $ardware ()B.

6B7 Com-etitor Ana%,sis

Adidas.Salomon A4 operates in the Men6s E !oys6 clothing sector. "his analysis compares Adidas with three other sport shoe and apparel manufacturers* /ike Inc. of the -nited States 5()); sales of I' !illion of which @'B was Footwear7 1ee!ok International Htd. of the -nited States 5())+ sales* I(.<C !illion of which C+B was Footwear7 and Amer 4roup 2H# which is !ased in Finland 5())+ sales of =.;= !illion Finnish Markka T-SI''=.<< millionU of which (;B was 1ac,uet Sports7. /ote* not all of these companies have the same fiscal year* the most recent data for each company are !eing used.

6C7 Sa%es Ana%,sis

%uring the first ,uarter of ()); sales at Adidas totalled &.@= !illion euro. "his is an increase of (.CB from the &.@( !illion 3uro in sales at

;+

the company during the first ,uarter of ())+. %uring the previous &C ,uarters sales at Adidas have increased compared with the same ,uarter in the previous year. Sales at Adidas appear to have some seasonally* during each of the previous @ years sales have !een highest during the third ,uarter which has accounted for !etween (<.)B and +(.)B of the annual sales. Adidas reported sales of @.+< !illion 3uro 5-SI@.+@ !illion7 for the year ending %ecem!er of ());. "his represents an increase of '.)B versus ())) when the company6s sales were @.+@ !illion 3uro. Sales at Adidas have increased during each of the previous five years 5and since &''' sales have increased a total of ((=B7.

1 Re/ent Sa%es at Adidas

(Figures in Billions of Euro)
6.06 6.53

8 6 4 2 0 1999 2000 2001 1.79 2.61 3.62

5.47

2002

2003

2004

In ())( sales in Hatin America were up at a rate that was much higher than the company as a whole* in this region sales increased +=.)B to &C&.)) million euro. Adidas also e0perienced significant increases in sales in Asia.2acific 5up +.'B to <C@.)) million 3uro7.

;;

$RO*TH
Adidas is a constantly growing company. It is glo!al in scope with the majority of its sales coming from 3urope followed !y the -nited states with the smallest percent of Adidas6 sales coming from Asia. Adidas sales have grown significantly each year from &''; to the present. Adidas is the leading producer of sporting goods in 3urope and it is second in the overall world market just !ehind /ike. /early @@B of Adidas revenues come from 3urope while +CB come from the Americas and only 'B of revenues come from a growing Asian market. For anyone not familiar with the structure of this company 5since it is not !ased out of the -SA7 it is much like -S !ased competitor /ike. Adidas has stock traded on e0changes in Frankfurt and 2airs and its ticker sym!ol is A%%%J. "he pie chart !elow shows e0actly how the ownership of the company is spread out across the world. Most of the ownership comes from 3urope while a su!stantial +)B comes from the -nited States and the rest from Asia.

;@

Asia 5%

Europe 40%

US 30%

UK 25%

Adidas is a growing company as stated a!ove !ut how much and how fastK As you can see from the graph of net sales over the past five years sales have grown rather e0ponentially although growth slowed in &'''. "his growth in sales comes from not only an improving world economy !ut from Adidas6 marketing efforts to make it one of the most popular sporting goods !rands. "his shows that Adidas does not have a large market share in Asia as compare us and 3urope and my ,uestionnaire 5given !elow7 also suggest that company can improve a lot the certain areas are marketing distri!ution and competing with the competitors. "he company has to !ecome innovator not follower they must do something differently to come with the flying colors.

;=

ATA A"A#YSIS

1. $ow does u rate the company marketing strategy as compare to the other competitors company like /ike 1ee!ok etc.K >ut of <) people += had said Adidas have a good marketing strategy and should continue like this only (; had said /ike is more !etter then Adidas &= said 1ee!ok is good and ; said others.

others 5% reebok 20% adidas 45%

adidas nike reebok others

nike 30%

;C

(. %o u think that the company Adidas is giving its customer what they want in terms of ,uality and prices or value for moneyK >ut of <) people =< person are satisfy with the ,uality and the price of the product and other says that they are not satisfy.
happy not happy

not happy 15%

happy not happy

happy 85%

;<

+. %o u think that the advertisements and the !rand am!assador of the company is good enoughK >ut of <) people == person said yes they like the advertisement very much and rest said no they don6t like them.

18%

0% happy not happy 82%

;'

;. :hat things u keep in mind while purchasing shoes will it !e ,uality advertisement price or designK >ut of <) people =' person had said that the product must have good ,uality and good design and other said they purchase these shoe for status sym!ol only.

14%

0%

quality other factor

86%

@)

@. If u have to purchase shoe e0cept Adidas which shoe it will !e and whyK >ut of <) people ;( have said /ike (+ said 1ee!ok and &@ others which shows that the main competitor of Adidas is /ike. "hey have given different reason for that some said /ike and Adidas are have same range of products and there ,uality and prices is also same so different people have different opinion.

19% nike 52% 29% reebok others

@&

=. :hat do u think that the company Adidas must do to improve its marketing strategyK Most of people said Adidas has a good marketing strategy !ut the company should launch more products or u can say more variety to their products.

@(

#IMITATIO"S
"he research project has !een completed with ease and comforta!ly. /o particular limitation or

shortcoming was realized during the analysis. Also due to time constraints enough justice could not !e done to the project.

@+

CO"C#USIO"S
A%I%AS in I/%IA has always !een driven !y its Oalue.for.money strategy. "he company needs to identify critical success factory and work assiduously towards achieving it. As the world grows to !ecome one many pro!lems will arise that cannot !e solved. >ne of the primary challenges associated with

glo!alization is !alancing conflicting and competing o!jectives. In the case of Adidas it has faced such pro!lems already and how they have dealt with them is with fle0i!ility and calmness. %espite what could !e higher costs Adidas has chosen to stick with their human right codes and Standards of 3ngagement rather than continue to !e associated with su!contractors who treat works in inhumane ways. As Adidas has grown worldwide it has had to deal with pro!lems of heterogeneity vs. homogeneity. In other words in an increasingly heterogeneous and glo!al world diversity in the workplace has appeared to emerge as an issue. #ompanies including Adidas are no longer homogenous in the sense that their companies have grown worldwide. And as a result Adidas has had to make worldwide

head,uarters and produce information and products in several different languages. $aving to spread its workforce Adidas has come to

depend on intangi!les.

@;

"he knowledge worldwide e0perience and diversity that an Adidas employee can !ring to the ta!le are valua!le. 1ecently how successful companies are in the glo!al world is increasingly derived from intangi!les such as these that organizations cannot own. Adidas is greatly affected !y these e0ternal influences since indeed it is a glo!al company. For some it is not common knowledge that Adidas is a 4erman company. "his is a result of good glo!al !usiness. Adidas has created a product that is glo!al and with that diversity and knowledge greatly affect the company. Adidas must !e a!le to easily adapt to different cultures and must !e culturally aware when conducting !usiness. "he long list of Adidas su!sidiaries where it conducts !usiness proves that Adidas is constantly adapting to cultural changes and must !e e0tremely diverse. Aecause of this necessity knowledge is greatly valued. 4reat changes occur in this industry and as a result new ideas intuition and inspiration are an asset that is a necessity in this industry and to remain a glo!al company. :ho leads this knowledge and maintains diversity are the managers yet they too are facing new changes.

@@

RECOMME" ATIO"
For ()); the Adidas !rand6s new divisional structure will !e in place to start delivering positive results for the 4roup. Adidas America will remain a challenge !ut nevertheless will deliver ,ualitative sales improvements in the second half of ())@. "op. line growth is e0pected in all other regions. %ou!le.digit growth from Salomon is projected as a result of the continued innovative strength and the increasing profile of their products. "he integration of Mavic with Salomon which !egan in ())( will continue in ())@ with further synergies !etween the two !rands. At "aylor Made.Adidas 4olf increased marketing and sales support will target am!itious golfers and solid growth in all the major golf markets is e0pected to continue. In addition to these positive top.line developments gross margins are e0pected to remain within a range of ;&B to ;+B operating e0penses will decline as a percentage of sales and as a result net income is projected to increase !y &@B. Adidas is currently ranked third in almost every category in the glo!al athletic shoe industry. $owever they rank second only to /ike in terms of sales. "he main competitors of Adidas include /ike and 1ee!ok $owever other smaller competitors

@=

include Fila 2uma and 3asy Spirit. Adidas commands only @B of the athletic shoe !usiness in the -.S. compared with the ;)B for the fearsome /ike !ut the rejuvenated Adidas has clim!ed to within easy reach of 1ee!ok which has !een struggling in the past couple of years. Adidas is also steadily regaining market share lost to other !rands such as H.A. 4ear and Fila 5Fortune ()))7 Since ac,uiring their current president Houis.%reyfus Adidas a wholly owned su!sidiary has competed with a whole new strategy. Aside from cutting the whole line of 4erman senior management Houis.%reyfus also fired management in Asia who failed to match competitors6 low costs in su!contracting shoemaking to local companies. :hile Houis.%reyfus fought !ring down costs he also took a gam!le on the side. Adidas !egan to focus on glo!al marketing. Aut the !attle has only started and the foreign sports companies are here for the long term. "hey can sustain losses for years to come in order to gain market share. :hat they are doing at present is !uilding up distri!ution networks to cover every nook and corner of the country and setting up manufacturing facilities.

@C

>nly those Indian manufactures which have a strong focus on manufacturing and technological upgradation will survive in the long run although with a much smaller market share than they have at present. Small companies will !e sidelined totally and will e0it from the sports market altogether. A%I%AS in I/%IA has always !een driven !y its Oalue D for.money strategy. "he company needs to identify critical success factory and work assiduously towards achieving it.

@<

A""EXURE

?UESTIO""AIRE &. $ow do u rate the company marketing strategy as compare to the
other competitors company like /ike 1ee!ok etc.K Adidas 1ee!ok /ike >thers

(. %o u think that the company Adidas is giving its customer what they want in terms of ,uality and prices or value for moneyK $appy /ot $appy

+. %o u think that the advertisements and the !rand am!assador of the company is good enoughK $appy /ot $appy

;. :hat things u keep in mind while purchasing shoes will it !e ,uality advertisement price or designK Fuality >taher factor

@'

@. If u have to purchase shoe e0cept Adidas which shoe it will !e and whyK /ike >thers 1ee!ok

=. :hat do u think that the company Adidas must do to improve its marketing strategyK VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

=)

BIB#IO$RA!HY
Books) 2$IHI2 N>"H31 MAR(ETI"$ MA"A$EME"T 3%I"I>/ ())@.
O.S 1AMAS:AMJ A/% S. /AMAN-MA1I MA1N3"I/4 MA/A43M3/" S3#>/% 3%I"I>/. :IHHIAM S"A/">/.G MI#$AHH G.3"G3# A1-#3 G.:AHN31 F-/%AM3/"AH >F MA/A43M3/". 1AOI#$A/%1A$./ #>M23"I"I>/ I/ I/%IA/ I/%-S"1J.

*e5 Sites

www.adidas.com www.indiainfoline.com www.we!crawler.com www.indiatimes.com

C%ass "otes is referred Maga>ines AEM Ausiness India India "oday Ausiness "oday

"e0s-a-ers "he "imes of India "he $industan "imes "he 3conomic "imes

=&