Fashion & Brand Promotion
Ashleigh Willer
UMBRO'S HISTORY
S.W.O.T ANALYSIS
BRAND PROMOTION
Umbro have a high level of practice and strong British heritage but because of the low performance in other areas within the brand it shows that the brand is not as strong as they once were, they need a fresher way of presenting this. By Umbro being such a football based brand in particular, when it comes to their lifestyle footwear it very limited, and their trainers are unisex there is no clear difference to women’s footwear and men’s footwear. The brand may not reach the expectations of a female consumer because of this issue. Umbro footwear price ranges from £24.99 to £54.99 and are another brand seen as a value brand in the high street, putting them as a lower market brand.
.Umbro is the original Manchester based football brand that designed sportswear, sports tailoring and football equipment supplier. Umbro dominated the football seen with the well tailed football kits for Manchester City in 1934, which was a kit they won the FA Cup in, that being said that was a door opening for Umbro brand to get the publicity they needed as a brand. The company today now combines its heritage in sports tailoring with modern football culture to create an ironic football apparel, footwear and equipment that blend performance and style. In 2007, it was said that Umbro had agreed to be bought by Nike Inc with a deal worth £285 million, after the deal was approved and concluded the aim was to revitalise the brand, Umbro then launched the “Tailored by England” lines. That being said Nike Inc then made a decision to sell Umbro on to Iconix Brand Group for USD 225 million in December 2012. In 2010, Umbro became sponsors of a reformed American team New York Cosmos to be exclusive kit suppliers, Umbro is the official supplier and sponsor of a number associated football teams, players and association.
> Strengths - They are presence in around 90 countries. Lasting presence of 85 years in Manchester with launch of kits for them, they once had strong management as it was supported by Nike. Strong brand equity and financial position. Good branding and advertising through.
> Weaknesses - High brand switching among customers with many other powerful sports brands available and limited presence in emerging economies as compared to a few other popular brands.
> Opportunities - The product differentiation which can label the brand as fashion brand, they tie- up with more emerging sports team.
> Threats - There are fake imitations from other local brands; there are also brands which offer same style at a lower cost.
Umbro has invested in advertisement lately, but their campaigns have not had the prime time slots and blanket coverage that Nike or Adidas have achieved. This has affected Umbro as a high street brand because they are not getting publicity they may want and need. Unlike Fila Company, Umbro do have outdoor promotion with billboards and adshels in the UK, they also have features in magazines. There is some ATL promotion for the brand as well as BTL promotion, Umbro do fashion shows for their brand. Umbro attracts the older shopper’s 45-55years old, with their USP being English Football Tailoring.
In terms of social media, Umbro has Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, with 540,595 likes, 64,123 followers and 10k followers on Instagram and regular updates on all social network sites. Umbro is making good use of these popular social network sites which have a positive effect on the brand. The brand is gaining greater awareness. Umbro one of the main footballs based brand with contracts with teams and players they gain maximum promotional activity during the main football seasons which happens over a period of couple months from December to May.
