On February 28, 2024 Beijing time, American sports brand Skechers launched a new series of free yoga products.
According to the brand introduction, the above-mentioned yoga series includes women's sports underwear, tight pants, sports jackets and other products, developed for the multi scenario sports needs of female consumers.
Interface News found that although Sketch had previously released items such as shark pants, it was the first time they had launched a specialized women's yoga series.
Feng Jiancong, Vice President of SKECH China Product Center, said, "The female consumer market has enormous potential and is an important direction for brand product design and development. The company's Asia Pacific Product Research and Development Center located in Dongguan provides strong support for creating innovative products and expanding product lines. We will continue to pay attention to the demands of Chinese female consumers and create higher quality comfortable technology products."
According to Sketch's 2023 financial report released in February 2024, its global sales in 2023 increased by 7.5% year-on-year to $8 billion (approximately RMB 57.584 billion), setting a new record. Among them, the annual sales in the Chinese market increased by 15.6% year-on-year.
For a long time, Sketch has been focusing on "comfort technology" and has emphasized in its press releases that it is a "comfort technology company".
This can be seen from the innovative technology that this American brand has been focusing on in recent years: whether it is Air Cooled Memory Foam, or the use of technologies such as Goga Mat and Goga Max, the purpose is to improve the comfort of users wearing products, mainly suitable for leisure and daily commuting.
But for Sketch, who already has a volume of over 5 billion US dollars, it is essential to have the capital to directly compete with Nike and Adidas in order to move forward and enter the professional field.
During an interview with Interface News, Chen Xiaozhe, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Sales Operations of SKECH China, stated that the brand hopes to increase the proportion of professional sports products in total sales to 30% in the future. The implication is that at that time, professional sports products accounted for less than 30% of Sketch's sales, and there was still a lot of room for growth.
In the past two years, Sketch has indeed been constantly entering new professional tracks.
In 2023, Sketch reached a lifelong partnership with English star Harry Kane. At the same time, the brand also signed Knicks player Randall and Clippers player Mann, making Sketch's basketball shoes debut on the NBA court.
In the Chinese market, Sketch also sponsors the National Grand Prix and B I. S International Street Dance Competition and other competitions, focusing on niche emerging projects.
With the launch of the Free Yoga series, Sketch also wants to fill the gap in professional women's products and seize the cake in the women's market.
According to JD's 2022 Women's Consumption Trends Report, women's consumption in areas such as swimming, fitness, and running continues to grow, with sales of women's sports T-shirts, yoga pants, and other products increasing by more than 10 times year-on-year.
However, despite the enormous potential of the yoga market, it is already very crowded: lululemon has been firmly at the forefront of women's products for many years, Maia Active and Particle Fanaticism have gained a share through the "lululemon replacement" brand, and comprehensive sports brands such as Nike and Li Ning are also developing their own women's products.
The new product launched by SKECH this time focuses on ultra soft, antibacterial, and sunscreen flow technology, with side pockets, integrated cups, and other details emphasizing "comfort" in the design. However, in terms of technology and design, there is no particularly significant difference between Sketch's new product and the products on the market; From a pricing perspective, this series of yoga pants is priced between 399 yuan and 499 yuan, similar to Maia Active, and does not have a significant cost performance advantage.
Of course, compared to differentiation, Sketch's first shot in the women's market was more like testing the waters.
On the one hand, yoga, as an important part of the professional product field, may become a driving force for Sketch's continued growth, just like football, basketball, and badminton.
On the other hand, while major competitors such as Nike, Anta, and Lululemon are increasing their investment in women's product lines, Sketch's efforts in the women's sports market are also a strategic defense: first fill the gap in the brand's professional women's products and improve the product matrix.
It can be seen that Sketch still attaches great importance to the new women's series. Not only did she invite brand spokesperson and popular actor Zhao Lusi to shoot advertisements for the product, but she also invited Zhao Lusi to parachute into the live broadcast room on the evening of February 29th to promote the new product launch.
Sketch's first shot in the women's market has already been fired, and the extent of the noise depends on the market's reaction.