My Marketing File: 2016

@tracksmithrunning, an upscale running apparel brand from Wellesley, Mass., doubled its social media reach in the past 10 months with less than $5,000 in ad spending, and has netted a $4.1 million investment from Pentland Group, which owns a stake in Speedo and licenses for Lacoste footwear and Ted Baker. Here’s how: It saw that household names like Nike, Adidas and Puma have conflated running with health and wellness in an effort to win the attention of gym rats – so Tracksmith, which launched in 2011, celebrated the tradition of running as a stand-alone sport. It chased the habitual runner, creating a visceral brand story with photography that portrays everyday runners training, sweating and looking exhausted rather than triumphant. “Running apparel originally lacked any sense of style or substance,” says cofounder Matt Taylor, a former distance runner at Yale. “Brands lost touch with the sport and the core culture, and created a much broader message. That’s fantastic and has gotten a lot of people off the couch, but it’s also left this big void for people who have a deeper connection to running.” To serve those people, Tracksmith created more classic designs that are simple and functional, the opposite of what Taylor calls “the Power Ranger look” of most running apparel.

Small brands are inherently closer to their customers, and that can create all sorts of advantages. Sure, Nike can afford LeBron James as a spokesman, but smaller brands can simply recruit their own users for marketing. “Niche brands provide a forum for people to share in the story,” says The NPD Group’s Cohen. “It’s that testimonial piece of the puzzle that comes from the user, not the brand itself. Customers don’t want to hear you brag about your brand; they want people who’ve used your product to brag about the brand.” (📝: Adam Elder 📷: @yoonsbyun) (@entmagazine Dec 2016, page 36) via Instagram http://ift.tt/2hpDUHD

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