Reebok 2011 Annual Report Download - page 34

adidas Group
2011 Annual Report
TO OUR SHAREHOLDERS
30
2011
01.2 Interview with the CEO
01.2
? News flow from the local players suggests that the Chinese
market will be difficult in 2012. What kind of visibility do
you have and do you expect momentum to continue?
!
The Chinese consumer
is discerning and recognises the
innovation and quality of our brands
and products. Furthermore, we have
worked hard to keep retail channels
clean, while at the same time
ranging a comprehensive offering
of our freshest and latest products.
This is in contrast to many domestic
players who are facing challenges
from a lack of differentiation and
from over-inventories. Additionally,
we continue to build strong and close
relationships with our customers in
China, which provide us with daily
or weekly feedback to coordinate
a faster and more efficient supply
chain. Consequently, from our order
book and the clear visibility on our
strong brand momentum in our
franchise store base of almost 7,000,
I am fully confident in delivering
another year of double-digit growth in
line with our Route 2015 aspirations.
? Reebok has seen momentum
slow and faces some
challenges with the end of the
NFL licence and the difficult
toning market. What are
your priorities for continuing
progress for the brand in 2012?
!
We have brought Reebok
back on the map with three highly
successful commercial product hits – EasyTone, ZigTech and RealFlex.
We can be proud of our achievements, as sales have grown by more
than 20% and improved the gross margin by over 4 percentage points
since 2009. While the toning market provided rapid growth early in this
period, the fact that ZigTech and RealFlex have fully compensated for
the equally swift deceleration in the category highlights that Reebok
has regained its touch at creating broad-based innovative and highly
attractive products. However, as we have learnt from our years of
brand-building with adidas, while continuous innovation is the most
important ingredient for long-term sustainable brand success, it
alone is not enough without a clear
consumer understanding of what
the brand truly represents. And this
is where we turn our attention to for
Reebok in 2012.
Reebok’s brand positioning
is about making fitness aspirational
and fun for everyone, by providing
consumers with experiences that
are exciting and engaging. To that
end, we now have the right tools
in place to tell this message more
broadly and boldly. It starts with the
introduction of a new global brand
campaign – “The Sport Of Fitness
Has Arrived”. Our partnership with
CrossFit is an integral part of this.
CrossFit is one of the fastest-growing
fitness movements in the world and
involves a community passionate
about living a healthy lifestyle and
the camaraderie that can be found
in fitness. With the support of the
CrossFit community, we are aiming
to change the way people perceive,
define and experience fitness,
empowering consumers to be fit for
life in a fun way. This resonates in
a very real and authentic way with
the values of Reebok. The campaign
will also be used to reinforce the
performance credentials of ZigTech
and RealFlex to sustain their
commercial success. While the end
of the NFL licence and the transfer of
our US-related NHL business to the Reebok-CCM Hockey segment
will see Reebok sales decline in 2012, the core of the Reebok brand
is expected to remain stable in this year of brand consolidation. As we
begin building our fitness empire and continue our work in invigorating
Reebok Classics, 2012 will give us the platform to build a robust and
sustainable business as we go forward.