Under Armour Sports Marketing

BRIEF HISTORY OR BACKGROUND OF ORGANISATION OR EVENT 

Under Armour is an American manufacturer of sports gear, footwear and casual apparel. The company commenced its operations in 1996 Ben has more than 15,000 employees as of 2018. The company has an extensive global footprint with offices in major cities such as Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Jakarta, London, New York, Paris, Seoul, Shanghai, Santiago and Toronto among other cities. Under Armour Reported a revenue of 5.3 billion dollars in 2019. Since the commencement of its operations the company has launched several ground-breaking products such as temperature resistant gear which keep athletes warm during extremely cold weather. The company is also recognized for iconic branding and marketing campaigns. the brand was featured in a major Hollywood movie titled Any Given Sunday starring Jamie Foxx and Al Pacino due to which the brand gained significant visibility. The brand is also recognized as a key supplier and retail partner for the NHL, USA Baseball and MLB. Under Armour launched its first initial public offering in the United States in 2005 and became a publicly traded company. The company has also consistently engaged in the development of its footwear segment by introducing high performance trainers which are targeted towards the athletic footwear market. Under armours innovative products unregistered trademarks include Charged Cotton, Armour Bra, ColdGear and UA Speedform. The company has also expanded into the arena of digital fitness by acquiring companies such as MyFitnessPal and MapMyRun.

S.M.A.R.T OBJECTIVES & RESEARCH (200 words) 6 marks

Under Armour released a strategic growth plan for the year 2023. Based on the market dynamics and the ongoing prevailing conditions in the industry the company devised a long-term growth strategy which serves as the basis for its goals. SMART objectives can be used to devise targets that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time bound (Swayne and Dodds, 2011). In line with the extensive research performed by the company to understand emerging trends in the areas of supply chain management, innovation, research and customer preferences the SMART objectives for the company are listed as follows:

• To increase the earning's per share of the company by 40% in the next three years
• To generate an early cash flow from operations of 700 million dollars by the year 2023 (Under Armour, 2018)
• To secure a 20% return on invested capital in the next three years (Under Armour, 2018)
• To secure a 48% gross margin in the next three years (Under Armour, 2018)

These objectives are primarily concerned with the financial outlook of the company and focus on key areas such as earnings per share, cash flow from operations, return on investment capital and gross margins to ensure that the company is heading towards a secure and sound financial future. 

S.W.O.T.  

Strengths

Under Armour has a strong and diverse product portfolio which means that the company has a range of products which can cater to the tastes and preferences of its target market. The product line includes accessories, sportswear apparel, casual apparel and footwear. The presence of a diverse product line allows the company to have star products and cash cows along with question Marks and dogs. This means that products which have a low profit margin are able to survive in the wider product line because high revenue generating products continue to increase company profits (Wilson and McDonald, 2013).

The company has been able to invest in its brand since its inception in 1996 by running extensive marketing campaigns supported by the celebrity endorsements of prominent athletes. In addition to this factor, its high-quality products and continuous innovation has allowed the company to acquire brand recognition and brand awareness specially in its core target market of North America. The Under Armour brand is recognized for its high level of quality which helps foster customer loyalty.