One of Most Creative Women㢢‚¬™s Fashion Sportswear Brand Created in the Usa

LONDON, United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland — "You lot don't stand in front of a mirror before a run and wonder what the road will think of your outfit. It would not be easier to run if you dressed sexier. The route doesn't detect if you lot're not wearing lipstick. The only affair the road cares about is that you pay information technology a visit in one case in a while." Anyone who has seen the 2000 Nancy Meyers comedy "What Women Want" will recognise these lines from a fictional Nike commercial, conceived by a male advertising executive who has an accident and ends up with the ability to hear what women are thinking. The concept, which focuses on a adult female'southward desire to just run on the pavement without superficial judgement or expectations, is a success — and one that sportswear brands can notwithstanding derive lessons from 17 years later on.

For years, athletic products for women were simply designs for men in smaller sizes and more than feminine colours. For many companies, women haven't been the chief focus — or fifty-fifty taken into business relationship at all — when products, retail experience and marketing messages were beingness created. "In the past women had to accept the hand-me-downs from the men's wardrobe and make them work," says Matt Powell, sports industry analyst at the NPD Grouping. But today, the 'shrink it and pink it' strategy no longer works. "Now [the female consumer] knows that brands can, in fact, make women-specific products and she's demanding that they practice so."

In 2016, The states clothes sales grew by 3 percent, reaching $218.7 billion, according to data compiled by the NPD Grouping. Athleisure continued to exist a peak growing segment that year, with an 11 percent increment that fabricated information technology a $45.9 billion market place. Including women in the sportswear conversation comes at a time when they account for a pregnant share of all buying decisions. A 2013 Nielsen report reveals that American women alone wield $5 trillion to $fifteen trillion in purchasing power annually. "Women drive a majority of consumer spending, and then information technology'south smart business to focus on the women's market," says Bridget Brennan, chief executive of The Female Gene, a strategic consulting business firm focused on the study of women consumers.

Brennan as well notes an increase in women participating in sport: Of the more than 11,000 athletes who took part in the 2016 Rio Olympics, 45 percent were women. Information technology's a far weep from the showtime modern Olympics 120 years ago in Athens, where all 241 athletes were men. There are besides more women identifying as sports fans. "On boilerplate, beyond 24 major countries representing the Americas, Europe and Asia, nearly half of all women now declare themselves either interested or very interested in sport compared to 69 per cent of men," says Paul Smith, founder and principal executive of Repucom, a sports research firm.

Many businesses have taken heed. Mainstream sportswear players like Nike, Adidas and Nether Armour now characteristic women in their marketing campaigns and are developing lines that women want to wear. Just is it too late? Equally more women buy into the sportswear sector, more brands are competing for a place in the marketplace and there is greater admission to affordable, trend-led athletic gear at the likes of Asos and Amazon. There is as well competition from women-focused activewear brands like Lululemon and Sweaty Betty, as well as newer rivals like Ultracor and Outdoor Voices.

Speaking to the female athlete

For International Women'due south Day in March, Nike — which is currently the market place leader in both men's and women'south activewear co-ordinate to NPD — launched three films, in the Middle East, Russia and Turkey, aimed at challenging gender stereotypes in each region. "Our women's concern is one of the categories that we're supercharging and putting more resource against, with the greatest potential for growth and highest returns," says Amy Montagne, vice president and full general director of Global Nike Women's.

In 2015, Nike announced ambitious plans to hitting $fifty billion in sales by 2020 — and the women's business organisation is a massive opportunity. The Oregon-based company pushed its marketing spend to $804 1000000 in 2016, an increase of 10 percent yr on year, with a focus on its women's offering, which it plans to grow into an $xi billion business by 2020. "Nike's women's business surpassed $6.6 billion this past financial year and outpaced the growth of our men'south business organisation in 2016 as well," says Montagne.

For Autumn/Winter 2017, Under Armour debuted "Dissimilar Whatsoever", an entirely digital execution featuring six female athletes beyond a variety of sports, including ballerina Misty Copeland, stuntwoman Jessie Graff and champion sprinter Natasha Hastings. "When brands talk about women'southward performance, their achievements take always been compared to men. At the Olympic games, the female swim champion was compared to 'the Michael Phelps of swimming'. [Women] want to be measured by their own success and achievements, which is what inspired the 'Unlike Whatsoever' campaign," says Pam Catlett, general managing director of women's at Under Armour.

According to the NPD Group, Under Armour commands 7.1 percent of the men'due south activewear infinite in the United states of america and 3.8 percent of women's this twelvemonth through May. The women's business organization currently accounts for around $ane billion of Nether Armour's $4.8 billion acquirement. Among the Baltimore-based brand'south challenges is that "we've grown upwards as a traditional sporting goods brand that began in men's athletic performance clothes… our competitors have been in the [women'southward market] for a while," says Catlett. "Information technology's an expanse you'll see us accelerating and evolving into equally we look into 2018."

Adidas, as well, has released female person-centric campaigns over the by year. In February, the athletic brand launched a global campaign called "Unleash Your Inventiveness", which tells the stories of fifteen women athletes, including supermodel Karlie Kloss, fitness influencer Hannah Bronfman and fitness instructor Robin Arzon. This is a stark change in strategy for the German brand, which, through its 97-year history, has partnered with the biggest sports stars who were almost always male, like Jesse Owens, Derrick Rose and David Beckham.

The increased female focus is function of Adidas' strategy to double its share of the female sporting appurtenances market by 2020. In an investor address in March 2017, board member Eric Liedtke said that the company is "non happy where we are today" when information technology comes to its position in the women'southward market, which represented 23 percent of Adidas' acquirement in 2016. He vowed to lift that proportion to 28 percent within iv years.

"Women are the biggest growth opportunity for Adidas and our women's concern is currently growing faster than men'southward," says Nicole Vollebregt, who is Adidas' offset global head of women's products. Adidas besides recently appointed Christine Solar day as strategic adviser. Day was chief executive officer from 2008 to 2013 at Lululemon, best known for ushering in the athleisure era by creating yoga pants for women to article of clothing all day. "The women'south marketplace is a crowded space and nosotros have to make certain that we're staying ahead of evolving trends."

"What we've seen over the by year are strong empowerment campaigns that are focused exclusively on women. Our cultural ideas around gender have evolved, and femininity and athleticism tin now go manus in hand," say The Female person Factor'due south Brennan. She notes that men and women don't demand to be targeted separately. "In that location has been this thought in the past with many historically masculine brands that marketing to women means excluding men. That's not the case. Marketing to women doesn't mean excluding men, but it does hateful excluding stereotypes."

Combining style with versatility

Mainstream sportswear players likewise need to focus on creating products and services specifically designed for women. "Like whatsoever athlete, women are looking for products that are going to help them perform at a high level — and perform comfortably. She'due south doing many activities and the more than versatile a product can exist, the amend," says NPD'southward Powell.

"I think it besides really requires an agreement that some of the products [for women] are just different. For instance, if she'south running in a marathon she's going to desire a certain kind of sports bra. If she'southward doing yoga, she'll probably want to wear something different," he adds. "What some male-oriented brands have failed at is really understanding that [the female person consumer] has multiple needs and there isn't only one product that's correct for her."

More than women are buying into the sportswear sector equally they prioritise self-transformation and wellness. In 2016 alone, the global market for health and health reached £539 billion (about $732 billion) and is expected to grow by a farther 17 percent by 2021 to £640 billion ($869 billion), according to Euromonitor International. What's prompted the shift in attitudes? A blend of social media and a growing consciousness about the importance of physical health, according to Brennan. "Women today accept a broad definition of what it ways to exist agile. It doesn't necessarily mean being involved in a specific sport. That attitude has helped to drive the growth of athleisure and it's creating an opportunity for a variety of fitness apparel," she says, noting that "skinny" no longer correlates to being "beautiful".

Marketing to women doesn't mean excluding men, but information technology does mean excluding stereotypes.

"The opportunity we see for our women's concern is to infuse more than styles and versatility into our product offering. Women want a production that performs while they're in their fitness activity, but we know they're also going to wear that product in other aspects of their lives — often 24/vii," says Catlett. At Under Armour'due south nearly recent earnings call, chief executive Kevin Plank said that the company needs to motion "out of acquisition fashion and into activation mode" by focusing on creating new products and improving its assortment.

"Under Armour'due south roots are in technical functioning, so that'south what people already expect from us. We tin can surprise and elevate our offering through more style and versatility. One example is our drove with Misty Copeland. It's one of our about technical functioning-focused products, merely it's also very stylish. Nosotros've also introduced layering options on top of our bras and bottoms, which are the foundation of our business organization," adds Catlett.

Offering a range of sizes is also fundamental — something that several mainstream sportswear brands are finally coming effectually to. "Brands are recognising that the consumer has changed. In the The states, the average women wears a size 16. But many brands have been reluctant to make plus-size products. Victoria's Secret only recently came out with a sports bra in 27 sizes for chest and cup. About of the sports bras that are made past men's brands are [sized from] Southward or Forty, so she'south not even getting the proper fit. Brands really have to evaluate what the consumer wants and brand products that are appropriate for her," says Powell.

Following an immensely popular sports bra entrada last July, featuring plus-size model Paloma Elsesser, Nike has expanded its plus size offering with the "Black and White" collection, a range of fashion-forward shorts, tops, bras and leggings, which are designed to fit and flatter larger women. "Women'due south ambition for newness and choice has never been higher," says Nike's Montagne. "Their connected world means unlimited access to new products. And so when they find something they beloved, they want more than versions of it — with improved performance, innovation and way. We'eastward reacting to this by refreshing our approach to women's plus-size by extending the line to xc styles and improving fit and manner options."

Meanwhile, Adidas has been designing more sneakers, jackets and other garments specifically for women'due south sport. The brand recently unveiled the Pure Boost Ten sneaker, with move-tracking engineering science that studies the movement of the female pes. "The beginning running sneaker designed specifically for a adult female's pes, it has a unique floating arch to provide maximum support," explains Adidas' Vollebregt.

Upgrading the shop experience

Sportswear brands are also taking the retail feel into account. According to data from Euclid, which works with retail businesses to make information-driven decisions, 65 pct of women prefer shopping in-store to e-commerce, as information technology is easier to try wearing apparel and receive personalised recommendations. Only 55 percent of men feel the aforementioned way.

Adidas women's fitness studio in London | Source: Adidas

Nike currently operates several women's only-stores worldwide: in Shanghai, Newport Embankment and London. "Women are choosing brands who atomic number 82 with elevated service and new experiences," says Montagne. "They want brands that are engaged and brand a personal connection, which is why we're creating compelling experiences in both Nike-owned environments and with our best partners. We have a new women'southward sneaker concept in London that includes a new footwear merchandising model led by more localised storytelling. We've likewise created digital studios in New York and Shanghai, which introduces new ways for consumers to connect with our production, through augmented reality and geo-locations."

In February 2017, Adidas launched a women-but fitness studio in London, where certified personal trainers, fettle influencers and Adidas ambassadors host free workout sessions. "We are committed to providing a premium shopping feel: we're currently exploring elevated product presentations on the shop flooring [and] integrating more digital experiences and immersive product sessions for retail staff to larn more about the key items," says Vollebregt. The space likewise doubles as an event location and a production testing ground. Vollebregt says that the brand may replicate the concept elsewhere if it proves successful.

"Women-but stores have been successful as they create experiences beyond simply shopping," says Ellen Schmidt-Devlin, director of the sports product direction program at the University of Oregon. "Nike Tokyo offers a personalised styling service and workout classes. The success of Sweaty Betty comes, in part, from connecting women with an in-shop yoga studio and running groups. They are also excellent with merchandising their product and offering services to their target audience."

"I recall such a space is necessary," agrees Powell. "When y'all look at the mural, multi-brand retailers tend to be very male-focused. When we think of the sportswear retailers that have been successful, like Lululemon, while they carry some men's products, it is clearly a women-focused retail store. Women-specific products and women-focused retail are primal components to brands being successful. The mere fact that five of the elevation ten largest women's activewear brands are women-specific tells the states something hither."

Brands are in danger of being viewed as superficial at all-time and condescending at worst.

It's one matter to create high-performing products for the female customer, merely it'southward an entirely different claiming to get her attending and create a brand that speaks her language. Neil Boyarsky, who co-founded the multi-make activewear retailer Bandier, makes the instance that dissimilar men, women are not necessarily inspired by the prowess of summit athletes, but are motivated by being role of a community.

"Who the influencers are today is very relevant. It's not just dominated by the core athletes," he says. "Ane of the things that large sportswear companies accept neglected up until fairly recently is that the female client, the millennial client, cares about going out and participating in boutique fettle... Information technology'southward a social endeavor, it's a lifestyle."

"Millennial and Gen-Z consumers are very focused on fitness and health, but their approach is dissimilar to the boomers," agrees Powell. "It'due south much more lite-hearted and less competitive. They're taking role in multiple activities that tend to have a social element to them."

"The women'south market today has get very crowded and it's no longer the domain of traditional pure able-bodied brands," says Brennan. "Information technology feels like there are new brands being built-in every day in the athleisure infinite. Fifty-fifty celebrities take gotten in on the activeness with their own brands. But the opportunity is nonetheless bang-up. Women of unlike types of fitness levels are looking for different kind of apparel for their fettle needs."

But Brennan has a caveat: "It'due south important to create a meaningful message or else you're in danger of being viewed as superficial at all-time and condescending at worst," she warns. "Determining what substance a brand can bring to the conversation is important. A nifty advertisement campaign is actually still but the tip of the iceberg. Likewise ofttimes, the actual client experience is where mistakes are fabricated and sales are lost."

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