International

Business
Submitted to: A. Rajyalakshmi
Submitted by: Pranjali Gupta
Srishty Dhanuka
 Acknowledgement
We would like to express our special thanks to our faculty
Mrs. A. Rajyalakshmi, who gave us the golden opportunity to
do this wonderful project which also helped us in doing a lot
of research and we came to know about so many new things
that would help us in our future careers.
We thank ma’am again for sharing such complex ideas and
concepts beautifully within the limited time frame. We are
also grateful to our parents and friends for giving helpful
criticisms in finalizing the project and providing necessary
resources.
Thank you,
Pranjali Gupta
Srishty Dhanuka
(BFT-VII)
COMPANY OVERVIEW
Nike, Inc. is an American multinational corporation that is
engaged in the design, development, manufacturing, and
worldwide marketing and sales of footwear, apparel,
equipment, accessories, and services.
The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, in
the Portland metropolitan area.
It is the world's largest supplier of athletic shoes and apparel
and a major manufacturer of sports equipment, with revenue
in excess of US$37.4 billion in its fiscal year 2020 (ending
May 31, 2020)
As of 2020, it employed 76,700 people worldwide.
In 2020 the brand alone was valued in excess of $32 billion,
making it the most valuable brand among sports businesses.
 Previously, in 2017, the Nike brand was valued at $29.6
billion.
Nike ranked 89th in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest
United States corporations by total revenue.
The company was founded on January 25, 1964, as "Blue
Ribbon Sports", by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight, and
officially became Nike, Inc. on May 30, 1971.
The company takes its name from Nike, the Greek goddess of
victory. Nike markets its products under its own brand, as
well as Nike Golf, Nike Pro, Nike+, Air Jordan, Nike
Blazers, Air Force 1, Nike Dunk, Air Max, Foamposite, Nike
Skateboarding, Nike CR7, and subsidiaries including Jordan
Brand and Converse.
Nike also owned Bauer Hockey from 1995 to 2008, and
previously owned Cole Haan, Umbro, and Hurley
International.
In addition to manufacturing sportswear and equipment, the
company operates retail stores under the Niketown name.
Nike sponsors many high-profile athletes and sports teams
around the world, with the highly recognized trademarks of
"Just Do It" and the Swoosh logo.
MARKETING STRATEGIES

It’s safe to say Nike’s at the top of its game right now.

Not only does it owns 48% of the American athletic footwear

market, but its share of the basketball footwear market is at a
staggering 96%!

What sort of marketing strategy has Nike used to achieve and

maintain this level of market dominance?

1. Meaningful story – They’re selling more than a

product; they’re selling aspiration
Nike didn’t build its loyal fan base by harping on its iconic
waffle shoes.

In fact, Nike’s ads rarely, if ever, mention their products at all.

What their ads do, and do well, is induce emotion in the

consumer through ‘emotional branding’. Each ad is carefully
crafted to evoke particular feelings and needs in the consumer
that can only be satisfied with Nike products.

It does this by playing up the traditional narrative of a

hero who works hard to overcome adversity, ultimately
emerging victorious against a terrible foe.

But it isn’t a literal enemy being fought in this case. Nike

takes the analogy to a level far more relatable: the ‘terrible
foe’ is the voice in your head that tells you, “You can’t”. To
that, the organization says: “Just do it.”

A prime example of Nike’s emotional branding (Nike).

Each Nike ad is designed to inspire—to tell us that we can do
anything if we just try.

2. Unique, Exciting Things – Nike Phenomenal Shot

During the FIFA 2014 World Cup, Nike partnered with

Google to create ‘Nike Phenomenal Shot’.

When a Nike athlete scored a goal, display ads were delivered

to fans in real-time. Fans could also rotate their players
around in 3D, framing them for shots that can be personalized
with filters, captions, and stickers. Once you’re done with
your ‘Phenomenal Shot’, you can share it on social media.

Nike’s ‘Phenomenal Shot’ campaign in action (Creative

Criminals)

More than 500,000 “Phenomenal Moments” were created –

amazing in itself, but even more so considering the
subsequent reach every moment could obtain once shared.
3. Original YouTube series Margot vs. Lily received over
80,000,000 views

In 2016, Nike created a Youtube series to complement its

marketing campaigns.

Nike’s original Youtube series, Margot vs Lily (Nike).

Margot vs Lily centres around two sisters, and it features Nike

merchandise like shoes, workout gear, and Nike+ technology.
It also directs viewers to the #BetterforIt website, which
contains more detailed content for those interested in initiating
and improving their fitness journey.

But it’s not just an extended ad, the show has a compelling
story that’s actually fun to watch!

As of now, the series has received over 80 million views,

leading to increased downloads of the Nike+ Run and
Training Club, as well as greater activity and purchases by
existing members.
4. Newsworthy Technology – Nike Self-Lacing Shoes

The coolest tech so far, however, would have to be Nike’s

new self-lacing shoes.

Nike’s first self-lacing

shoes, HyperAdapt 1.0
(Nike).

Hyper Adapt 1.0 has

sensors that automatically
mould the shoe to the shape
of your foot when you step
into it.

Today: self-lacing shoes. Tomorrow: hoverboards?

5. They make some really fun ads that people love sharing
and talking about

Nike makes some of the best ads in the business. They teem
with world-class athletes displaying their extraordinary skills.
One of Nike’s most successful ads is ‘Winner Stays’. The ad
features teenage boys transforming into Ronaldo, Neymar Jr.
and other soccer superstars as they battle it out on the soccer
field; it netted; it netted the sportswear brand more than 107.8
million views.

6. They’re socially-conscious

Consumers today expect more from the companies they buy

from. They want their purchases to have a positive impact on
the environment and on society, and they don’t hesitate to
reward brands that do.

Nike is engaged in several community outreach

initiatives both within the US, and globally.

Three main drivers of Nike’s community outreach program

(Nike).

Recently, Nike opened its 7th community store in Detroit, a

city struggling to thrive amidst bankruptcy and years of
economic hardship. Like Nike’s other community stores, its
mission is to serve the city through volunteer work and
promoting physical fitness.

The store opened to huge lines, with customers queuing up 2

days before its launch!
7. Constant innovation – NIKE+

Much like sharks, a business needs to keep moving forward to

stay alive.

Nike learned this the hard way in the mid-1980s when it lost
out on the lucrative aerobics market to Reebok. Since then, it
has worked hard to ensure that never happens again.

In 2006, Nike developed the ‘Nike+iPod’, an activity tracker

that records the distance and pace of its user’s workout
through a sensor in the sneaker.

It was ground-breaking technology in wearable tech that

resulted in an 8.1% rise in profits within the first six months.

Even today, Nike continues to expand on the Nike+

technology, releasing phone apps, watches, and even a
dedicated training app!

8. Flyknit
In 2012, Nike broke new ground when it introduced its
revolutionary Flyknit technology.

While traditional sneakers are made up of individual pieces

that are stitched together, Nike shook things up by utilising
computer-controlled “knitting” technology to shape the entire
upper part of the shoe.

This reduced the number of components by up to 35 pieces,

producing a lighter shoe that still provides as much strength
and support as other top running footwear in the market.

The size 9 Nike Flyknit Racer, which incorporated Nike’s

Flyknit technology, weighed a mere 160g (Nike).

Following its launch, competitors

like Adidas and Skechers quickly entered the market with
similar technology, eager to get a piece of the action.

9. They’re Killing it on social media

Social media isn’t a one-way street for Nike; it’s a
conversation.

The company maintains separate Twitter accounts for each of

its subsidiary brands (e.g. @nikefootball, @nikebasketball),
which they predominantly use to respond to consumer
@mentions.

Aside from that, Nike’s posts are fun, short, and often
motivational, which makes for easy reading and sharing.

They also frequently contain calls-to-action for followers to

respond to and engage with the brand.
In this way, Nike builds strong relationships with their
customers, making them more likely to repurchase from Nike
in the future.

Inspired to rethink your own marketing plan? Take a page

from Nike’s book and “just do it”!

So, in the Recap, NIKE uses the following startegies to win

their consumer’s hearts,

1. Meaningful story – sell aspiration, not just a product

2. Create “Watercooler Moments”
3. Capture “Phenomenal Shots”
4. Optimize YouTube
 5. Newsworthy technology
6. Make fun and enjoyable ads
7. Reach out to your community
8. Constant innovation
9. Killing it on social media – engage and respond!

PRICING STRATEGIES

Nike’s marketing mix strategies made this company the

pioneer in the market and as a result, the firm led the market
share in the world with global revenues of more than 34
billion U.S dollars according to Nike News in 2018. The
company competes against various sportswear brands in the
market and through its pricing strategy, Nike reinforced its
potentiality to protect the business from the strong force of
competition. Since the competition is extremely high in this
industry, pricing is a major key factor that makes this
company one of the world’s largest sellers of athletic footwear
and separates it from others.

Avoid this type of sentences: directly talk about the data

driven statements. There are different pricing strategies that
Nike used effectively for expanding its branding all over the
world. Nike implements its pricing strategy based on the
product’s understanding and determining which price point
will be best for their products. Nike was able to raise its price
range while other U.S. apparel industries dropped their prices
and offered heavy promotional discounts. In 2014, Nike
implemented its new pricing strategy after determining from a
market analysis that its customers appreciated the value that
the brand provided.

Value-Based Pricing Strategy of Nike

Nike uses a value-based pricing strategy in order to set its
prices according to the consumer perceptions about the value
of the company’s products. Nike focuses on delivering
the highest quality products at the right price to ensure the
best customer experience whereas the other companies use the
idea to sell products at the cheapest rate as it will generate
more sales. This strategy ascertains how much maximum
price consumers are eager to pay for the company’s products
such as sports apparel, sports shoes and equipment. This was
Nike’s commendable idea to ask people how much they can
pay for certain products. This pricing strategy worked for
Nike as it came to know about its product’s value amongst the
customers and the company started to get profits and prices of
its merchandise started to rise.

Nike Price Leadership Strategy

This strategy is suitable for an oligopolistic market
environment and Nike runs its business in the oligopolistic
market. Nike is one of the leading players in the oligopolistic
market which is related to the sports equipment industry.
Therefore, the company can effectively practice the price
leadership strategy. With the help of this strategy, the
company can determine its product prices, uses competitive
prices, and set attractive prices for different market segments
according to its market dominance.

Premium Pricing Strategy of Nike

Nike applies the premium pricing strategy to make its
products’ prices higher than the prices of the competitors
based on product quality. The company owners and
employees know that these prices will not only reflect the
quality of their company’s products but also the image which
will be portrayed by the consumers who wear the Nike logo.
Once Nike develops its exclusive products, it becomes
recognizable to consumers in the market place. And Nike’s
premium pricing strategy drives its perceived value to a
higher level especially with the limited editions of the Air
Jordan’s. Nike sets this pricing strategy for the products which
create a high level of brand loyalty and also for its leading-
edge technology.
Nike Skimming Pricing Strategy
Nike applies a price skimming type strategy whenever it
produces expensive products especially which are limited
editions. When the company brings out new design products
into the market, Nike uses this strategy to set high initial
prices. By implementing this strategy, Nike tries to skim
money from the customers who want the product and are
willing to purchase it at that price. After a newly designed
product has been out in the market for a while, Nike lowers
the price of those products. According to the Principles and
Practice of Marketing (David Jobber), Nike executes a rapid
skimming pricing strategy of setting high prices in the
products and investing heavily in promoting the newly
designed products. Normally, Nike shoes last for a period of 3
to 6 months when the company sells those at peak prices.
After that period, there comes an activity called closeout
where Nike reduces the prices gradually.

In addition, there are few other pricing strategies that

Nike follows besides these. Such as,

 Penetration Pricing
 Psychological Pricing
 Segmented Pricing etc.
Nike utilizes its pricing strategies successfully both to
maximize its profits and emphasize high value in promoting
its products. From Nike’s pricing strategies, we can
understand that Nike upholds its position as the market leader
in the athletic footwear market and it has shown that this
company is a true force to be reckoned with.
PRODUCT POLICIES

At Nike, they hold themselves to the highest standards and take

their local and global responsibilities seriously. Nike’s policies
are a formal, accepted standard or approach to the way Nike
conducts business, relating to social and environmental issues.

Animal Skins Policy

This policy applies to Nike brand products or Nike affiliate
brand products that contain animal skin materials.

Amazon Biome Leather Sourcing Policy

This policy ensures Nike does not use leather produced from
cattle raised in the Amazon Biome. Cattle ranching in that
region contributes to tropical deforestation.

Conflict Minerals Policy

Conflict Minerals Policy expects suppliers to support the
responsible sourcing of conflict minerals using Responsible
Minerals Initiative conformant smelters and refiners.  

Packaging Restricted Substances List

The Packaging Restricted Substance List gives substance details
and restriction levels for Nike packaging, as well as packaging
design requirements to comply with global legislation.

Promotional Strategy of Nike

Nike’s promotional strategies helped the company to become
a giant company in the world. Those strategies are explained
below.

Social Media: Nike uses the social media platform effectively

to get in touch with its millions of users and to attract new
target markets around the world. This company has become
one of the most followed brands in social media channels by
balancing between its ads and lifestyle. Moreover, this
company diversified its online presence by creating different
profiles on different social platforms such as
Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn. Nike has brought
huge attention to the new markets with the help of running
different campaigns through social media.

Advertisement: Nike’s one of the strongest strategies is to

advertise its products for promoting branding to potential
customers. Nike has made many world-class ads which
created lots of attention around the globe. Nike follows
different strategies to advertise its products such as endorsing
megastars & celebrities and partnering with giant companies
to increase the markets. Nike endorsed the likes of Cristiano
Ronaldo, Maria Sharapova, and Roger Federer in a TV
commercial to advertise Nike Free, called Power to your feet.
Moreover, Nike engaged Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi in
another television ad where they were playing tennis in the
streets of Manhattan. Also, Nike persuaded a lot of followers
by involving Michael Jordan to create Air Jordan in 1984,
who has been the most successful celebrity endorsement for
this company. In addition, Nike partnered with Apple, Inc.
which has increased brand awareness & international
expansion for both parties.

Public Relations: Nike uses public relations as a strategy to

promote its branding and reach out to its potential customers.
The company’s management is keen to maintain a good
relationship with the customers and as well as with the
market. This company shows a friendly and approachable
attitude towards the customers and does not want to break the
relationship with them. Nike has categorized the public
relations section to its dedicated customer service channel.
Nike prioritizes the customers’ demands and according to
their demands, it categorizes the information on the website.
The website has been made lively & colourful with featuring
important press releases, news, and product information. As
a way of improving relations with the public, Nike
implemented different philanthropic strategies and
successfully organized social campaigns.

Sponsorship: With the help of sponsoring various sports

events and top athletes, Nike has increased its publicity
around the globe. Nike sponsored huge sporting events to
communicate with its target customers directly. It sponsored
all team’s jersey of NFL, several football clubs in Africa,
Asia, Europe, and South America. It also sponsored different
national football teams around the world. To promote its
brand in the West Africa region, Nike sponsored Didier
Drogba of Ivory Coast who is one of the most celebrated
African footballers. This company planned this promotional
strategy to increase the market share in this region.
Direct Marketing: Direct marketing strategy helps Nike to
expand its promotion to target markets. The company uses its
new products to attract more customers and to make a bigger
impact on the market than its competitors. This company
increases loyalty with potential customers through direct
marketing policy which will improve customer exposure
towards Nike. It also planned to send direct mails to the
customers to make them informed with different promotions
and advertisements for its new product release, special sales,
and corporate social responsibility. Moreover, the company
uses salespersons to approach and promote its products to
different sports organizations & individuals in colleges and
universities.

Personal Selling: Nike’s customer experience has enhanced

with the help of executing the personal selling strategy.
Personalized services played an important role to help the
customer find the desired Nike products. The company posted
trained store personnel in the stores to provide quality service
to the customers and to create better customer relations. The
store personnel are well skilled to influence the consumers to
buy Nike’s products. Personal selling strategy expedites the
purchasing process, and, in this way, it will contribute to the
company’s financial benefits.

Nike brand strategy

Nike Advertising and Emotional Branding
Nike brand strategy is to build a powerful brand – so powerful
that it inspires fervent customer loyalty from people literally
all over the world. This is because Nike advertising uses the
emotional branding technique of archetypes in its advertising
– more specifically, the story of the Hero. It’s an age old tale,
a tale of a hero pitted against a great foe, and after a great
struggle, emerging triumphant. In a way, you could say that
Nikes marketing strategy is thousands of years old, and has
been inspiring customer loyalty the entire time.
Building Customer Loyalty with Heroism
Nike advertising isn’t the only group that uses the Hero
archetype to inspire customer loyalty. Many other companies
use this emotional branding technique to great effect. In most
cases, the foe is external. The most common story of the hero
is that of a man of humble origins setting out to defeat a great
evil – one far more powerful than he – and, against all odds,
emerging triumphant. This same pattern could apply to, say, a
home security system against a house fire, or an antacid
against heartburn. As long as there is a clearly identified
enemy and a clearly identified hero, the emotional branding
can begin.
Nike Brand Strategy
Nike advertising takes the common hero story and turns it on
its head. Instead of inspiring customer loyalty by singling out
an external enemy, it pulls out the stops and focuses on
an internal foe – our laziness. Nike advertising knows just
how often we battle with our lazy side. Every morning when
that alarm goes off and it’s still totally dark outside, the battle
begins. When we choose how long to run, the battle
continues. This is how Nike marketing uses emotional
marketing to inspire customer loyalty. They know that while
some people may identify with an external foe, all people
identify with an internal one.
Nike brand strategy is excellent on this end because not only
is the internal foe someone we can all hate, the hero is the
viewer! In one way or another, we are all the hero of our own
story, and Nike marketing has long since identified that
feeling – and used it to inspire timeless customer loyalty

NIKE’s Distribution Channels

NIKE distributes its products through three major channels:
By selling products to wholesalers in the US and international
markets
By direct-to-consumer (or DTC) sales, which include in line
and factory retail outlets (see graph below) and e-commerce
sales through www.nike.com
Sales to global brand divisions
NIKE, Inc. has also tried to create category-specific retail
destinations by partnering with footwear retailers such as Foot
Locker, Inc. (FL), JD Sports, and Intersport.
NIKE’s sales mix and retail slant
Sales to wholesalers are the largest revenue category. NIKE is
focusing on direct selling to the consumer with its DTC
initiative.

Nike Inc.’s Marketing Mix

Nike Inc.’s marketing mix (4Ps) determines the profitability
and growth of the athletic footwear, apparel, and equipment
business. A company’s marketing mix refers to the strategies
and tactics applied to execute the marketing plan, with focus
on products, place, promotion, and price (the 4Ps). In this
business case, Nike has a marketing mix that involves athletic
products.
For example, the company specializes in shoes that are
designed to satisfy the needs of professional basketball and
football athletes. However, these products are marketed to all
consumers around the world, for athletic and leisure activities,
based on the specifics of Nike’s corporate mission and vision
statements. Established in 1964, the company’s 4Ps evolve
according to the dynamics of the global sporting goods
industry. Such evolution is a critical success factor that
enables the business to use its marketing mix to respond to
market trends and changes that influence local, regional, and
international market demand for its products. 
This element of the marketing mix outlines the venues where
the company’s products are sold, accessed or distributed. Nike
Inc. sells its sports shoes, apparel, and equipment through a
large number of outlets worldwide. For example, these
products are available at major retail stores.
The following places/venues form Nike’s distribution
strategy, arranged according to significance:
 Retail stores
 Nike Online Store
 Nike town retail outlets (company-owned)
Retail stores are the most significant places where Nike
products are sold because these venues are strategically
located and easily accessible in various markets around the
world. These retailers include large firms like Walmart
(see Walmart’s Marketing Mix or 4P), as well as small local
and regional stores. This 4P element also shows that
customers can purchase Nike’s sports shoes, apparel, and
equipment through the company’s online store. In addition,
the business operates its Nike town retail outlets. These
outlets are company-owned and allow access to business and
market information that supports corporate strategic
management about marketing strategies and tactics for
current, new, and emerging products. Based on this element of
the marketing mix, Nike Inc. controls the distribution and sale
of its products, especially through its online store and Nike
town retail outlets. However, the company has limited control
on the distribution and sale of its products via other retail
outlets.
Bibliography
 https://marketrealist.com/2019/10/analyzing-nikes-
distribution-channels-and-retail-strategy/
 http://panmore.com/nike-inc-marketing-mix-4ps-
product-place-promotion-price-analysis
 https://finance.yahoo.com/news/nike-distribution-
channels-products-reach-170108274.html
 https://avada.io/resources/nike-branding-strategy.html

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