Microeconomics, as defined by Begg & Ward (2013) is “the study of how individuals make economic decisions with an economy. Microeconomics utilises individuals, firms and consumers, analysing their behaviour to develop an understanding in what causes them to prefer particular products/services. (Begg & Ward, 2013; Acasestudy.com, 2020)
Competitors
The athletic shoe market is driven by three major companies. Nike, Reebok and Adidas all feature specific, premium apparel with the same goal, to enhance the performance of athletes in all major sports.
At a professional level, all companies are heavily competing for the service and endorsements of professional basketball players due to both the sporting audience and social media marketability.
As of 2014, Nike controlled 48% of the basketball shoe market, with secondary companies far behind. (SportsRec, 2020)
Customers
Customers directly affect Reebok, providing sales and advertisement of products. The ability of Reebok to understand and manipulate both its products and customers towards each other significantly effects it’s success. Reebok utilises specific advertising, endorsements of both athletes and non-athletes and providing a USP (unique selling point) to gain an advantage in the competitive footwear market. Reeboks USP revolves around providing quality footwear that is both innovative in design and style.
Suppliers
Reebok focuses heavily on producing environmentally friendly products. These include “Better cotton”, recycled polyester, recycled nylon and algae-based EVA to name a few. Adidas co-founded the “Better Cotton Initiative”, a successful project to produce cotton sustainably, with reduced pesticide use, more-efficient water uses which ultimately lead to their 100% use of sustainable cotton in 2018. This has been outsourced significantly from manufacturing sites, utilising sites in Turkey, Brazil, US, Mali, Pakistan and India. (Reebok, 2020)
Public
The public includes groups that can impact the marketing activities of a company. Reebok’s advertisement strategies are formulated to provide satisfaction for the public and contribute to positive word-of-mouth. Reebok’s advertisement is tailor-made to produce both diversity and forge links between both performance and fashion. A recent advertisement (see below) focused on promoting both fashion and sport together while introducing a pair of Aztrek Double sneakers. As stated by Handley (2020), “Consumers don’t see the two as separate. They don’t delineate brands like that”. She followed with stating “We are working on integrating”, “we want the brand to have one brand voice, one brand vision, one brand” (Handley, 2020).
This revolution in Reebok’s marketing strategy is significantly driven by both its consumer base and new brand strategy, to “change the way people perceive, define and experience fitness” (Baker, 2012).
Marketing Intermediaries
Reebok utilise an array of retail stores as well as an online store. These allow both advertisement and sales opportunities to increase influence and profits.(Microenvironmental Factors, 2014)
References
Acasestudy.com (2020). Reebok Marketing Plan. Available at: <https://acasestudy.com/reebok-marketing-plan/> (Accessed 22 February 2020).
Baker, R., 2012. Reebok Reveals Global Brand Strategy – Marketing Week. [online] Marketing Week. Available at: <https://www.marketingweek.com/reebok-reveals-global-brand-strategy/> [Accessed 20 February 2020].
Begg, D. and Ward, D., 2013. Economics For Business. 4th ed. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill Education, pp.8-9.
Handley, L., 2020. Reebok Aims To Change Perceptions With Ad That Mixes Sport And Fashion. [online] CNBC. Available at: <https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/12/reebok-aims-to-change-perceptions-with-ad-that-mixes-sport-and-fashion.html> [Accessed 18 February 2020].
My learning reflection of marketing concepts. 2014. Microenvironmental Factors. [online] Available at: <https://306learningportfolio.weebly.com/microenvironmental-factors/microenvironmental-factors> [Accessed 19 February 2020].
Reebok. 2020. What Are Your Products Made From?. [online] Available at: <https://www.adidas-group.com/en/sustainability/products/materials/> [Accessed 1 March 2020].
SportsRec. 2020. Nike Vs. Reebok Vs. Adidas. [online] Available at: <https://www.sportsrec.com/6559968/nike-vs-reebok-vs-adidas> [Accessed 2 March 2020].
Statista. 2015. Athletic Footwear Market Share United States 2014 | Statista. [online] Available at: <https://www.statista.com/statistics/611874/united-states-athletic-footwear-market-share/> [Accessed 19 February 2020].
Understanding Reebok 