Lady Foot Locker - Futurist Paper | MKTG 445, Papers of Marketing Management

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Lady Foot Locker

Futurist Paper

Team 6 Michael Douglas Heather Griffin Justin Thomas Travis Wylie Jeff Younger April 1, 2005 MKTG 445- Dr. Mattson

Table of Contents

• Company History……………...…………………………………..………………………
• Competition……………………………………………………..…………………………
• Marketing Strategy…………………………...…………………...……………………….
• Customers…………………………………………………………………………………
• Website……………………………………………………………………………………
• Financials………………………………………………………………………………….
• Work Cited……………………………………….………………………………………

superior customer service. Finish Line carries brand name shoes like Lady Foot Locker but like other stores, color and styles may vary. Finish Line entered the market of women’s athletic apparel very heavily when they introduced their own clothing line (Blue Label 365). Their mission is to be the number one foot wear retailer in the mall. The product knowledge and customer service give them a very hefty advantage on Lady Foot Locker. Athletes Foot is another company that competes largely with Lady Foot Locker. Like Lady Foot Locker they also specialize in athletic footwear but they do not offer a great deal of competition on the apparel end. Unlike any other major footwear retailer Athletes Foot is a franchise. They also offer a service called “Fit Print” which is a computerized fitting machine. “Fit Print” gives the customer exact measurements of the width, length, and arch of their foot allowing an Athletes Foot sales associate to suggest shoes that would be appropriate for the customer’s foot type. This gives Athletes Foot a competitive edge against a chain as big as Lady Foot Locker. Legend’s is a smaller chain in terms of revenue and the amount of stores they operate. They specialize in urban apparel as opposed to Lady Foot Locker which tries to cater to the needs of all aspects of athletic foot wear and apparel. Legend’s carries a larger selection of retro footwear and licensed apparel than Lady Foot Locker which gives them a competitive edge on Lady Foot Locker. Hibbett’s Sports specializes in not only foot wear and apparel but also sporting goods such as weights, and sporting equipment. They tend to be more technical in terms of the items they carry and also tend to be more knowledgeable about there product.

However, as far as footwear goes, they do not have nearly as large of a selection as Lady Foot Locker, but the knowledge of their product does give them a competitive advantage. Mom and pop shops also give fight to Lady Foot Locker because they often carry rare or limited product that was not offered to large companies. Mom and pop shops also tend to carry aged product that is often discounted or older stuff that has become rare or hard to find which they can sell to shoe collectors (“Sneaker Heads”) at a very inflated price. This often gives these small independent shops a large advantage over not only Lady Foot Locker but over all foot wear retailers. Marketing Strategy Since the case, Lady Foot Locker’s marketing strategy hasn’t changed much. The formula the company uses has kept Lady Foot Locker successful in the years since the case. The target market is women ages 14 to 29, which is not much different from the company’s target market in the case (Lady Foot Locker). Most of the marketing activity comes in the form of exclusivity partnerships with shoe companies, making Lady Foot Locker the only store that carries a particular model of shoe. These exclusivity deals are fairly commonplace in the retail shoe market, and they usually work out well for both the shoe manufacturers and the retail stores. With these partnerships, advertisements for the same product can be seen from either the shoe manufacturer or the retail store that the particular shoe can be found in. An example of this is an ad that ran in 2003 for Reebok’s Classic Collection, a shoe line that could only be found in Lady Foot Locker. The ad also featured R&B singer Mary J. Blige wearing a pair of the shoes while jump-roping to her new single, serving as a testimonial for the new shoes, and also promoting her new album (Ads). This would work out well for Lady

Customers Lady Foot Locker opened its first retail store in 1982, primarily in shopping malls. Since this case was written, Lady Foot Locker now has stores in over 18 countries around the world. It is the leading retailer of athletic footwear and apparel for women. Lady Foot Locker customers are, obviously, women. According to their Website, their target audience is women between the ages of 14-29. With the number of women who are active in sports growing, more and more women are turning to Lady Foot Locker for their footwear needs. Whether women are involved in high school athletics, college athletics, and even professional athletics, Lady Foot Locker can provide the equipment that they need. The Women’s Sport Foundation said that as of 2004, women have continued their participation strength in college sports. Women’s sports are getting more coverage now then ever in past history, and more and more women are getting encouraged to join sporting leagues or even just start working out. With role models such as Mia Hamm and Rebecca Lobo, women have increased their activity levels. Another great thing about Lady Foot Locker’s customers is that while their target market is the ages of 14-29, all of their customers are “ageless”. You don’t have to be in the target market to go into Lady Footlocker and purchase a product. They sell clothing and footwear that appeal to all ages. Even 50 year olds need and want sneakers and will go into Lady Foot Locker to purchase their needs. Website With online shopping becoming more and more prevalent to consumers today Foot Locker Inc. continues to use its web sites as a large part of the company. Champs,

Foot Locker, Kids Foot Locker, Eastbay (magazine) and Lady Foot Locker all follow the same format on their websites. As a company Foot Locker Inc. has chosen too keep all of its company’s websites very much the same. On all the websites you find options for order status, customer service, employment opportunities, a privacy statement as well as the exact process for ordering. The website is fairly easy to use making customers who navigate the website comfortable in using it. Also on the website the prices are different from the ones you would see in the actual Lady Foot Locker, the company uses its website to promote more sales than what you would see in stores. You may see a shoe in the store go home and see that same shoe online but for a lower price. The website allows a customer to search for every item the store offers and search for them by brand name, size and sport. The website is very convenient to its customers and also gives you a link for corporate information, shoe sizing help, and a link for any other questions you would have about the company. Foot Locker Inc. has found a way to make buying shoes online as well as the ordering process hassle free. The website offers you a chance to sign up and have your account information stored and protected for the next time you want to buy an item from one of there web sites. The website also offers a store locator link which allows the customer to find the nearest store in the area. Footlocker Inc. has obviously put a lot of effort into making sure that their web site will continue to help sell their products and create some customer loyalty by offering gift certificates and by offering to remember credit card information to make the buying process a lot easier. Financials The reason why the financial information for Lady Foot Locker is so large is because it is a part of Foot Locker Inc. Foot Locker Inc. owns and offers a wide variety

momentum should carry over into the fiscal 2005. Foot Locker has increased their share- net call by a dime to $1.95. The U.S. division should benefit from increased popularity of technical and performance athletic footwear, which is sold at higher price points than classic styles. Foot Locker stores should also be fully stocked with Nike merchandise, including some $100 or more products, after being undersupplied throughout much of 2003 and 2004 due to a falling out with Nike management. (ValueLine). Over the years, Foot Locker has remodeled or relocated over 500 stores in the U.S. It also plans to continue this process with 200 projects scheduled in 2005.

Works Cited “Foot Locker, Adidas in back-to-school partnership.” IndianTelevision.com. August 11,

2004. http://www.indiantelevision.com/mam/headlines/y2k4/aug/augmam35.htm Howard, Theresa. “Ads Crank Up the Volume with Tunes.” USA Today. August 10,
2005. http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/adtrack/2003-08-10- track_x.htm Lady Foot Locker.com. Lady Foot Locker. http://ladyfootlocker.com. March 30, 2005 “RYKÄ Introduces Breast Cancer Awareness Shoe at Lady Foot Locker.” Ryka.com. March 2004. http://www.ryka.com/about_news_bcas.asp Thompson Research. Thompson Corp http://research.thomsonib.com/gaportal/ga.asp. March 30, 2005. Valueline.com. Value Line Investment Survey. http://www.valueline.com/secure/vlispdf/stk5000/profile/index.cfm. March 30,