They may have been late entrants in the sporting goods market in India but have managed to steadily increase their footprint in the country over the past few years. Rajat Khurana, Director, ASICS India talks about why India has become a key growth market for the global brand.
Q] Tell us about your global campaign ‘Want it more’ and the response it has got in India?
‘Want it more’ is our ATL campaign that will be executed globally throughout 2016. The fully integrated campaign would be spread across multi-media platforms including TV in six key markets including Japan and will be supported by Out of home, Print, Digital, social and sponsored events. The campaign aims to engage with new audiences in what can be called a two-way conversation with consumers, directly. It will extend beyond traditional marketing channels. Our digital mix comprises focusing on key social media channels like Facebook, Twitter, You Tube and Instagram. The response has been fairly good so far.
Q] Why did ASICS choose Tennis players Yuki Bhambri and Karman Kaur Thandi as brand ambassadors?
Besides running, tennis is one of the important focus categories for ASICS. Globally, we have been associated with tennis players like David Goffin (Belgium), Gaël Monfils (France), Johanna Konta (UK) and more. Since, we are entering and strengthening our presence in the Indian tennis market, who better than Yuki Bhambri and Karman Kaur Thandi to be associated with.
Q] Sports brands are known to have memorable TV campaigns, why have we not seen ASICS invest much in television in India?
Yes, Television is one of the powerful mediums of communication which we are still evaluating. We will explore it when time and opportunity is right. Meanwhile continuing to be the official sponsor for Mumbai Marathon, we will build our brand image as True Sport Performance brand among consumers. We will directly reach out to them through running activities, increase brand exposure seeking opportunities in tennis, cricket and other sports as well. We will first focus on trade marketing, which is retail and franchise business in this year, and all kind of marketing activations will be made strategically.
Q] ASICS is the world’s fourth largest sportswear brand, where does it rank in India?
We started our Sales operations in India just one and a half years ago. So far we haven’t ranked ourselves against any competitors here. However, having said that, the Indian audiences have been kind and we have received an overwhelming response for all our product categories. We have certain things in our favour including the fact that we are leaders in the segment where demand is growing in India.
Q] You entered rather late in India, does that give you an advantage or put you at a disadvantage in the sports category?
We have been in business in India through a distributor since 2010, and very recently i.e. in April, 2015 established our own sales office. I don’t think of it as a disadvantage. We gauged the market potential and found India to be a key growth market for us. We believe that the consumers’ need for running shoes has matched with what ASICS can offer, and that it is the perfect time to ride on this portfolio. ASICS is positioned as the True Sport Performance brand with running as its core. Over the past few years, as the economy grew in India, running has evolved too and we are offering products with innovative technology.
Q] What are the key aspects of the Indian market as far as consumer behaviour for sportswear is concerned?
Word of mouth communication is quite important in India. Here, the consumer is hugely influenced by his friends, Bollywood stars, influencers’ behaviour etc.
Q] Can you give a rough estimate of your marketing spends? How has it changed over the last year?
It would be difficult to quantify it but we believe a considerable amount has to be spent to cater to this vast market to increase brand awareness and visibility. Basically our key investment will be on retail and trade marketing and to expand consumer touch points. This is the second year for ASICS India, and we have started some ATL & BTL activations, which are different from what we did last year.
Q] Could you elaborate on these BTL activations?
When we opened a new store, we planned running activations in association with the local running club. There were two categories - 10 km and 21 km run which started and ended at the ASICS Hyderabad store and Mumbai Linking Road store. The initiative was a huge success as the running community was able to connect with ASICS and understand the brand’s philosophy.
Q] How well is the brand doing when it comes to the sports lifestyle footwear range, which it recently launched in the country?
We have added sports lifestyle footwear in our portfolio to cater to the growing youth population of the country and we believe that we can be leaders in this category soon.
Q] One of the highlights of the ASICS stores in India is the FOOT ID analysis, how does that work?
ASICS FOOT ID offers static and dynamic measurements that include foot shape analysis and gait cycle analysis. ASICS FOOT ID static measures the foot shape, and ASICS FOOT ID dynamic analyzes the wearer’s running gait. It helps runners find the most suitable shoes to draw out every ounce of their performance.
Q] What percentage of your sales happen through e-commerce sites which have recently become a go-to destination for all sports related goods because of easy returns?
E-commerce is growing rapidly in India and many brands are focusing on it. We are also giving it a serious thought and will be working through this channel.
Q] Which markets have been contributing greatly to the growth of the brand?
During the FY 2015, sales were firm in America and Europe, and increased in Asia and Oceania. The U.S. is the world’s largest sports market and one of our focus countries since long. Sporting history and many success stories originated from US. Asia has been growing rapidly now and India we believe can contribute much to Asia’s growth.
Q] ASICS is a well known brand amongst athletes but are there attempts to make it resonate even with those who are not into professional sports?
We want to become the brand of choice, not only in sports, but also in our consumers’ daily lives.
Q] What are the brand’s expansion plans?
We are aggressively planning to open stores at key Metro cities in the next five years. The organized sporting goods market is growing rapidly in these cities and thus has huge potential. It has to do with the fact that consumers are getting more health conscious and young urban population is growing. We have a performance-oriented portfolio and India would be key market for us.
Q] What are the new products you will be introducing?
ASICS will be introducing some exciting – and very distinct – new products in the footwear category this year as we expand our footprint beyond running into training and other core performance areas. First, there is the global launch of a new performance running shoe. It will offer feather-like lightness and response while maintaining sufficient durability for long runs. The first shoe to feature a new revolutionary full length midsole, the lightest ever created by ASICS, is for those who want to be faster than everyone, and is good for all distances. ASICS will also introduce color updated versions of our versatile running footwear range that fuses performance and style for a new generation of runners looking for versatility and design.
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