Introduction:
Adidas is an industry leader within sporting goods in the UK. They are continually releasing high-quality products for health focused customers. There are many political, environmental, social, technological, economic and legal factors that Adidas operate in within the U.K and globally. These factors shape new product development, marketing and overall profitability for Adidas.
Blog 1: Identify any One PESTEL Factor.
The environmental element of the PESTEL framework can be identified in a fashion article about Adidas published by fashionunited.uk. This article explains the partnership between Adidas and Parley Ocean Plastic and the environmental aspect of this partnership. Specifically, the launch of football kits for all 23 Major League Soccer teams created from plastic waste marks a significant environmental initiative by Adidas. This plastic waste was gathered from beaches in coastal communities.
This initiative is a major environmental initiative launched by Adidas. The jerseys were created for launch in tandem with Earth Day, and all Major League Soccer teams played wearing the recycled kits. The goal of Adidas was to generate awareness and stimulate action in response to dangerous plastic materials in the ocean. Adidas identified the importance of highlighting this problem to their customers and wider audience, and used fashion as a medium to communicate how harmful plastic can have on marine environments.
The article features a quote from Ernesto Bruce, a senior director of Adidas Soccer, who re-enforces the company’s partnerships. Mr. Bruce says, “We are proud to continue to build upon our collaborative efforts with MLS and Parley for the Oceans to inspire creative solutions for protecting the world’s oceans.” He continues to say, “We believe in the innovative partnership we have forged and hope that these kits made using Parley Ocean Plastic inspire the soccer community to join us in preserving our precious environment.”
The article highlights the commercial benefits that come from Adidas’s environmental approach. All of the jerseys are available for purchase on the Adidas and Major League Soccer online stores. This gives fashion and sports fans the opportunity to show their support for Adidas while also benefiting the environment.
Blog 2: Identify any Political, Economic, Social Factors
A strong economic factor that impacts Adidas in the U.K. is the sale and distribution of counterfeit Adidas goods. These goods damage the Adidas brand due to their lower quality and harm Adidas sales. As reported in Lincolnshire Live, Adidas goods featured prominently among 6,000 items seized in a raid on counterfeit clothing. Another trader from a similar article was also found guilty of trading counterfeitAdidas goods. Counterfeit goods are a strong economic problem for Adidas in the U.K., as sellers can profit from the brand name without investing in the quality products Adidas produce. These articles highlight that counterfeiting Adidas products result in persecution for the seller. Counterfeit goods reduce brand quality and present a serious economic factor for Adidas in the U.K.
Brexit has created uncertainties and political debates. Some analysts believe that Brexit will create a chaos unimaginable, whereas others believe it will open doors to immense opportunities for the country.
A social factor that impacts Adidas is the rise of health-conscious consumers. These consumers demand more healthy experiences and fitness focus from brands they engage with. Social factors are an element of PESTEL that Adidas have addressed in London. Adidas have responded to these fitness focused consumers through launching a pop-up fitness experience in East London. According to an article by Health Club Management U.K., this initiative by Adidas offered women free classes as a way to, “inspire physical activity”. Tis initiative gave Adidas the ability to communicate with a health-conscious audience who see health and fitness as major social factors. This gave the Adidas brand the opportunity to communicate with consumers within the social element of the PESTEL framework.
Blog 3: Identify any Technological, Environmental or Legal Factors
An article published by Wearablehighlights the technological element of the PESTEL framework for Adidas. This article highlight’s Fitbit’s partnership with Adidas for the launch of Fitbit Ionic. This partnership highlight’s Adidas adding value to their customers through technology. Fitbit is a world leader in wearable technology for health and fitness. The article shows that the Fitbit watch will feature Adidas Train, an app that is exclusive to the Adidas edition. This will feature six run-oriented workouts tailored to boosting cardiovascular health, strength and flexibility. The article explains that these workouts are created by Adidas performance experts. This watch also features a custom Adidas watch face featured in four colours. Adidas helps its fans and customers reach their fitness goals through the use of technology integrated with Fitbit. This Fitbit is available to consumers in the U.K.
An article published by The Fashion Lawshows Adidas’s legal element of the PESTEL framework by highlighting their global patents. These patents have jurisdiction over the U.K. market. The key goal of Adidas’s patents is to protect its brand. The main brand asset for Adidas are their three-stripe logo which features on their shoes. The article explains that the three parallel stripes represent the, “quality and reputation” of Adidas products. Adidas uses patens to trademarks to protect itself against counterfeits. It is clear from this article that the brand’s assets are of key strategic importance and that they actively defend their assets against use by other companies.
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