Gymshark by Becky Green

REBECCA GREEN N0739091 WORD COUNT: 4,030

CONTENTS WHERE ARE GYMSHARK NOW - SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS INTRODUCTION METHODOLOGY COMPANY PROFILE THE GYMSHARK VISION & MISSION BRAND PERSONALITY BRAND VALUES CONSUMER SEGMENTATION MARKET OVERVIEW MACRO ENVIRONMENT: PESTLE ANALYSIS MACRO TREND: PERSONALISATION MACRO TREND: RETAIL RECOVERY MICRO TREND: FITNESS AT HOME COMPETITOR ANALYSIS NIKE LULULEMON CORE COMPETENCIES SWOT ANALYSIS

4 6 8 10 12 14 15 16 18 20 28 29 30 31 33 34 35 37

WHERE DO GYMSHARK WANT TO GET TO - MARKETING STRATEGY ANSOFF MATRIX KEY OPPORTUNITIES THE LONG TERM FUTURE SMART OBJECTIVES 3-YEAR MARKETING STRATEGY 1ST YEAR 2ND YEAR 3RD YEAR THE STORE

38 40 41 42 43 44 46 50 52 54

HOW WILL GYMSHARK GET THERE - COMMUNICATION PLAN THE GYMSHARK TOUR BUS COMPETITION

60 62 66

FINANCE BUDGETING MARKETING COSTS FINANCIAL PLAN MEASUREMENT & REVIEW TIMELINE

67 68 69 70 71 72

CONCLUSION

REFERENCES BIBLIOGRAPHY IMAGE REFERENCES APPENDIX

76 77 80 86

WHERE ARE GYMSHARK NOW?

PART I - SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS 5

INTRODUCTION

Gymshark has quickly developed from a garage based, screen printing business, to one of the UK’s for both men and women. At present, the brand offers an online shopping experience, alongside occasional pop-up events for their consumers to shop at. Gymshark have carefully gained a large following through choosing the right brand ambassadors that conform to the brand image and personality, known as Gymshark athletes. With the company still in rapid growth, Gymshark are wanting to expand their business, creating a permanent physical space for their customers to visit. This should be done in a ‘Gymshark way’ and be approached with an omni-channel method in order to create a seamless experience. The objective of this report is to research macro and micro, market and consumer trends and to research and gain an understanding in how their competition are approaching the retail aspect of their brands, in order to create a successful 3-year marketing strategy plan for Gymshark to expand.

METHODOLOGY PRIMARY RESEARCH

2 forms of primary research were conducted in order to complete this report. Firstly, a visit to the Gymshark Headquarters in order to attain a wholesome understanding of the brand. An interview company and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s infrastructure. Secondly, an internet survey was created in which 89 responses were collected. Answers collected were considered and used to establish an understanding of the general publicâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, attitude towards a physical shopping space for the brand. The respondents also outlined and helped to identify particular areas for the company to explore and develop.

SECONDARY RESEARCH

Secondary research took place in order to acquire information on the markets Gymshark currently operate in. Further information on the brand itself was also gained, as well as information on their competition and consumers. Secondary research included reading several reports, website articles, and books etc.

TURNOVER 2017 £40,525,205

COST OF SALES 2017 £10,813,994

GROSS PROFIT 2017 £29,711,211

(Gymshark Ltd, 2017)

COMPANY PROFILE thus creating â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Gymsharkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. His company now has loyal customers in 177 countries who have devoted themselves to the Gymshark lifestyle and family. Gymshark currently are an online retailer, who pride themselves on their unpredictability and modern marketing methods. Their famous pop-up stores tour the globe, allowing dedicated customers to physically shop, and connect with their idols, otherwise known as Gymshark Athletes. These are the brand ambassadors for Gymshark, who advertise, review and promote Gymshark products on their social media channels.

VISION The Gymshark vision is to be an iconic, british, performance wear retailer, in order to dominate the global performance wear market, alongside major competitors.

MISSION Gymshark has a devotion for producing innovative, effective performance wear and creating an ever-expanding social presence. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We exist to create the tools that help people unlock their full potential and put their ideas into action. Before there is an action, there is an idea. Be all that you imagined you could be. Be a visionary.â&#x20AC;? (Gymshark, 2018)

BRAND PERSONALITY ARCHETYPES: Heroine, Ruler, Adventurer PERSONALITY: Exciting, Young, Confident

BRAND VALUES FAMILY

Our community of athletes, artists and visionaries stretch all the way across the globe. We are a family of like-minded individuals working to bring our respective visions to life.

PROGRESSION

Our products exist at the intersect of engineering and art. To remain at the forefront of both, we need to be fearlessly progressive and consistently future-conscious. We are not future-proof. We are the future

VISION

In everything we do, be true to our own vision and respectful of others. We are here to bring ideas to life. There is no idea too big, or too small. (Gymshark, 2018)

CONSUMER SEGMENTATION The target consumer for Gymshark belongs to the 16-25 age category. People who are younger than 16 often aspire to look older, whilst

choose Gymshark for their extensive range of effective performance wear, not just for the unique style.

DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES • 16-25 year old males and females. • These consumers are either Highly Educated Independent Individuals (HEIDIs), Young And Determined Savers (YADs), or Teens In Parents Pockets Eroding Retirement Savings (TIPPERs). • Gymshark consumers will live in or near a city, providing easy access to gym facilities. • Their socio-economic group is middle to upper class. This varies from young adults with money from wealthy parents, to those with a student loan or a well-paid job.

BEHAVIOURAL & PSYCHOGRAPHIC VARIABLES THE ELITE ATHLETES: quality and durability. The athletes have a strong loyalty towards Gymshark and go directly to the Gymshark website when purchasing new gym

THE INSPIRED YOUTH:

• The inspired youth: aged 16-20-years-old, desire Gymshark attire to replicate Gymshark athletes in order to achieve their body goals. They however could be swayed to purchase from competitors like Nike, Adidas or Lulu Lemon for style purposes.

THE STYLISH COMFORT SEEKERS:

• The stylish comfort seekers: aged 16-25-years-old, purchases this attire to wear on a daily basis and look good whilst remaining comfy. They only shops with the brand to keep up with fashion trends.

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Sportswear brands that focus on performance have an opportunity to respond to lifestyle shifts by diversifying their product portfolios. In order to communicate effectively with customers, companies are expected to make more use of social media and apps to engage with consumers.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; (Euromonitor International, 2018)

MARKET OVERVIEW ‘In 2018, the global sports apparel market was estimated to generate about $174 billion in revenue’ (Statista, 2018) ‘In the UK, sportswear is expected to continue growing at a healthy pace, with a compound annual growth rate of 4% over 2017 to 2022, compared with 2% for the wider fashion industry’ (Euromonitor International, 2018)

SALES OF SPORTSWEAR - UK

Retail Value RSP - GBP million - Current - 2003-2022

• The market leaders of sportswear and performance wear continue to be Nike and Adidas. This can be attributed to their many sponsorship agreements, and a secure omnichannel shopping experience. • Gymshark’s primary market is the performance apparel market. Gymshark produce high quality, performance apparel for gym goers. This market is currently worth £1.8 billion, and sales have been forecast to grow to £2.2 billion by 2022. With performance apparel persisting to grow at a rapid rate in the near future, it indicates a positive outlook for Gymshark. This opens several opportunities for the company to expand and grow alongside the market. Within this market, Gymshark’s most direct competition is LuLu Lemon and NIKE. Both of these brands are also recognised for their performance apparel offering. • The secondary market that Gymshark are a part of, is the sportswear market. Although Gymshark do not provide sports apparel, they do provide training clothing. Training is one of the UK’s most popular sports with there being a total of 5.8 million gym-members in 2018 (Mintel, 2018) Nike also dominate this market.

MACRO ENVIRONMENT:

PESTLE ANALYSIS

Economical, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental Macro Trends.

Political: Global political affairs impact the distribution and operations of retail companies, making it essential to have a good awareness and understanding of the changes happening in government and the decisions that are being made. • The UK Government has become increasingly concerned over people’s health and wellbeing over the years. In July 2016, after conducting extensive research, the government stated that, ‘increasing physical activity has the potential to improve the physical and mental health and wellbeing of individuals, families, communities and the nation as a whole.’ (GOV.UK, 2016) With as consumers purchase more activewear. • With president Donald Trump in the Whitehouse, new laws and regulations for businesses operating in the US could be to mirror the UK shopping experience, to other parts of the world.

Economical: Economic factors and changes have an consequently the demand for products. • Since the UK voted to leave the EU, consequently leading to the

environment for UK consumers has been impacted. For a company like Gymshark, who has competitors offering a similar product at a lower price, this could result in consumers with less spending • With ‘the number of people in work remaining at a near-record high’ (Elliott, 2018) it is possible that there will be a growing number of UK consumers with disposable income to spend on luxuries such as Gymshark clothing.

Social: It is increasingly important for businesses to understand the demographic of the market and environments in which they operate, in order to adapt and improve products and their marketing accordingly. • It has been found that ‘15% of UK adults currently use a private years when participation sat at 12%.’ (Mintel, 2018) With this apparel, consequently growing the consumer base for brands like Gymshark. • As Mintel states, ‘society has become a lot more casual, over half of men (58%) and half of women think that sports clothing is practical as everyday wear. ‘(Mintel, 2017) With this trend, the public are opting to wear garments such as gym leggings, to go to work and run errands. Consequently, Gymshark could see a rise in consumers who are not gym goers, who instead opt for Gymshark purely for comfort and practicality reasons instead of performance. • The retail experience is rapidly becoming the most dominant customer satisfaction factor, especially for Sport Goods retailers. Sweaty Betty is, ‘a leader in innovation and has been a pioneer in This social trend could be an opportunity to consider for Gymshark, as a new way of retailing their products.

Technological: With ever developing technology it is important for businesses to keep up with these advances in order to retain customers and attract new ones. • Social media is quickly becoming the easiest way to shop for millennials and Generation Z. ‘Instagram and Snapchat have seen the highest levels of growth. The growth in usage is driven by a younger demographic, with 60% of 16-24-year-olds using Instagram.’ (Mintel 2017) With Gymshark already being known next big platform to utilise. • Omni-channel retailing is vital for clothing retailers at present. Consumers ‘now frequently search for information in the store and simultaneously search on their mobile device to get more (Verhoef, Peter C., et al, 2015) Gymshark currently only offer an purchasing as they cannot see physical products before making a purchase.

Legal: All businesses need to follow the legislation put in place by governments of the countries in which they operate. â&#x20AC;˘ As a company operating in the UK, Europe and the USA, Gymshark must adhere to many different laws and government requirements, for example; employee discrimination, minimum wage and health and safety laws. Legislations can be quite costly to follow but are essential. If companies receive bad publicity for broken rules or negative relationships with the government, sales could fall dramatically, and penalties could be put in place against these companies. â&#x20AC;˘ Breeches of health and safety laws and regulations can result the existing reputation of a company, and with Gymshark already having built a strong, positive brand reputation it would be detrimental for the company to lose this.

Environmental: Companies, particularly clothing and fashion companies, need to consider the environmental impact the manufacturing and selling process has on the environment.

â&#x20AC;˘ With consumers and the government becoming more and more aware of the current and future state of the environment, it is essential for clothing companies in particular to have a respectable reputation for their strategy of avoiding damage to the environment when manufacturing their products. â&#x20AC;˘ Gymshark could adapt to the growing concern for the environment by using sustainable fabrics and create an environmentally friendly range to differentiate themselves from competitors.

MACRO TREND PERSONALIZATION Personalisation is becoming key when trying to retain loyal customers. Many different brands have now adapted to this trend and are offering both in-store and online personalisation of their products. It was a recent study revealing that 66% of consumers are likely to switch brands if they feel treated like a number rather than an individual.’ (LSN Global, 2018) Nike are

to a customer’s measurements and liking. This is done in-store and takes around two weeks’ (Wade, 2018) . As Studio’ which gives Nike Plus members a one-to-one, personal service and access to exclusives. This makes their customers feel connected with the brand, and valued as paying, loyal customers.

MACRO TREND RETAIL RECOVERY The perception that high street stores aren’t needed anymore has been proven to be false. Steven Dennis, the president of SageBerry Consulting has said, ‘The notion that physical retail is dead is just silly. In most cases, the economics of physical stores are superior to those of e-commerce. We know that the combination of digital and physical is most often what customers (LSN Global, 2018) Therefore, in order for physical stores to adapt to this change in demand, they must embrace technologies that have helped other parts of their business succeed. ‘The stores of the future will not simply be experiential hubs without products, nor will best of both worlds.’ (LSN Global, 2018) Consumers desire an easy and enjoyable shopping experience, that serves purpose as well as entertainment, both of omni-channel retailers. Retailers should recognise that ‘future stores should not be weighed down by technology, but supported by it, new spaces should adapt to better meet customer needs.’ (LSN Global, 2018) It is also being noted that retail stores are using both Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality to create engaging and memorable experiences for customers whilst shopping at their stores. This is rapidly becoming a pivotal point in the Bricks and mortar retail industry as more stores are using this advanced form of technology.

MICRO TREND FITNESS AT HOME This micro trend is on the rise as more people are class in their busy time schedule and weekly routines. Consumers are investing in new technologies like them execute a thorough work-out from the comfort of their own home. Mintel found that ‘the people who work-out at home, 50% partake in weight training, 41% (Mintel, 2015) amongst a variety of other activities also. Research shows that, ‘while low-cost gyms and specialist pressed consumers want to stop having to squeeze in exercise around work or childcare commitments. Instead, they are seeking aesthetically pleasing yet their time at home.’ (LSN Global, 2018) As a result of on sports equipment’ (Financial Times, 2018)

COMPETITOR ANALYSIS market. Nike and LuLu lemon are 2 brands that Gymshark compete with in particular, however both on different scales.

COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

The competitive map shows that Gymsharkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s primary competitors are Adidas, Nike, Lululemon and Sweaty Betty. These brands vary in size, however offer similar products and brand experiences . Gymsharks secondary competitors are those like ASOS, Saski Collection and Missguided. These brands offer an athleisure product line, however not at the same performance quality of Gymshark.

COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

Nike is another brand that dominates the activewear domain. ‘Nike (UK) Ltd have 21.3% shares of the UK Sportswear marke’ (Euromonitor, 2018). Their mission is to, ‘Bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world’ (Nike, 2018) and they believe that ‘If you have a body, you are an athlete’ (Nike, 2018). With this ethos at the core of the brand, Nike push boundaries and lead the way with ground-breaking technological advances, both in store and throughout their ranges. They produce a variety of different sportswear including; to that of Gymshark, at a higher price and in a different style that adheres to their brand image. Nike has an Instagram following of 83.7 million and interact with 7.6 million followers on Twitter. They attractions and desirable places to visit. Nike is similar to Gymshark in that both brands aim to create a memorable experience for all consumers and aim to offer a seamless omnichannel shopping experience. Nike’s consumer base is extremely large due to the different sportswear markets that the brand has tapped into. In order to build a strong customer loyalty, Nike target 15-40-year olds, starting at a young age in order to build a life-long connection with consumers. They target both men and women equally, and do not target one country in particular as they have a strong identity worldwide. They aim to target teenagers to nurture a strong brand-to-consumer rapport at an early age; this age group is also one of the most active, therefore the easiest to target.

COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

Another close competitor to Gymshark is Lululemon. Lululemon is ‘a yoga-inspired, technical athletic apparel company for women and men.’ They ‘started as a design studio by day and yoga studio by night and soon became a standalone store in November 2000 on West 4th Avenue in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood.’ (Lululemon, 2018) They have many stores worldwide, and their website operates in a large number of countries. Lulu Lemon have a similar number of Instagram followers as Gymshark at 2.8 million each, with only one million followers, which is higher than Gymshark. Lulu lemon also operate both on Apple Music and Spotify to enable them to interact with their customers through music as well, similar to Gymshark who have a Spotify account too. Lulu Lemon offer a similar product offering to that of Gymshark however at higher prices. They offer; running, produce underwear and accessories to fully kit out their customers. Lulu Lemon have a different primary consumer to that of Gymshark, typically a 18-35-year-old female with a high income that practices yoga on a regular basis. This bracket has recently grown however, since they introduced their menswear range, and reached out further than a yoga-based audience.

CORE COMPETENCIES research: only 14% of respondents hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t heard of the brand before, leaving 86% of respondents with a therefore regularly communicate with them on social media platforms. They have developed an exciting brand image, that is interesting and appealing to consumers, this is attributed mainly to their unique and modern marketing approach, including pop-up events to create excitement around the brand.

SWOT ANALYSIS STRENGTHS

WEAKNESSES

• Gymshark have created a clear and strong brand image, and by doing so have differentiated themselves from their competition. • They have established a high following on all of their social media accounts and interact with consumers on a daily basis. • Gymshark was born on a genuine and motivating brand story that consumers can connect with, thus creating brand loyalty, and a reason to shop with the brand. • Gymshark produce wholesale, their own product being sold through their own channels which makes the brand a lot more agile and can react quicker to market changes this way. • They have a presence in currently 177 countries – allowing for a large network of consumers to discover and use the brand. • Gymshark is an authentic British brand, giving them a USP in comparison to competitors like Nike and Lululemon

• With the business expanding at a fast rate, it is hard for the brand to hire enough staff, who are the right people, in such a short space of time. • The brand currently has no permanent physical space for customers to visit, they rely on their pop-up experiences only, for physical consumer interaction with the brand. • Gymshark views themselves as having no real direct competition, which puts the brand in a vulnerable position against their competitors.

OPPORTUNITIES

THREATS

• The greatest opportunity for Gymshark, with them currently having no permanent physical space, is for the brand to build one. With the

• The sportswear and athleisure markets are becoming saturated and are highly competitive markets to be operating within. • The biggest threat for Gymshark is their competition. Their competitors produce very similar products to those of Gymshark, therefore this forces Gymshark to keep advancing their designs and the technology within their garments to differentiate themselves at a constant rate. • Brexit poses a threat for a UK based business like Gymshark, meaning that in the near future it will become more expensive for the business to operate, with additional taxes and charges to pay.

the future. • Another big opportunity for Gymshark, is to develop their current having busy lifestyles, or attending gyms where they’re queueing to use equipment, people are opting to buy their own to save time. This opens the opportunity for Gymshark to create new and develop their existing accessories. • With Gymshark being accessible in various different countries online, it creates a valuable opportunity for the brand to create more physical experiences for their international customers in countries outside of the UK. • Gymshark has a new HQ overseas in Hong Kong, giving the brand a big opportunity to work in the Chinese market and develop their current offering in that area. However, with this opportunity comes extensive research and more risks, therefore this is not the most appealing opportunity for the brand yet. • There is opportunity for the brand to collaborate with another brand to extend their customer base and appeal to different people. This is a lower cost way of extending their product offering and tapping into new markets, for example the food and nutrients market.

customers’ orders at busy periods like Black Friday, this creates negativity around the brand. • Gymshark only have a permanent online offering, and therefore customers who wish to try on and physically feel their products before purchase may be put off, thus preventing a higher website conversion rate.

WHERE DO GYMSHARK WANT TO GET TO?

PART II - MARKETING STRATEGY 39

EXISTING MARKETS

ANSOFF MATRIX EXISTING PRODUCTS

NEW PRODUCTS

MARKET PENETRATION

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

• Building a physical Gymshark store is an exciting way for Gymshark to penetrate the market that they are in. It will appeal to those potential consumers who have not yet bought from Gymshark, due to being reluctant as they do not have the option to try on the garments before purchasing. It would also be an ideal venue for Gymshark to host in-store events as well as their famous pop-up events, giving the public more of a chance to connect with the brand on a personal level. This would enhance consumers’ shopping experience at Gymshark and increase the amount of returning customers. creates an easy and accessible platform for Gymshark’s customers to connect with and follow the brand from. It would also begin the seamless, omni-channel blend that the brand needs in order to remain successful and at pace with their competition.

MARKET DEVELOPMENT NEW MARKETS

• With the brand already having a presence in a large

to cement this presence before endeavouring into new countries. This would involve making physical contact with some of the countries that they have not before, for example Germany, Spain etc. This would open the company up to an increase in unique consumers. • Another market for Gymshark to develop within is the Chinese market. Due to the size of the country, there is a large opportunity for Gymshark to connect with a number of entirely new consumers. However, this would take a lot of research and planning in order to make it a successful development of the company.

• In order for Gymshark to grow as a company, they could extend their current accessory line in which they already offer. This would satisfy the needs of their customers who prefer to work-out from home or attend busy gyms where there are queues for the equipment. Creating a new line of accessories and developing their existing line will excite their existing consumers, whilst attracting new customers to the brand also. • Gymshark could also develop a line of customisable t-shirts. The brand recently released a small number of limited edition t-shirts that stated ‘Gymshark Lifting Club’, that makes their customers feel as though they are part of the brand family. This concept could be developed further and allow consumers to edit their name on to a similar style of t-shirt with a comparable slogan.

DIVERSIFICATION • Gymshark could invest in the production and manufacturing of a ‘Gymshark Fitness Watch.’ This would open them up to the technology market, which is completely new to the brand. This new product would appeal to the ‘tech savvy’ generation, which is the generation that their target consumers fall into; Millennials and Generation X . It would appeal to both men and women who work-out regularly, and also those who just shop at Gymshark for the comfort, due to the stylish nature of a smart watch. This brand stretch however would be very costly, and again would require a lot of research and time in order for it to be successful.

KEY OPPORTUNITIES

1. 2. 3.

Gymshark have a large opportunity to cement the brandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s connection with their international consumers. Before the company begin to discover and build relationships with new countries, they should concentrate on those in which they have already created a presence within and grow their current brand awareness.

Another opportunity that Gymshark should address, is to develop and extend their existing consumers also, leading to an increase in the average basket value of their customers.

Without Gymshark having a permanent physical space, they could be potentially losing out on a number of consumers. This is their biggest opportunity thus far, and therefore should be addressed within the 3-year marketing strategy plan.

THE LONG TERM FUTURE Gymshark are looking to eventually be the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s answer to NIKE or Adidas. With an authentic brand story and a motivational vision, By opening permanent physical spaces and keeping their unpredictability with pop-up experiences the brand will have competitive advantage over their direct competition, alongside growing their brand awareness and building strong loyalty. With becoming a market leader in the performance apparel and accessories market, Gymshark will need to broaden their current offering able to create lasting memories with the shopping experiences that they create for consumers.

1. 2. 3. 4.

SMART OBJECTIVES To grow Gymsharkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s international consumer base and the global awareness of the brand by 10% within a year.

To increase both male and female customersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; average basket size by 5% by the end of 2020.

To ensure at least 15% of their consumers have had a physical experience with Gymshark by the end of 2021.

To increase their market share by 3% by the end of 2021.

3 YEAR MARKETING STRATGEY 45

1ST 46

YEAR

GLOBAL EXPOSURE exposure on a global scale. With the ultimate goal for Gymshark being able to operate in every country across the world, the brand needs to establish a strong connection with consumers in the 177 countries that they have is; Gymsharkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s international consumer base should grow by 10% The outcome of strengthening their current, international consumer connections will result in a surge in followers, an increased amount of both new and unique website visitors, and ultimately a higher conversion rate.

THE GYMSHARK EXPERIENCE

Another objective for Gymshark to begin accomplishing within the 1st year, is to ensure that 15% of their current consumers have had a physical experience with the brand. unique and better experiences from in-store shopping; compared to online which is more about speed and convenience.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; (Maloney, 2018) Gymshark have previously recognised this, and have created memorable pop-up experiences for their customers. However, these are occasional and hard to access for a large number of Gymshark followers, therefore to enable Gymshark to connect with their fan base, they will need to consider a different approach.

THE GYMSHARK APP

For loyal customers to maintain a strong connection with the brand, it is imperative that the brand launch a Gymshark App within the allowing them to stay connected regularly. This movement will also elements of retailing together with the social aspects of the brand. This will ultimately increase Gymshark sales and the number of returning customers whilst giving them competitive advantage over competitors wihout an app.

2ND YEAR

GYMSHARK ACCESSORIES DEVELOPMENT Gymshark will develop their existing line of accessories in order to appeal to a larger number of consumers. This strategy will see an increase in consumersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; basket size, as they will purchase both their accessories and clothing from Gymshark instead of shopping a different gym equipment supplier. With people now struggling to attend a gym every day of the week, consumers are adding home workouts into their routines, creating a higher demand for accessories. Gymshark will develop their existing accessories into different colours and sizes, alongside creating a new line of products. This will include; Gymshark currently having a limited selection of existing accessories, they are only targeting a small number of customers.

3RD 52

YEAR

OMNICHANNEL MOVEMENT marketing plan. This will excite customers for what the brand has to offer online and offering. This will enhance existing consumersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; perception of the brand and also attract new consumers.

GYMSHARKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S 1ST FLAGSHIP STORE

After establishing a connection with new and loyal customers around the globe within This will aid Gymshark in achieving one of their set objectives - ensuring at least 15% of consumers have had a physical experience with Gymshark by the end of 2021. The plan, fund and build the store.

THE STORE THE PHYSICAL SPACE & BRAND VALUE

With customer experience being a primary factor for high street stores to consider at present, this will be at the centre of the Gymshark physical now seen across the market’ (Mintel, 2016) As mentioned by Ben Francis, ‘90% of the store would be something other than retail. People would go in for a purpose and then purchase because they’ve seen it rather than enter the store with the intention to buy something.’ (Francis, 2018) In the busy city of London, Gymshark should offer a haven for consumers to take a break from relentless shopping and touring of the city, and instead immerse themselves in a Gymshark atmosphere. Gymshark should channel their family value, within their store, to create an inviting and welcoming atmosphere for consumers. The store will promote their vision, ‘Be all that you imagined you could be. Be a Visionary.’ (Gymshark, 2018) creating a futuristic, modern space that inspires their consumers.

LOCATION following, this store should be located in a place that is visited by international tourists, to make it a desirable destination. London has excellent accessibility, international airports and remains the top tourist destination.

FUNCTION & FORMAT

The store should capture everything that is at the core of the brand. Mintel states, ‘expert advice is a key motivator for people who choose to buy sports goods in-store, with almost half (49%) stating that they prefer to shop in-store to get advice on products ahead of purchase. In addition to those seeking advice, 60% of consumers who shopped in-store for sports products are interested in services and equipment that allow them to test goods ahead of purchase.’ (Mintel, 2016) Therefore the store will be open-plan with room for in-store events, work out classes both physically lead, and AR lead, and a training area for customers to sample the clothing and chat to Gymshark Athletes/Advisors. There will be space in-store for pop-up are a way to appeal to consumers of various age groups, with two thirds of both men and women aged 16-34 saying they either have or would like to use an in-store cafe.’ (Mintel, 2017) Primary research also informs that 83% of consumers would like to see in-store refreshments, 52% would like in-store activities that are involved with the brand, followed with other elements such as a DJ, Creative Store Layout, and VIP visits. The store should also incorporate a photo booth that is linked to social media which customers can use and post directly from, thus enhancing their exposure on social media and their following.

ONLINE & OFFLINE consumers answering a few relevant questions on an interactive screen in-store. This creates a personalised shopping experience for consumers. With with recent trends.

THE STORE WHO IS THIS STORE TARGETTING?

As well as targeting their existing 16-25-year-old consumers who already shop with the brand, Gymshark will be opening themselves up to new consumers. With the location of this store being the bustling city of London, the brand will experience interaction with a large number of foreign is predicting tourists will spend a record £27bn over the coming 12 months’ (Brignall, 2017) Therefore with this growth in international visitors,

GYMSHARK ATHLETES & THEIR CONTRIBUTION

Within the Gymshark Athletes’ contracts with the brand, alterations will be made in order to arrange monthly visits to the store from Gymshark Athletes. At the launch, several of the popular athletes should be involved such as Nikki Blackketter, Meggan Grubb, David Laid, Steve Cook and Whitney Simmons, drawing attention to the event and attracting a large crowd of people who follow these athletes. With some of these athletes being from the US, it will attract an international following to the store launch. tickets for these classes, however there will be no charge. Ticket releases will incur excitement as they will be subject to availability. Holding these events will also increase the number of impulse purchases upon visitation.

HOW WILL GYMSHARK GET THERE?

PART III - 1ST YEAR COMMUNICATION PLAN 61

GYMSHARK TOUR BUS THE DETAILS: • Two renovated double decker buses: one starting in the UK and travelling to Europe; the other completing a road trip around the USA. The tour will begin at the start of June

• The buses will be kitted out with speakers, a small refreshments bar, a photo booth and interactive screens/ kiosks. They will also have a mobile work-out garden that can be set up once the bus is parked in the desired location, for Athletes and Customers to use or hold mini competitions in. The tour buses will only hold samples of stock for consumers to look at and feel, any purchases made will be from the interactive kiosk, unless they are purchasing a limited edition tour t-shirt. This kiosk will ask they can choose to purchase, creating a personalised experience for each customer. • Different Gymshark athletes will be present at different stages of the tour, corresponding with the buses location; for example, mainly UK athletes around the UK, Swedish Athletes for the Sweden stop etc.. • The Gymshark Tour will create excitement around the brand on a global scale, by disrupting traditional marketing methods. With Gymshark using a bus it allows the brand to remain agile and unpredictable; setting them apart from their competition. It will allow a large number of consumers to have a physical experience with the brand, heightening their brand exposure. This will ultimately contribute to a higher follower count and an increase in future sales worldwide. Consumers will gain long lasting memories with the brand that are personal to them, furthermore increasing the number of loyal customers.

GYMSHARK TOUR BUS UK/EUROPEAN BUS:

UK & Ireland – London, Dublin. Europe – Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam, Madrid, Sweden Krissy Cela, Ryan Terry, Hanna Oberg (Sweden) Nochtli Peralta Alvarez (Netherlands/Spain)

USA BUS TOUR:

Toronto, New York, Washington, Miami, New Orleans, Los Angeles, San Francisco. Potential Athletes Present – Whitney Simmons, Nikki Blackketter, David Laid, Steve Cook, Robin Gallant, Matt Ogus, Chris Lavado.

TOUR COMPETITIONS:

At each stop, for both seperate tour buses, there will be a £250 Gymshark voucher giveaway. To enter this competition consumers must download the Gymshark App and allow promotes brand loyalty with consumers from each country/ city that that tour bus stops at.

ENGAGEMENT AND INTERACTION WITH CONSUMERS:

The Gymshark Tour bus will be advertised on their Instagram feed and the blog on their website. This includes one sponsored Instagram post per month, beginning in March, through to the end of the tour in July. This will ensure a wider audience is informed about the tour and will therefore create a higher footfall at the event. The Gymshark Athletes will also be advertising this on their own Instagram Feed’s and YouTube accounts. With the Gymshark app already being in development, it being another platform for the company to use to promote this event. When the tour begins, the hashtag ‘WeLiftTheGlobe’ will be created in order for customers, who have visited or plan to visit the tour bus, to use to interact with the brand and share their experience online. It has been found that, ‘posts with at least one hashtag average 12.6% more engagement.’ (Simply Measured, 2014) consequently initiating a surge in followers of the brand, from all over the world.

GYMSHARK APP COMPETITION DECEMBER Once the tour has ended, there will be the ultimate Christmas giveaway in December. This will be a ÂŁ1000 gift voucher for Gymshark to one consumer who has downloaded the app and made an in-app purchase. This will drive downloads and purchases due to the initiative of being entered into the prize draw.

FINANCE 67

1ST YEAR BUDGETING MARKETING COSTS*

* To see breakdown of costs please refer to Appendix X

1ST YEAR MARKETING COSTS

for the brand. As Ben Francis stated when speaking of previous pop-up stores ‘sales do spike. A lot of what we see however is growth in Social Media... It’s not just a sales point of view for us, its brand exposure.’ (Francis, 2018)

With the main objectives of this communication plan being: to grow Gymshark’s international consumer base and the global awareness of the brand by 10% within a year

1ST YEAR FINANCIAL PLAN

MEASURE & REVIEW In order to review both the 1-year communication strategy and the 3-year marketing strategy, Gymshark will need to measure the success. This will be measured by observing: • • • •

Examining the growth in social media followers of the brand. Identifying the growth in the number of unique website visitors, and their basket sizes. Footfall numbers at both the global tour and the store launch. The number of click-through’s on their sponsored instagram posts.

TIMELINE COMMUNICATION PLAN

TO CONCLUDE...

Having already established a powerful and exciting brand image, Gymshark should now focus on their global strategy in order to determine an all-encompassing connection with their consumers worldwide. This will as Nike and Adidas, at the top of the market. A physical store will further cement a stronger brand status, and attract more consumers to the evergrowing Gymshark Family, whilst using a seamless omnichannel shopping experience to retain them.

REFERENCES Euromonitor (2018) Sportswear in the United Kingdom – March 2018. Passport

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IMAGE REFERENCES Tom Joy, (n.d) Gymshark (ONLINE) Available at:https://tomjoy.co.uk/portfolio/gymshark-2/

Rick Pushinsky, (2018) Gymshark takes a bite of the sportswear market (ONLINE) Available at: https://www. drapersonline.com/people/gymshark-takes-a-bite-of-the-sportswear-market/7030060.article

Gymshark, (n.d) David Laid (ONLINE) Available at: https://www.gymshark.com/blogs/athletes/david-laid

Gymshark, (2018) Elegant Excellence (ONLINE) Available at: https://uk.gymshark.com/pages/shop-women

Gymshark, (n.d) Whitney Simmons (ONLINE) Available at: https://www.gymshark.com/blogs/athletes/whitneysimmons

Euromonitor (2018) Sales of Sportswear in the United Kingdom â&#x20AC;&#x201C; March 2018. Passport

Gymshark, (2018) Effortless Style (ONLINE) Available at: https://uk.gymshark.com/pages/shop-men

IMAGE REFERENCES

Anthony Botibol, (2017) Personalised Marketing, (ONLINE) Available at: https://www.the-gma.com/ personalised-marketing

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Gymshark, (2018) Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all about that fun in the sun (ONLINE) Available at: https://twitter.com/gymshark/ status/1019718457770770434

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APPENDIX I - INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT BEN FRANCIS INTERVIEW - GYMSHARK COMPANY INSIGHT What are the key things you look for when looking for a space for a pop up? Depends on the area if it’s in a key area like Los Angeles, it’s down to space and how many people we can get in the door at once. The last thing we want is big queues because that affects the overall experience for our customers. Is it safe and is it on brand? For LA it took about 3 trips and each one was about 3 days long. Toronto, I found that on line in about 2 days. And London was one trip, New York it was about 24 hours in New York. For the future, what new locations are you looking at? Firstly, the Netherlands and the US, Australia, Germany that’s it for now by January A cool concept would be like a small little agile pop up that’s only there for about a week it’s just something that has the upcoming new season, where you can touch it, feel it but not actually purchase it. So, the Brick and mortar retail market is on a fast decline so what’s the desire between Gymshark and a physical space? I think the way we approach it is it’s all about experience for us so whether it would be getting a DJ, getting a gym in store like LuLu Lemon 90% of the store would be something other than retail. People would go in for a purpose and then purchase because they’ve seen it rather than enter the store with the intention to buy something. Would you ever consider making one of these spaces permanent? Yes, that is what we are looking at now but not until the time is right. It’s a competitive thing so whilst you are moving around competition like Adidas, Under Armour and Nike don’t know what is coming next. It would take a lot of man power. Are there any key macro/micro trends that you are looking at adopting for marketing? go to Golds Gym so that’s a big macro trend. People get a lot a more excited about Brands and interacting with Brands a lot more now. There’s a brand called Kiff in New York which are doing really well. Who are street wear focussed and get long queues into their stores and they manage it in an experience. The way people interact with brands is really different the reason behind that is because product is becoming so disposable. And I’m sure you all know the misguided and Pretty little things of this world where you can buy a product on Friday, wear it once and return it or throw it in the bin. So, branding is becoming really important, Same as technology, unfortunately, and we work really hard on this to try to be original and create as many core things as possible whether it’s an event or a product. No matter how original and great your product is someone can rip it off and reproduce it within 6 weeks. You see Samsung doing it with Apple and the iPhone. So, branding has become more important than ever. It gives you a little bit more of an insight behind the business and why it started and why it exists because then you get that emotional connection to it. I only buy with a few companies that really resonate with me. Triumph motorcycles, Apple. Nike do some incredible campaigns and I love the way they don’t give a shit about what they should do in a sense I was in NY a couple of months ago to go to the Nike store in the Trump tower, but they shut the store down because they don’t agree with what Trump stands for. That was amazing but must have lost them so much money, but I love the fact that they stand up for what they believe in. I think that the whole connection with brands is changing a lot. Also, retail is changing a lot, so you lot you’re going through that now. And obviously social media is changing massively, and I’m really interested by that it’s only going to go one way knowing what we know from behind the scenes it’s only going to get more and more. Like Facebook controlling the web even more than they do today and I’m really interested to see how that plays out as well. ever thought about taking that to the next step and turning it into a media house and an umbrella brand? Yes, we are actually considering that – again you probably know about Complex and HypeBeast that literally built brands and businesses of things like that- it is something we’d be interested in but we are just working out the way we would go and how we want to approach that. What has been your very best popup experience? My favourite one would be the New York one which was the Nicky B collab we did. The queues were really long so we’d been friends with Nicky a very long time, 5 years ago we were sat in a hotel for body power and now we’ve got queues around the block in New York and that’s like really crazy. But then Toronto was probably my favourite because of the amount of people that were there. What’s the average budget you would set for a campaign or an event? So, for a pop-up store you are looking at about £250K per store that does not include getting the actual product there, you will not get that back we do need to plan properly because of the cost but it does vary in each area, we did one in October in Paris which was a new market for us and we spent about 100k on that one. Which will be a good investment we are going to one in LA in April which will be about £350K investment but again it’s all based on the area and what we can get back from it.

What do you notice in sales in amount from the pop-up store after it/during it – what do you see from it? its brand exposure. Who would you say your direct competitors are? I don’t think we have any real direct competitors, there’s a bunch of shitty brands knocking around like physique, alphalete, that are all knock offs, gymking that still pisses me off to this day, gymgator – some lad that went to the same uni as me started that, brilliantly original. The difference with us is that we’re not a sportswear brand and we never will be, so the whole thing with us is that we want to kit people out for the gym, we want to help you whether you’re an elite athlete or an accountant to be the best you can be physically and mentally. So, all of our effort, and purpose and product terms of their space and the thing that I admire about lulu lemon, I don’t particularly think that their market is that cool, but I think they’ve got gorgeous product and their product design, and product development, so I’d say that they’re our closest competitor, although we’re not anywhere near their size yet obviously. I almost see us as like the UK’s version of…in the US you’ve got NIKE and Under Armour and everyone can get excited about those, Europe you’ve got Adidas and puma, and I feel like we’re the UK’s answer to one of those guys. Would you ever consider doing shoes?

purpose be strong enough? And what would we want to be the team around that, and then they’d start working on it. But for me, it always starts with purpose, like why are we going to do it, because to be honest, if there’s no gap and we’re happy enough with the footwear market as it is then there’s no point. Personally, I think there is a cracking opportunity there for us to do something, which is really exciting, I’ve got a bunch of ideas, the only problem is, that we don’t have the manpower to do that yet unfortunately. Can you go a bit more in-depth about the criteria for a Gymshark athlete? started was, I was a massive fan boy of people like Matt Oakes, Chris Lovado and those guys, so we sent them out our clothes and they liked them many followers have you got?’ sort of thing, because if we wanted to grab along a load of people with millions of followers then we could totally do between the original people that did it because they loved it and they really wanted to do it, and those that do it just because they want to make secondly, they are absolutely unique, as there’s so many people that come up to me of the guys and they’re an identical clone of one of our athletes, being yourself’ and that helps no one and then long-term they’d end up just failing doing that, so yeah uniqueness is really important, I don’t think that you can compare any of our athletes, like if you look at David Laid who was this little teenaged nutcase that loves cameras and drones and all that sort of stuff, and then you’ve got Steven Cook who’s this big super athletic, charismatic dude and then again you’ve got Whitney who, she’s just lot more of her life so yeah uniqueness is big for me. What would you say is your biggest challenge that comes with further expansion and expanding your brand? Hiring the people is really really fucking hard, like really hard. If you look at the numbers and the way that we’ve grown, most of our expediential in the past, believe me we’ve had some nutcases join the business before, but we’re had a lot of really really great people. So honestly people is is something that I remember was really important to us and I guess helped us grow so quickly, and these people didn’t really have a CV or job description, there was nothing really formal in place at the time, it was just all about gut instinct, and we think that you could be really fucking good, we’ve go no idea what you’re going to be good at join the business and let’s see how it goes. We really want to hire like down to earth people, really they stick out like a sore thumb, but the only reason that they do stick out is because we work so hard to make sure that the culture here is so good

through royal mail, and it was probably the shittest piece of work ever, but I got really emotionally attached to that, and I think everyone across the business gets that.

Is there a chance to use more traditional marketing methods, or is that not really valuable for the brand? I am less focused on the channel and more focused on what we can do with it. So, how that can affect people so, we don’t go, ‘oh let’s do advertising and let’s go on instagram because it’s cool’ because believe me even on the really old school channels you can do some really cool stuff. So, we did a thing where we dressed up a bunch of taxi’s in Birmingham and Manchester, where it was like the leg day recovery vehicle, and that was so cool and fun, whereas everyone else is plastering their crap ads on the taxis that just don’t mean anything. And I think if you can work out how to really resonate with people and how to do cool stuff then that’s more interesting. I think there’s still just so much opportunity to do some really cool and unique things on those channels. So, I’m less focussed on the channel and more focussed on what we can do and how we can impact people to be honest. For the physical space would it always be a retail store or would you ever collab with a food brand for like a café experience or anything like that? make sure we’ve all got the same like intentions, and we’re all pulling in the same direction. We’re really careful with who we work with and who we honest that’s a consideration we’ve got coming up as we’re expanding our events, and becoming much more large scale, and what we’re offering to people, you know, food, drinks, entertainment, whatever those things are so, that’s something that we’ve got coming up so we just need to make sure that we collab with the right people, and if the right people don’t exist then we’ll have to make our own. When we did a recent pop up with golds almost trying to reannounce themselvesas being this really really cool, their demographic had started to creep to sort of 22-35 year olds which they felt that actually Gymshark sat right in the middle of that and actually lets collab with them to make us relevant to our new consumer, and then all of a sudden it went from being a ‘we’re the cool new kids on the block’ and actually they wanted to be that, and we were sat there going, well no, that’s and last time we work with another brand. We didn’t fall out, but it just didn’t work, did it?

ED PRIESTLEY RECORDING Ben is very very driven by the globalization of the company, - we’re in 177 countries at the moment, and that’s going to increase but we need to get better at the countries that we’re in, like the UK, distribution, and Americas..France we have dedicated a store, we actually noticed that in Germany, we basically, we had an increase in german customers buying through the EU dedicated store, we gave them a german dedicated store and saw an uplift of 850% in people ordering because youre talking in their language, their website, their payments, so their website is a lot more relatable to their audience, and we’re not just assuming that, you’re European so just buy through that. We have buyers, garment techs, designers, fabric techs. We’re selling wholesale, so that means we’re selling our own product through our own channels. We have total control, thus making us more agile.

APPENDIX II - QUESTIONNAIRE

APPENDIX IIII - COSTINGS