Branding Athletic Apparel: A Series

Sports branding has always fascinated me. Long before I was aware of branding as a phenomenon, I was consumed by it. I cringe when I think back now, but first learning to play golf, I always wore a black Nike hat with a red shirt like Tiger Woods. Even today, a favourite website in my news feed is Uni-Watch, a site devoted to the "Obsessive Study of Athletics Aesthetics."

A brand is much more than the product we wear. While "quality" and "fit" might be how we rationalise our purchases, there are stronger influences at work long before we step-up to the cash register. 

As I've mentioned previously, the purpose of this blog is not simply the study of branding as a series of one-off articles. The aim is to make concrete recommendations. 

Apart from my own experiences, athletic brands make an especially compelling study because there is so much to analyse. Among their many characteristics: 

• The top athletic brands have both transformational and traditional types of leaders 
• They are active in endorsements and cross-promotion
• They are breaking new ground in terms of technology
• Some set style trends - not only on the field or in the arena, but on the street
• They are experts in guerrilla marketing as well as traditional advertising
• They have had failures, as well as success, entering new categories

According to Forbes, the most popular sports apparel brands are Nike, Adidas, Reebok and Under Armour. But only two (Nike and Adidas) cracked Interbrand's list of the Top 100 Global Brands in 2011.

Aside from research to understand the category and its competitors, specific conclusions I intend to explore are: 

• UNDER ARMOUR - Among the top ranked brands, Under Armour is the youngest. Compared to Nike (1972), Adidas (1949) and Reebok (1958), it was founded only in 1996.  The recent five-year agreement to become "technical partner" of EPL club Tottenham Hotspur is its largest team sponsorship to date, and certainly it's most notable outside the United States.  Where is it heading, and what should it be doing? 

• PUMA - Puma is noticeably absent among the top ranked brands. Having transformed itself over the past decade from a cash-strapped alternative brand - even claiming responsibility for the new segment: Sportlifestyle - what can it do continue to stay relevant and, perhaps, one day appear among the world's Top 100 brands?

• LI-NING - Named after one of China's most famous Olympians, the regional brand made an aggressive push in to the United States in 2011 that coincided with steadily declining sales, eventually culminating in the ouster of it's CEO. How can it turn itself around and does it really need to become a global brand to succeed?