Tag Archives: global marketing

by | Wednesday, August 9, 2023 · 7:32 am

H&M Adds Home and Beauty Products and Stores   

Once a high-flyer in the area of fast fashion, H&M has come under increasing pressure from China’s Shein and other retailers. Swedish company H&M sales growth has stalled in recent years, forcing the company to examine its strategy and product mix. The company’s revenue in 2022 is relatively unchanged from revenue six years ago. Not good news.  

To counter this revenue decline, the global retailer is now expanding beyond its core fashion business and into new areas of home and beauty products. Although H&M has had to close some of its fashion stores, it is now adding new, stand-alone stores focused on beauty and home products.  

There are now 32 H&M Home-branded stores that sell products from sofas to linens to kitchen products. The company has also added homeware sections to 399 of its regular stores as well as on the its website.  

The company has also opened two flagship H&M Beauty-branded stores in Norway, selling products such as nail polish, body wash, makeup, and razors. Some of the products are also sold in regular H&M stores and online.  

And, in yet another move, H&M has also added other brands to its stores and now offers more than 70 other brands. In addition, H&M has grown its own private-label brands, which have sold at double the rate of the overall company.   Why the changes? According to H&M, “we see that customers spend more time with us if we offer a broader range of products.”   Shall we check it out?      

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Discuss the four primary marketing strategies: Market penetration, market development, product development, and diversification.
  2. Poll students: Who has shopped at H&M? What have they purchased?
  3. Which strategy is H&M employing for the new stores? For the new product lines?
  4. Divide students into teams. Have each team select one of the four primary strategies for H&M and develop a marketing mix for it.
  5. View H&M website: https://www2.hm.com/en_us/index.html
  6. View H&M home products website: https://www2.hm.com/en_gb/home.html
  7. And H&M beauty products website: https://www2.hm.com/en_us/beauty.html

Source: Moss, T. (15 July 2023). H&M now wants to sell you makeup, sofas, and crocs. Wall Street Journal.

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by | Thursday, June 22, 2023 · 7:07 am

 100% Recyclable Running Shoes Rented By Subscription Only

We all know that the world has a growing waste problem, partly due to the age of disposable clothing and fast fashion. Apparel and sportswear companies are working to reduce emissions and decrease the products going to landfill, but is it enough? In particular, athletic shoes tend to be made from a great many complicated components, meaning that it isn’t worth it to separate the individual parts for recycling.

For college students and athletes, a big portion of their budget goes to shoes. And, a big part of their closets are likely old and used shoes that are rarely worn any more. If their closets are like ours, they probably have at least six pairs, of which five pairs are very used and dirty and ready to be thrown away.

But what if we didn’t have to enlarge the waste dump? What if we could wear our running shoes until they are worn or dirty, and then just trade it them to be recycled and receive a shiny, clean, new pair?

Sounds complicated, but Swiss sportwear company “On” has a solution. It recently launched the Cloudneo running shoe as is a recycled premium running shoe – but it can’t be purchased, only rented.

For a monthly fee of $29.99, s Cloudneo is a subscription service for not only a performance running shoe, but a fully recyclable plant-based shoe! Castor beans are used as the base, and the shoe upper is sewn from a single piece of fabric to help reduce waste. The shoe contains only nine pieces of material compared to dozens of materials in most brands. And, since dye contaminates plastic, the Cloudneo is only available in white.

On is now shipping more than a million pairs of its Cloudneo athletic shoes each month, plus has added a growing line of sports clothing. The Cloudneo was supposed to launch in 2021, but was held up by the pandemic and supply chain issues. It has also added non-subscription shoes which are sold individually, but can be recycled. On is distributed through retail partners in more than 60 countries, plus direct-to-consumer.

Run, recycle, run again.

 Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Discuss a subscription business model. Poll students: What subscription services do they use? Other services they can name? (Ex: meal kits, shave clubs, entertainment, etc.).
  2. Poll students: How many running or athletic pairs of shoes do you own? How long do they last? How much do you spend?
  3. How many pairs of athletic shoes do they have currently? What do you do with your old shoes?
  4. Show video about the company and its process.: https://youtu.be/tCH7lqkud8w
  5. Show On Running website: https://www.on-running.com/en-us/cyclon
  6. Who is the target market? Include demographics, psychographics, behaviors, values, attitudes, etc.
  7. Divide students into teams. Have each team come up with a promotional plan for Cloudneo.

Source: Ballard, E. (7 July 2022). The 100% recyclable running shoe that’s only available by subscription. Wall Street Journal.; Danziger, P. (4 April 2023). On, the $1 billion Swiss running-shoe company, declares Cyclon its sustainability incubator. Forbes.

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by | Tuesday, June 6, 2023 · 7:46 am

Apple Launches its First Retail Stores in India

According to the United Nations, India is on track to pass China as the world’s most populous country later this year. This is an important demographic trend for marketers to recognize; China has held the rank of the most populous nation in the world since 1950.

Along with India, the two countries combine to equal roughly a third of the world’s 7.9 billion people (and likely more by the time you read this article). However, China has an aging population, with low growth. India on the other hand has a much younger population, higher fertility rate, and decreased infant mortality.

Recognizing these trends, Apple has finally opened its first two retail stores in India –  Mumbai and New Delhi, two of India’s wealthiest cities. Until now, Apple products were sold only by third-party sellers in India, which presented its own set of problems for the company. Apple sold 6.5 million iPhones in India in 2022; compare this with the volume of 50 million a year sold in China and the U.S. China is a growing market for technology and innovation.

Of particular interest will be the iPhone pricing. The iPhone is a relatively expensive phone for consumers there. Considered a ‘premium’ product, only 11% of the market could afford iPhones. However it was also the fastest growing segment.

For all these reasons, it’s easy to understand why companies do through analysis of countries for expansion. Population size is only one indicator of potential sales. The psychographic profile is also key. India’s population is more willing to pay a premium for phones and as a ‘premium’ product,  Apple is viewed as a status symbol there.

What does Apple need to do to succeed in India?

Group Activities and Discussion Questions:

  1. Show video of opening of Apple in India: https://youtu.be/cRiSSV5pfzk
  2. Discuss the four primary marketing strategies: market penetration, market development, product development, and diversification.
  3. Which strategy is Apple using for this new venture?
  4. Why this marketing strategy?
  5. Divide students into teams. Have each team select one of the four different strategies and explain why that strategy could be used to market Apple.
  6. Have each team determine the marketing mix (4Ps) to support their strategy choice.
  7. Debrief the exercise.

Source:  Kharpal, A. (18 April 2023). Apple opens its first store in India as it looks for a new generation of iPhone users. CNBC.; Travelli, A., and Raj, S. (18 April 2023). Apple opens first store in India, a promising frontier for the tech giant. New York Times.; other news sources.

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