Li Ning, the aging brand, can be rejuvenated?

If you ask sportswear, who is the pride of Chinese brands, most of the answers are Li Ning. However, this company, which is proud of China, is now in trouble.

The 2011 financial report showed that the gross profit of the company decreased by 8.02 percentage points to 46.1%. Although gross profit still ranks among the top five sporting goods suppliers, its net profit was only 386 million yuan, which was lower than the net profit of the fifth largest sports brand with second to none at 780 million yuan. Half of it. Aside from the costs of channel innovation, most of the above phenomena stem from confusion and dislocation of brand awareness.

Aging of the brand Li Ning

In 1988, after retiring, Li Ning did not follow the traditional path of athletes and coaches. Instead, he chose the business road and opened a clothing company. So in April 1990 registered "Li Ning card" trademark, in May announced the formal establishment of the company.

With "Li Ning" as the brand name, one of the brands that was heard that year was that everyone knew that it was not a wasteful explanation to sell sporting goods. Second, it could use the celebrity effect. Li Ning is not the spokesperson of the brand, but the brand itself, eliminating the need for many advertising costs.

Since then, Li Ning has been fluent in the market, and has maintained a sustained high growth rate since 2010 when it was listed in Hong Kong in June 2004. The perception of the Li Ning brand in the minds of consumers was once closely linked to the image of “the athlete who wins glory for the country”. The company also deliberately used “honor and hard work” to arouse the resonance of consumers.

However, with the loyalty of a group of loyal consumers, the word “Li Ning” has not helped the brand building. The company’s brand recognition in the eyes of the new generation of consumers is not high, and the brand has experienced aging. phenomenon.

Brand aging and dislocation problems are not unique to Li Ning. Take Nike's Jordan series as an example. This series has been playing a leading role in the sports brand, many NBA fans regard this series of basketball shoes as a collection, limited edition shoes, used shoes have become highly sought-after baby.

However, with Jordan's retirement, the fans of the Jordanian fans also grew from spending impulse students to rational consumption workers. The brand appeal of the Jordan series has been estranged from the target consumer group, youth fans. Nike then launched Kobe, LeBron series of shoes to respond to market changes.

This is exactly the same problem that Li Ning faced.