President Obama'S Shoes UA Has Taken Action In China To Enhance Domestic Popularity.

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Recently, Nike, Adidas and other companies have become uneasy.

On the day of November 2011, President Obama, like usual, was ready to jog in the White House for a physical training. He left his left hand in front of the lens and thumbs up. His right hand was surrounded by a pair of black, white and red UA, which was specially tailored for his presidential version.

It is indeed a good spokesperson for sports shoes. In the past, people usually thought that New Balance could win the favor of the president, but now Obama appreciates the obvious UA.

However, Chinese sports brand consumers still have limited awareness of UA. The company opened its first exclusive store in Shanghai Port Plaza in April 2011.

But the good news is that UA's e-commerce business in China will be opened recently.

"Many people ask why we can't buy UA products in China?" UA founder and CEO Kevin Plank (Kevin Plank) said that the initial impetus to the Chinese market came from the feedback from Chinese consumers to travel to the United States.

Of course, Planck also mentioned the temptation of the Chinese market: "China's market is too big."

Just as the popularity of UGG snow boots in the world began with the spontaneous popularity of Hollywood actress, most of the early orders of UA benefited from the star effect and word of mouth of professional athletes.

UA's first impressive appearance was Geoff George (Jeff George), a member of the famous American rugby team Oakland Raiders, wearing the headlines of USA Today.

Today, the company, founded in 1996, has established partnerships with stars and teams from more than 100 professional and university sports teams in the United States, such as Jennings (Brandon Jennings) and Phelps (Michael Phelps), and has become the latest NBA partner this year.

In 2010, UA's global sales volume was close to $1 billion, which allowed plank to become a new leader in the Forbes rich list.

However, nearly $90% of this 1 billion dollar wealth comes from the single market in the United States.

Although UA entered Japan 11 years ago, its brand influence has so far been very limited in Asia.

Relative to the layout of Nike and Adidas in the global and emerging markets, the sales of UA depend highly on the rise and fall of the US market.

This is a great hidden danger for a company that still needs rapid growth.

"I hope UA is an international brand, and more than half of its sales will come from outside the United States," he said.

Planck said.

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The biggest challenge is how to use the first two years to improve the brand awareness of UA in China and even in Asia.

"90% of the people who walk past our stores may not know what this brand is."

Planck said.

Therefore, the UA store on the ground floor of Hong Kong Hui square will often show that the customer who tries on the UA coat is splashed with a glass of water by the shop assistant to feel the waterproof function of the clothes.

Meanwhile, on the big screen next to the wall, Phelps was shown an advertisement in a rainstorm wearing the same clothes.

Professional function is the biggest feature and advantage of UA products.

Planck is also an athlete, but he is not a big star, but just a member of the University of Maryland rugby team.

He said he was the most sweaty player in the team at that time, when the cotton sportswear was difficult to maintain after being soaked by sweat, which would affect the athletes' performance.

The idea of finding a clothing material that quickly absorbs sweat and sweat and creating a sporting goods brand that can enhance athletes' performance was inspired at that time.

Later, the tight and fast drying sportswear (moisture-wicking), which was first introduced to the market by UA, was emulated by many companies such as Nike and Reebok.

The professionalism and high technology content of the product make UA stand out from many sports brands in the US market, especially in the market and other resources, which are especially popular among professional athletes and young people.

At present, in the professional sports apparel market in the United States, the market share of UA reaches 75%, leaving Nike and Adidas behind. In sports sporting goods market, UA accounts for 31%, second only to 36% of Nike.

"In China, we will continue to maintain the brand's DNA."

According to Planck, through market research, the biggest advantage of UA relative to its competitors is not only the US phenomenon, but also the whole sporting goods industry.

"Our products are very attractive to those who want to improve their athletic performance and win."

The idea that UA hopes to spread in China is that athletes not only refer to those in the arena, but everyone can be athletes.

But the Chinese market is not yet mature enough to allow professional and subdivision brands to have enough room for survival. Such brands will face risks when they enter China on a large scale.

"The concept of Chinese consumers has not yet evolved to pay more attention to the stage of the product itself."

A local sporting goods manufacturer insider told this magazine that the strong channel providers might have developed.

"We did not plan to open 100 stores next year."

Planck said he was not impatient with the opening of the Chinese market.

Correspondingly, UA targets the target consumer group as a young person aged between 12 and 25, the most important consumer group in 10 years.

"How can we get consumers to go through other sports brand stores? I think I don't need those. I only need UA. If we don't make this clear, we shouldn't shop blindly."

Ma Jinyao, general manager of UA China, told the magazine that the first store in Hong Kong Hui square was 300% higher than its sales growth half a year ago.

Insiders revealed that the less than 30 square meter store now has a monthly sales volume of about 300 thousand yuan, and its Ping efficiency is higher than the industry average.

In 2012, UA will open 3 to 5 stores in Shanghai and Beijing.

Similar to the site selection criteria for the first store, the initial UA stores will be selected in commercial landmark buildings in important cities to directly contact more consumers.

After becoming an important brand in Shanghai and Beijing, UA plans to go to northern cities, such as Harbin, and then cover China's major second tier cities.

Sponsoring athletes and fitness trainers will be one of the main promotion methods of UA in China based on the successful path in the US.

"We have contacted many Chinese athletes, and they will be the best endorser of UA in China."

Ma Jinyao said.