1 Steven Skarsten September 25, 2012 Professor Manter Environmental, Industry and Company Analyses Industry Description: The

Trailblazer Five Toed Shoe by Momentum is part of the footwear industry that is reported to have grown by 4.7% in 2011. The industry is a competitive one with a variety of different brands vying for consumers business. The strongest of brands are said to present products that are new, innovative and high in quality (1). Trends towards people becoming more active and health conscious are said to also boost the sales of performance athletic as well as outdoor environment footwear. This bodes well for our company as we look to target individuals that are looking to maintain an active lifestyle as well as better the environment. The consumers in todays society who wish to make transactions in the footwear industry are said to look for value when making purchases but are also willing to stretch their budgets for certain items. As marketers, we need to make sure that the Trailblazer Five Toed Shoe is priced reasonably enough that our company can still make a profit at the same time as ensuring that our customer is paying a fair price for a quality product. While the footwear industry is a competitive one, there are certain ways in which our product can stand out in front of the other brands in an industry that is continuing to grow. In order to better market our product the careful analysis of prior research is necessary to understand the footwear industry and the ways in which consumers that make purchases in this industry think.

Environmental Analysis: The environment for the footwear industry is a competitive and large one. In order to understand the ways in which to market our product we need to conduct an environmental analysis that will evaluate elements that could affect our company in the immediate and macro environments. In regards to the immediate environment, our company needs to be concerned with our competitors, our corporate partners and also our company itself. The competitors in our market include other corporations in the athletic footwear sub industry such as Adidas, New Balance, Nike, Reebok and Saucony. The second factor to consider from the immediate environment is our corporate partners. We need to be able to work with them in order to get the things we need to make our product in an environmentally friendly way that will provide durability to our consumer. An industry survey on Apparel & Footwear conducted by Standard & Poors concluded that consumers today are favoring green brands that offer compelling products along with additional benefits (2). Our corporate partner would be the supplier of the tire rubber that will go towards making the soles of our Trailblazer shoe. We need to maintain a good relationship with them in order to make sure that the production and marketing of our product goes smoothly. The last part of the immediate environment is our company. It is the companies responsibility to ensure that we are putting out a durable product that is priced fairly in order to ensure a loyal relationship between our consumers and us. After the immediate environmental factors we also need to analyze the macro-environmental factors. For organizational purposes the six macro-environmental factors are depicted in the below table with analysis:

3 Macro-environmental Factor Demographic Analysis We arent going to target a certain age demographic, as we believe all people should live a healthy lifestyle. We are marketing towards a culture that has a firm belief in preservation of the environment and a healthy lifestyle. Put an emphasis on the recycling of rubber to create a more eco-friendly product. Make sure the price of our product can withstand the effects of inflation, foreign currency fluctuation and interest rates. Creating a trend, in any marketplace is a great way to gain popularity. We want consumers to think of our product as something that is new, durable and beneficial not only to the consumer but to the environment as well. We must ensure that our company is treating our employees fairly as well as operating under law.

Culture Technological Economical Social

Political/Legal

SWOT Analysis: The SWOT analysis for our product, the Momentum Trailblazer, will evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that currently exist in the consumer market for our product. Through the analysis of these four factors our company is better preparing ourselves for the competition and any unforeseen situations that might occur in the process of marketing our product to our consumers. The SWOT analysis is graphically organized in the table below.

4 Strengths Weaknesses Only product in our industry that has Some view our product as being the five-toed design. ugly. Growing popularity among all active Outsoles are said to be heavy and people. lugged. Lots of new styles. Comfort and durability of our product is sometimes called into Improved health benefits from the question. product design. Not as large or well known as other Vibram brand name is very big name footwear providers such as recognizable as a leader in the sole Nike and Adidas. industry. Opportunities Emphasize our stance on being ecofriendly by using recycled tire rubber. Continue expansion to other markets such as snowboarding, motorcycle sports, mountain biking and surfing. Company Analysis: The company associated with our consumer product is called Vibram. The Italian based corporation has been in existence for over 70 years and started off by producing the soles for hiking and mountain boots. In 2006, Vibram introduced their five fingered shoe design after Vibram USA President-CEO Tony Post injured himself while training for a marathon. After consultations with various shoe designers the five finger shoe was developed and Post realized that this new model took away any pain he felt after his injury. After the sale of 10,000 pairs of shoes in 2006 the company increased sales significantly in 2007 by selling 1.5 million pairs of shoes (3). The company places much emphasis on the increased comfort that the shoe offers as well as the unique five-toed shoe design. They believe that their product is the only one that separates each of the toes allowing for the entirety of the foot to move. The movement of the entire foot is said to make the consumer feel like they are closer to nature through the use of natural movement. Vibram offers its Threats Vibrams growth is said to be a target of counterfeiters (4). Other large shoe compaies such as Nike, Adidas, Reebok, Saucony and New Balance. Can the Vibram name stay relevant?

5 consumers a variety of different product lines, including the Classic, Sprint, Flow, KSO, KSO Trek, and Moc for men and Proforma for women. The Vibram shoe is a very unique looking product and unlike anything else on the market. At the same time they are heavily diversified and do an excellent job of targeting different groups of people. Vibram is a very consumer conscious company as they have employees who are constantly tracking blogs, forums, fan sites and other outlets for product reviews and recommendations (5). The Vibram name is one that is slowly gaining notoriety in the footwear industry. We believe that the expansion of Vibram can further be developed through the implementation of our new product, the Momentum Trailblazer along with well thought out marketing strategies that are based off the research we conducted.

Works Cited 1. Asaeda, J. (2012, Apr 26). Apparel & footwear: Retailers & brands. Retrieved from http://0www.netadvantage.standardandpoors.com.dewey2.library.denison.edu/NA

6 SApp/NetAdvantage/showIndustrySurvey.do?code=apf 2. Asaeda, J. (2012). Sub-industry review: Footwear. Retrieved from http://0www.netadvantage.standardandpoors.com.dewey2.lib rary.denison.edu/NASApp/NetAdvantage/showSubIndustryR eview.do?subindcode=25203020 3. BASKIN, A. (2010). VIBRAM USA. Advertising Age, 81(41), 16. 4. BEAUDRY, J. (2010). Vibram Vrooms. FN: Footwear News, 66(35), 6-67. 5. Dzierzak, L. (2009). BARE FOOT YOUR SOUL. Sgb, 42(7), 38-42. 6. Leand, J. (2008). Breaking the Mold. Sgb, 41(1), 40-41.