Lululemon Athletica Brand Research

Who?

Lululemon Athletica is  a Canadian athletic apparel retailer. Founded in 1998, Lululemon's first store opened in the beach area of Vancouver British Columbia called Kitsilano, in November of 2000. 

After 20 years in the surf, skate and snowboard business, founder Chip Wilson took the first commercial yoga class offered in Vancouver and found the result 'exhilarating.' The post-yoga feeling he experienced was so close to surfing and snowboarding that it 'seemed obvious that yoga was an ideology whose time had come (again).' It seemed inappropriate to Wilson, whose passion lay in technical athletic fabrics, that cotton clothing was being used for sweaty, stretchy power yoga. From this, a design studio was established that became a yoga studio at night to pay the rent. 

The idea was to have a store that was a community hub where people could learn and discuss the physical aspects of healthy living from yoga and diet to running and cycling - as well as the mental aspects of living a powerful life of possibilities. Unfortunately this concept was short lived as the store became so busy that it was impossible to help customers in this way in addition to selling products. This was not the end for the company however, as they have since become an international brand shipping garments and accessories world-wide.

What?

The products sold by Lululemon are described by the store as 'yoga-inspired' athletic technical apparel. The company makes a number of different types of athletic wear, including performance shirts, shorts, and pants, as well as lifestyle apparel and yoga accessories. The brand provides garments for for 'yoga, running, dancing, and most other sweaty pursuits.'

Brand Name

The lululemon name was chosen in a survey of 100 people from a list of 20 brand names and 20 logos. The logo is described as a stylized "A" that was created for the first letter in the name "athletically hip", a name which failed to make the grade before 'lululemon' was chosen.

Brand Controversies

The Brand has been describes as a 'magnet' for controversies after its association with numerous reputation breaking occurrences - including product recalls, product quality issues, overpriced merchandise, misleading statements to artificially inflate its stock price, marketing efforts that exclude overweight customers, accusations by shareholders of fraud, false advertising and controversial statements made by the founder. 

As if this plethora of negativity wasn't enough, the Brands biggest controversy is undoubtedly the 'Lululemon Murder' after employee Brittany Norwood murdered colleague Jayna Murray at the Lululemon Athletica store in Bethesda, Maryland in 2011. The case received intense media attention and became known famously as the 'Lululemon murder.'

Identifying Adidas Brand and Identity Strategies

When we consider a brand, we most typically think of its visual identity, its logo or branding. It may be the typeface used, a symbol or distinct colour - perhaps all three come to mind. This is because we are able to establish psychological connections to these elements of visual language. The visual identity used by Adidas is undoubtedly one of the most significant reasons for it acclaimed presence within society, surpassing sporting boundaries and working its way into all sectors of popular culture as a whole.

Identified below are some of the visual qualities of the Adidas brand and strategies used by the brand specifically that have contributed to its success:

• Swiss, sans-serif, lower-case typestyle used that was in emergence in the nineteen-twenties in Russia, The Netherlands and Germany when Dassler began registering his ventures. This bold, modern aesthetic has served the company great purpose in establishing a timeless brand that has remained and maintained a current, contemporary identity despite the time that has passed since its creation. 

• Monochromatic/black and white logo provides the brand with adaptability, timelessness and a tonal contrast that creates both distinct impact and an effortless demeanour.

• Distinct symbols informed by brand contexts to enhance visual identity and order sub brands. e.g - three stripes, trefoil etc. 

• Collaborations with major high-street fashion retailer Topshop via the ‘Topshop x Adidas Originals’ collection, acclaimed British fashion designer Stella McCartney via the ‘Adidas by Stella McCartney’ collection as well as British singer Rita Ora’s collection ‘Adidas Originals by Rita Ora.’

Identifying Adidas Group Strategies

The Adidas group have and continue to use a range of strategies that have allowed them to become of the most famous and successful brands of all time, and not only within the sector of sport. The group detail three main, clear strategic choices that they attempt to focus on - these being Speed, Cities and Open Source. 

They detail ‘Creating the New’ as the headline for their next five-year strategic business plan. They define this as the attitude that will lead them into the future. The sporting goods industry is growing faster than most other industries, a trend the Adidas group forecast to continue. They believe 'sport is central to every culture and society and is core to an individual’s health and happiness.'  This of course is good news for the brand as  it is their core competency. They also translate this competency in sports into streetwear and fashion because 'sport is an attitude and a lifestyle.' Everything the group do is rooted in sports.

At the epicentre of the groups plan to ‘Create the New’ are their brands, which enable them to connect with their consumers. This means the success of the groups brands defines the success of our business as a whole, though this should not be difficult to achieve due to the strong identities they have established in sport. Through the groups unique portfolio of leading sports brands, they are able to cater to the needs and desires of more consumers than any of their competitors, allowing them to connect with them more than ever before. To achieve this, their plan is based on three strategic choices:

• Speed: To become the first true fast sports company: Fast in satisfying consumer needs, fast in internal decision making.

• Cities: Identification of six key cities in which they want to grow share of mind, share of market and share of trend.

• Open source: To be the first sports brand that invites athletes, consumers and partners to be part of their brands.

'We are closest to every consumer with our unique brand portfolio. In the future, we will not only talk to and talk with our consumers. We will be the first sports company that invites athletes, consumers and partners to be part of its brands. We will open up so that they can co-create the future together with us.'

Eric Liedtke, Executive Board Member Responsible for Global Brands.

'We are living in a fast-changing world. Only what is new is relevant to the consumer. Therefore, we have to relentlessly focus on ‘creating the new’ for our consumers. And we have to constantly re-invent ourselves as an organisation to lead the change in our industry. Going forward, speed will be a key competitive advantage for us as we transform the adidas Group into the first true fast sports company.'

Herbert Hainer, Adidas Group CEO.