Marketing Research Assignment

Adidas NMD is a new style of sneakers launched in the end of 2015 under Adidas’ Originals wing. This new style of sneakers featured popular technologies from Adidas and was made “for travelling the streets on a daily basis.” (Flores, 2016). Since its launch, the NMD had been a sell-out with people in long queues to get their hands one and over 30,000 people waiting for their turn online through a balloting system. It was such a popular product that the resale price could get higher than the ticket price itself (Danforth, 2016). However, the sales of the NMD line is seeing decline in recent months.

The market research problem:

First, we will need to identify the cause of the decline in sales to determine whether it was a seasonal decline or due to certain changes in consumer preference. The demographic focus of the research should be on Generation X and the Millennials as they make up the bulk of sales. Research will need to find out about their tastes and preferences and also their economic preferences. Research will also need to evaluate the impact of fast fashion and varying forms of advertising on the perception of the product.

The objective of the research will need to help identify the purchase interest at varying price point of Generation Y and Millennials respectively, as the two will have different purchasing powers and lifestyle preferences. The research will also include assessing the consumer awareness of the NMD line through the various means of advertising, such as social media, print media and brick-and-mortar stores. On a more qualitative aspect, the research will need to look into the level of consumers’ familiarity with the different technologies used in the product and what level of importance will it play before playing the purchasing decision. This will then determine whether future products will continue with the same technologies or would they be dropped to accommodate a price range that is more preferred by consumers. Also, the research will include questions to determine the preference of consumers on colors, designs and material used for the product. Another important aspect of the research will be the evaluation of the impact of fast fashion on the product. “Fast fashion is a business strategy which aims to reduce the processes involved in the buying cycle and lead times for getting new fashion product into stores” (Barnes, Lea-Greenwood, 2006). The evaluation of this effect is essential as fashion trends are moving even more rapidly in today’s day and age due to the proliferation of social media and the ability of companies to produce products faster and cheaper. This result will not only affect future marketing directions but also the supply chain of the product.

Citation:

Barnes, L., & Lea‐Greenwood, G. (2006). Fast fashioning the supply chain: shaping the research agenda. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 10(3), 259-271. doi:10.1108/13612020610679259