Portfolio 3

As part of the company’s efforts to bring about positive, systematic change for its workers throughout its supply chain, Nike employees are part of the Fair Labor Association which is a union that protects and safeguards their interests against any forms of exploitation (FLA, 2017). In this regards, therefore, workers engage the manufacturer through this channel to have their concerns addressed. Additionally, it is worth noting that this labor movement does not only benefit members within the United States but those who are actively involved in the supply chain. However, the difference with regards to the extent of the powers of the union concerns legal jurisdictions within countries that provide the manufacturer with their products.

The Company does hire expatriates as part of its efforts to ensure that ethical and product standards are uniform across the board and to ensure smooth managerial response with regards to the demands at the head office in America. Funds for training are a percentage portion allocated to the businesses’ expenditure. Additionally, funds are also channeled towards the education of expatriates which are aimed at ensuring that the company does comply with ongoing legislation and changing economic times within their areas of jurisdiction. Also, these expatriates are also tasked with improving relations between the company and the locals.

The company does employ the use of the internet in ensuring that additional staff members are conversant with the changing times including the varying tastes and preferences of customers. Research has continued to prove that the internet plays a crucial role in determining the success of companies in the modern world. Therefore, it would remain imperative that for corporations to stay competitive, they ought to employ modern methods of product advertising. One such method which has been proven to provide a plethora of benefits includes social media marketing as it does engage a whole lot more customers and, therefore, companies can effect changes when needed.

The company does primarily focus on selling sportswear amongst sportsmen and women as well as to the regular customers. To ensure uniformity of standards, the company does not produce unique products across countries it markets its products. However, it is worth noting that perhaps the difference with regards to the range of sportswear items available for sale may vary from country to country. Product advertising, therefore, may differ across cultures as there are those who would not advocate for the marketing of certain types of goods to particular groups of people (Kaur, 2016). For example, the advertising of short shorts amongst women in Arab countries may be approached with mixed reaction from the locals.

Nike does approach a sales promotion strategy in which it does employ different pricing strategies to attract new first-time buyers to try out their products. However, beyond this type of advertising, the company does engage in advertising of its new products such as the marketing of its bespoke footwear. It is estimated that the combination of the two promotion type would enable the company to attract new clientele hence, therefore, this could lead to higher sales revenues. However, it is worth noting that the promotion type differs across markets depending on their target sales hence the discounted prices might vary within domestic markets.

Nike does employ many distribution channels within international markets. However, perhaps the biggest and the most common includes the setting up of retail stores across these markets. However, in recent years, the company has continued to adopt the internet as one of its new distribution channel in line with the changing times and shopping patterns (Scott, 2010). Perhaps the biggest reason why this channel has grown in popularity stems from the fact that it does not involve huge incomes to set it up whereas there are immense benefits of using this avenue for product distribution.

Nike as a company does practice global procurement. The biggest item that the enterprise procures includes services from professional marketing companies. The services have allowed the company to understand their international market better and grow their business. Perhaps the biggest reason why such remains the case stems from the fact that the companies have often failed in making their entry into new markets in the past due to not paying close attention to the cultural differences within different countries. Therefore, the marketing strategy that would be employed in the United States would differ from one used in Japan (Gabriela, 2014).

Nike is currently practicing global production of its products as part of its efforts to lower its operational costs as well as increase its sales margins by delivering products at a much lower price. Therefore, this has necessitated it to engage global suppliers from Indonesia, China, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Pakistan (Soni, 2014). These countries have proven instrumental, with regards to ensuring that the company does acquire footwear as well as other apparels for a much lower price. The biggest reason why such is the case stems from the fact that there is the availability of cheap labor and raw materials. Therefore, these benefits are later passed down to the average consumer as they get to buy quality products at an affordable cost.

The company has continued to outsource for goods and services from different manufacturers, and it has done so by delegating part of its production process to other manufacturers spread out across the various countries. Therefore, this has continued to allow the company to benefit from a much more vibrant and robust supply chain which allows it to meet its demand obligations across the world. Additionally, the company also in-sources part of its services through having its legal department and other departments which are part of the wider establishment.

Nike is currently not a member of a supply chain and, therefore, relies on its independent one which allows for a smooth flow of information upstream and downstream. This aspect does enable it to coordinate the buying better, making, and product shipping. Therefore, this issue has continued to allow the company to remain competitive and reduce the amount of time wasted during the production process which could prove costly to the enterprise.

The company does export its products to many countries depending on their political stability and their purchase power. However, perhaps the biggest markets include those in the United States, Europe, Asia, and in the Americas. These countries have taken up the largest portion of the company’s sales and have had an impact with regards to how it conducts its business. Therefore, Nike has continued to remain vulnerable to changing patterns of economic times and risks hence the changing currency values may impact negatively on the company’s profitability. For example, big decisions within Europe such as Brexit may have impacted the company’s profitability as the economic uncertainty did weaken the British Pound against the dollar.

References

Fair Labor Association (2017). “NIKE Inc.” Retrieved from http://www.fairlabor.org/affiliate/nike-inc

Gabriela C. (2014). The influence of culture on marketing programs for new product launch. SEA-Practical Application of Science, Volume II, PP. 175-184.

Kaur, J. and Chawla, R. (2016). Impact of culture on marketing strategies. Imperial Journal of Interdisciplinary Research (IJIR), Vol-2, 3.

 Scott, D., M., (2010). The new rules of marketing and PR: how to use social media, blogs, news releases, online video, and viral marketing to reach buyers directly. New Jersey:John Wiley and Sons.

Soni, P. (2014). “An overview of NIKE’s supply chain and manufacturing strategies.” Retrieved from http://marketrealist.com/2014/12/overview-nikes-supply-chain-manufacturing-strategies/