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THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY SCHREYER HONORS COLLEGE

DEPARTMENT OF

THE TIPPING POINT: AN ANALYSIS OF THE MESSAGE, MESSENGERS, AND CONTEXT OF THE MOVEMENT

ALLISON EDWARDS SPRING 2020

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a baccalaureate degree in Marketing with honors in Marketing

Reviewed and approved* by the following:

Matt M. Checchio Instructor of Marketing Thesis Supervisor

Jennifer Chang Coupland Professor of Marketing Honors Adviser

* Electronic approvals are file. i ABSTRACT

Athleisure is the new normal in American . Observing the adoption of this phenomenon calls in to question: How has the athleisure styling of athletic reached such a point of prominence in American women’s fashion and culture?

This thesis seeks to answer that question by analyzing the “Stickiness Factor” of athleisure, the power of its messengers, and its surrounding context. The researcher forms three hypotheses for this analysis. First, the three-dimensional benefit of , comfort, and fashion is athleisure’s “Stickiness Factor.” By investigating the emergence of activewear as , she concludes that the benefits of athleisure are derived from technological advancements in fabrics, changes in lifestyles, and increased personal visibility through developments in media. She segments customers by their preferences for these benefits as they pertain to the customer’s activewear usage occasions and purpose.

Second, social media has heightened the power of messengers as they become digital influencers. The researcher outlines observations of the ability of digital influencers to adopt characteristics of multiple types of messengers through the medium of social media.

Finally, diversified messaging and product offerings in the activewear market has provided an optimal environment for athleisure adoption. The researcher establishes diversification of positioning in the activewear market by cross-examining six ’ communications and product offerings. She also provides classifications for positioning in the activewear market during the athleisure adoption period. The researcher suggests the malleability of athleisure’s equity through adapting messaging, messengers, and context.

ii TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF FIGURES ...... iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...... v

Chapter 1 Introduction ...... 1

Chapter 2 The Stickiness Factor ...... 5

Chapter 3 The Law of the Few ...... 21

Chapter 4 The Power of Context ...... 34

Overview of Brands ...... 34 ...... 34 Nike ………………………………………………………………………………..36 ...... 38 Lululemon ...... 40 Fabletics ...... 41 Outdoor Voices ...... 44 Analysis of Product Offerings vs Messaging ...... 46

Chapter 5 Conclusion ...... 52

Movement Equity...... 52 Future Growth, Maturity, or Decline of Athleisure ...... 54

Appendix A Brand Product Offering and Messaging ...... 60

Brand Active Product Offering and Active Messaging ...... 60 Brand Leisure Product Offering and Leisure Messaging...... 60

Appendix B Brand Positioning by Product Offering and Messaging ...... 61

Appendix C Brand Product Offering vs Messaging Matrix ...... 62

Brand Active Product Offering vs Active Messaging ...... 62 Brand Leisure Product Offering vs Leisure Messaging ...... 62

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 64

iii LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1 Vogue Cover 1927 ...... 8

Figure 2 Scoot ...... 9

Figure 3 Pant ...... 10

Figure 4 Hilton in Juicy Couture ...... 13

Figure 5 Stella McCarthy Pre-Fall 2016 Ready-to-Wear ...... 16

Figure 6 Spring 2017 Ready-to-Wear ...... 16

Figure 7 Spring 2020 Ready-to-Wear ...... 17

Figure 8 Gomez Post ...... 25

Figure 9 Gomez TIME Cover Post ...... 26

Figure 10 Gomez Elle Fanning Post ...... 26

Figure 11 Gomez Timothée Chalomet Post ...... 27

Figure 12 OV Workout Event Post ...... 29

Figure 13 OV Brandi Bombard Post ...... 30

Figure 14 OV Crubox Post ...... 30

Figure 15 Outerwear ...... 48

Figure 16 Impractical Detailing, Loose Fit ...... 49

Figure 17 Impractical Detailing, Revealing ...... 49

Figure 18 Impractical Detailing, Uncomfortable Aesthetic Addition ...... 50

Figure 19 Athleisure Equity Conceptual Framework ...... 53

Figure 20 Adoption Life Cycle ...... 54

Figure 21 Adoption Classification ...... 55

iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The community that builds me allowed me to build this. My academic supporters, family, and friends generate better versions of me daily. The version that enjoys her curiosity had a lot of fun building this thesis.

Professor Coupland empowered me to invest in the success of this project and in doing so caused me to think critically about how to invest my time always. Thank you.

Professor Checchio was a dedicated sounding board throughout the duration of this project. I am so grateful to have had someone on my team to encourage wider perspectives, validate each new idea, and get excited when it all comes together. His guidance so consistently expanded my vision of what this project could be, and now is. Thank you.

My parents have gifted me with boundless opportunities. Mom showed me how to have fight, and Dad read books with titles like ‘How to Raise Confident Girls.’ They created a stable place for me to explore freedom, be curious, and discover beautiful things. I am so thankful to you both for gifting me with the building blocks of who I am and the opportunity that is my Penn

State community. Thank you.

1

Chapter 1

Introduction

Athleisure is the new normal in American fashion. Both women and men are wearing activewear styles as a part of their everyday attire. , joggers, sweatshirts, and branded are reaching far beyond the confinement of the gym. Activewear is defined simply as

“clothing designed for wear while playing or , hiking, bicycling, jogging, etc.”

(Activewear). Sportswear, however, is defined as “men's or women's clothing consisting of separate pieces, as , , , , and , that are casually styled and can be worn singly or in various combinations for business and informal activity” (Sportswear). Each of these words describe a type of clothing; sportswear is a term that was first seen around 1910 that goes further to describe the expansion of comfortable and functional clothing to other spaces

(Sportswear). The word “athleisure” has emerged as a way to describe the style of wearing athletic clothing used for comfort, function, or fashion; simply, athleisure is “a style of clothing worn as athletic apparel but also suitable for casual, everyday wear” (Athleisure).

“Athleisure is the ultimate breaking down of barriers,” comments University of Nevada

Las Vegas fashion historian Deirdre Clemente, “One hundred years ago, you would have day clothes for the street, dinner clothes for the restaurant, theater clothes, and so many genres of dress. Those barriers have come down” (Thompson). Athleisure allows people to wear comfortable and functional activewear such that a single outfit may be socially acceptable at the gym, for errands, at social gatherings, for lounging, for travelling, and sometimes even in the workplace. In an interview with Vogue, SoulCycle cofounder Julie Rice observes, “People of all ages are wearing their workoutwear all day now, whether it’s leggings with a longer 2 and a , or someone younger wearing a cropped T- with a and some high- heeled .” Rice speaks to the evolution of how consumers think about their gym clothes,

“People shop for their athleticwear thinking, How can I wear this from the studio to the street?”

(Marlowe).

The first recorded use of the word “athleisure” was in 1975 (Athleisure). The origin of the use of the word “athleisure” in fashion is unknown, but “athleisure” as a popular term started to appear around 2014-2015. During April of 2015, Google Search and YouTube Search Traffic both experience their first major spikes for ‘athleisure’ keyword (Google Trends). In 2015 alone,

The New York Times wrote 17 articles pertaining to athleisure (ProQuest). As of 2018, Passport

GMID reports $80 billion in sales in the activewear industry. Activewear is experiencing 7.4% growth against only 3.1% growth in the entire apparel industry (Sportswear in US).

This paper seeks to answer how the athleisure styling of athletic clothing has reached such a point of prominence in American women’s fashion and culture. Malcolm Gladwell in The

Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference names three important lenses through which to analyze the spread of any epidemic or sensational message. Gladwell claims

“epidemics are a function of the people who transmit the agent, the message itself, and the environment” (Gladwell, 18).

When seeking to understand an epidemic, Gladwell states the importance of the finding

“The Stickiness Factor” of the message. This means understanding the qualities of the message that cause it to be compelling to its audience. When it comes to athleisure, I hypothesize that the three-dimensional benefit of performance, comfort, and fashion is athleisure’s “Stickiness

Factor”. The benefit of performance is derived from technological advancements in fabrics, the 3 desire for comfort is derived from changes in lifestyles, and the consideration of fashion is derived from increased personal visibility through developments in media.

What Gladwell calls “The Law of the Few” is the second lens to analyze in to understand an epidemic. “The Law of the Few” states that there are three types of messengers that can affect major influence. Connectors, Mavens, and Salesmen are types of messengers that each have unique characteristics or abilities that give them the power of influence. Connectors have the “ability to span many different worlds [with a] combination of curiosity, self- confidence, sociability, and energy” (Gladwell, 49). Mavens are socially motivated information collectors that seek to find the highest quality of information to help others make the most informed decisions possible. Salesmen are naturally charismatic people who leverage their interpersonal skills to be powerful persuaders within their sphere of influence. Throughout the history of sportswear, advancements in media have enabled heightened access to people that serve as one of the “few.” I hypothesize that digital influencers are equipped with the ability to become all three types of these messengers, heightening the power of the few that bring the message of athleisure.

The third lens is the surrounding environment, which Gladwell calls “The Power of

Context.” Gladwell claims, “epidemics are sensitive to the time and place” as environmental factors can either support or constrain the momentum of a movement (Gladwell, 139). The context of the athleisure movement is the current American sportswear market. Activewear has been present in sportswear for decades, but the growth of established activewear brands alongside emerging activewear brands has offered consumers unprecedented choice in messaging and design. I hypothesize that diversified messaging and product offerings from both established powerhouse brands, such as Nike, Adidas, and Under Armour, and from younger 4 disruptive brands, such as Lululemon, Fabletics, and Outdoor Voices created an optimal context for adoption the athleisure.

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Chapter 2

The Stickiness Factor

Athleisure is following a very similar adoption timeline as American denim. Author of

Hit Makers: The Science of Popularity in an Age of Distraction Derek Thompson comments,

“The theme of the past century of Western fashion is this: We take clothes designed for activity, and we adapt them for inactivity. And that’s true beyond the world of . For decades, Levi

Strauss were worn mostly by men working in factories and farms; today, denim is for loungers” (Thompson). Europeans invented denim in the 18th century, and it became popular in the US for its durability as a fabric. Founded in 1872, American Levi & Strauss Co. added metal rivets to make the pants stronger, causing the fabric to become the primary material for in the early 20th century. During the 1950s, young people began wearing denim outside of work due to the comfort and more relaxed styles of the pant (Hendriksz). Denim was created out of functional need for more freedom of movement, evolved with to strengthen the material, and was further exposed to society as usage transcended work occasion.

In short, Americans take clothes designed for activity and adapt them for inactivity; this phenomenon is observed with activewear.

For this phenomenon to develop within activewear to its present state took time and waves of adoption. Clothing throughout history has served to distinguish identity. Women’s clothing in the 19th and early 20th century was primarily made of restrictive fabrics and pieces intended to shape the body into a feminine form with a full and small . The quality and style of clothing was most pointedly used to distinguish social class and gender. Between and six to eight , upper-class American women carried around 15 pounds of clothing 6

(Boissoneault). Some clothing was so elaborately designed that women of higher classes required assistance while dressing due to the clothing’s restrictive nature.

A public gymnasium movement started in the early 19th century. The American YMCA was first organized in Boston in the 1850s, and in ten years there were over 200 YMCAs across the United States (History). The word “gymnasium” originally comes from the Greek

“gymnasion,” “school for naked exercise” (Gymnasium). Gymnasiums at this time were private spaces, and men and women were separated, especially in . Public clothing at the time was still incredibly restrictive, but these private spaces allowed for more freedom in the type of clothing worn for sport.

In the 1850s, some women sought to rid themselves of their restrictive, heavy, long skirts.

“Turkish Pantaloons,” eventually referred to as “Bloomers,” were made popular when paired with knee length skirts. As women gained access to gymnasiums as private spaces to explore exercise, movement, and sport, they were free to do so while wearing bloomers. Additionally, the popularity of bicycles helped to introduce the idea of exposed ankles and visible bloomers to the streets (Lafrance). A pattern presents that as women gained access to spaces that allowed them the freedom to move, they were able to push for societal acceptance of clothing that moved with them. Stylistically, Bloomers as a pant structure allowed women to move slightly away from a rigidly feminine clothing standard.

Leisure activities during the 19th and early 20th centuries were largely considered a privilege reserved for upper class citizens. In 1890, the US government reported that a full-time employee could work up to 100 hours a week (Ford). In 1926 following Ford

Motors’ decision to issue a five-day, 40-hour workweek, Ford stated, “It is high time to rid ourselves of the notion that leisure for workmen is either lost time or a class privilege” (Ford). 7

Other labor reforms throughout this time shortened the work day, helped to grow the middle class, and opened up the opportunity for more people to participate in sport.

As leisure activities, exercise, and sport became accessible to more Americans, country clubs were created between 1880 and 1930 to maintain a level of exclusivity for the upper and upper-middle classes (Jolly-Ryan). Country clubs are private clubs, usually in suburban areas, that grant members exclusive access to a clubhouse, dining areas, and often sport facilities for tennis, golf, and . Country clubs maintained popularity throughout the twentieth century, concurrently developing associations of luxury and wealth with golf and tennis attire, as upper class Americans reclaimed exclusivity to these sport facilities.

Tennis player Suzanne Lenglen famously pushed societal boundaries as she adapted her clothing to fit her sport. Lenglen won six Wimbledon titles while operating as “a paradigm of style” in the 1920s. Vogue in 1926 describes Lenglen: “the French wears a tennis that is extraordinarily chic in the freedom, the suitability, and the excellence of its simple lines” (Borrelli-Persson). Lenglen ditched the corsets and petticoats in favor of knee length pleated skirts, sleeveless tops, rolled , and a thick to keep her hair in place (Athleisure). The practicality and class of this transformation enabled Lenglen’s athletic success alongside widespread excitement from the fashion community. Notably, a Lenglen- esque style was featured on the cover of Vogue in 1927. The model proudly sported a tennis raquette, further cementing tennis’ association with luxury (Figure 1). At this time, print materials such as Vogue served as the primary exposure women had to fashion trends across the country. 8

Figure 1 Vogue Cover 1927 Vogue Cover July 1927. 15 July 1927

Women’s access to activities involving movement, including work and leisure activities, called for the slow acceptance of the then radicalized women’s slacks. Bicycles displayed the practical implications of wearing bloomers, and these implications expanded as women during

World War II entered the workforce. As their male counterparts were sent overseas, women found themselves in a state of heightened independence and responsibility. In this state practical attire for movement was more accepted for women. Women’s slacks replaced loose skirts that could be hazardous and restrictive that were inefficient in the workplace (Figure 2). 9

Figure 2 Scoot Suit Scoot Suit. 13 July 1954. Popular Culture in Britain and America, 1950-1975, Rock and Roll, Counter Culture, Peace and Protest

Following the adoption of these more practical styles, developing media technologies allowed for unprecedented exposure to culture and fashion trends. Mary Tyler Moore exemplified this heightened exposure as one of the first women to wear pants on television on the Dick Van Dyke Show in the early 1960s (Figure 3). At the onset, the show’s sponsors refused to allow Moore to wear pants in more than one scene per episode. The producers’ main concern with Moore’s pants on TV was how the pants defined her frame, “cupping under” her backside (Desta). This silhouette was rarely seen on TV and the producers were concerned that the pants would stir up controversy. To Variety in 2012, Moore commented that wearing her iconic capri pant was about doing “what I do in real life, what my friends do, and that’s be a realistic wife who wears pants and doesn’t care how she looks” (Desta). Moore stated that pants were beginning to be universally worn by women within the context of their own homes and that she was realistically depicting the majority. Television heightened the exposure of the real lives 10 of these women through Moore. Moving forward into the 1970s and 1980s, women seemed to take less issue with a little “cupping under” as pants got tighter and thinner.

Figure 3 Mod Pant Mod Pants. 1 Jan. 1965. Popular Culture in Britain and America, 1950-1975,

Mirroring the evolution of style to better enable movement, of cloth also evolved. Throughout the better part of history, cloth was made out of natural materials. Animals and plants provided the materials for most fabrics such as , , cashmere, , and .

At the 1939 World’s , the first fully man-made fiber, , was announced to the world by

DuPont. The flexibility, durability, and washability of the fabric would start a fashion sensation as innovations such as nylon stockings were created. DuPont went on to create more synthetic fibers including (1946), acrylic (1955), and /Lycra (1958) (Kativa). Becky

Hurd of Former Materials comments that spandex “made it possible to create form-fitting cloths 11 without clever and expensive cutting and seaming. Once you had Lycra, any old stupid manufacturer could do body-worshiping cloths” (Athleisure).

Spandex provided the freedom for movement as the basis for 1980s workout fashion that developed around the aerobics craze at the time. Group fitness classes, such as

Jazzercise, heightened the social aspect of exercise for women, compelling more fashionable attire to meet the heightened social occasion. Jazzercise, launched in 1985, was noted by Forbes to be one of the fastest growing franchises of its time (Canning). Additionally, at-home workout videos furthered the accessibility to exercise and the visibility to its corresponding styles. Actress

Jane Fonda’s 1982 aerobics tape “Workout” further solidified neon spandex, sweat , and leg warmers as the for fitness enthusiasts (Canning). Women would typically wear a or over leggings or , all made of Spandex. As leggings alone clung very close to women’s bodies, the were worn to more modestly relieve clinging to intimate parts of the body. This clinging issue was later resolved through the innovative diamond shaped stitching Lululemon founder Chip Wilson created. “I just basically took that bodysuit and built that into the pant,” says Wilson (Athleisure). The diamond stitch gave women the comfortability and flexibility of wearing leggings as pants without over-exposure.

The rise of gossip journalism in the early , such as magazine Us and television show TMZ, yielded unique exposure to celebrities’ everyday fashion choices in casual environments and pushed the boundaries of loungewear as a popular style. Gossip magazine Us includes a section called “Just Like Us” that features photographs of celebrities doing everyday activities. These images projected for the first time a sense of luxury in casual clothing. Fashion brand Juicy Couture benefitted greatly from this deeper level of celebrity exposure. In 2001, the same year the velour made its debut, Jennifer Lopez released her for “I’m 12

Real” adorned in the classic bubblegum-pink style. The choice was controversial amongst

Lopez’s label executives, as the outfit was out of the scope of the other “sexy” music videos in circulation at the time; however, CNN style writer Marianna Cerini claims that Lopez communicated a deeper message than casual comfort with the Juicy Couture look. Cerini writes that wearing the Juicy Couture tracksuit said, “I can wear loungewear anywhere, because I'm rich… It's no surprise that lots of young women wanted to emulate that” (Cerini). The Juicy

Couture tracksuit symbolized an aspirational, “new money,” ability to dress down while looking fabulous. It was the uniform of the 2000s “It Girl.” Exemplified, ’s reality TV show with fellow-heiress Nicole Richie, The Simple Life, regularly featured the pair in -to-toe

Juicy Couture (Hilton, Figure 4). Britney Spear’s entire wore bubble- gum pink Juicy Couture tracksuits in her 2004 wedding to Kevin Federline (Babcock). A 2004 version of the traditional bubblegum-pink Juicy Couture tracksuit was even featured in ’s

Victoria and Albert Museum 2016 exhibit ‘Undressed: A Brief History of Underwear’ (Lindig).

The Juicy Couture tracksuit replaced country club tennis skirts and golf sweaters as the status- bearing loungewear and brought the next iteration of loungewear into popular American sportswear. 13

Figure 4 Paris Hilton in Juicy Couture Sato, Jun. Paris Hilton. The Reporter, 16 Nov. 2015

The acceptance of loungewear as casual sportswear created a new standard of acceptable casual attire for most occasions. Like loungewear, activewear is comfortable and allows for freedom of movement. In the early 2000s, the rising popularity of yoga and of the pants, tights, and leggings that accompanied, created some controversy, as the style transcended studio use.

Even the CW’s teen drama meets 2000s fashion time-capsule Gossip Girl commented on the phenomenon, as queen bee Blair Waldorf harshly reprimands a member of her it-girl crowd for wearing tights as pants (“Chuck in Real Life”). Headlines at this time constantly reported instances of legging bans in public, in schools, and even on airplanes for being indecently casual and revealing. Despite opposition, the popularity of , tights, and leggings prevailed as women prioritized their own comfort. In 2019, over one-thousand students at the University of

Notre Dame RSVP’d to an event that was both a celebration of “Leggings Day” and a protest in response to an anti-leggings letter to the campus newspaper. One student observed the 14 widespread adoption of leggings during the protest, as it was difficult to differentiate students wearing leggings per their usual attire and those participating in the protest (Farzan).

Encapsulating the triumph of leggings, Vogue Runway deemed the 2010’s as the “Decade of

Leggings” (Singer).

The “Decade of Leggings” did not simply earn its name due to a generation of comfort- seekers. American Millennials popularized and sensationalized the idea of holistic wellness lifestyles in the twenty-first century. Millennials are the largest US generational group, defined as someone born between 1977 and 1994, currently age 26-43. In a 2018 Mintel survey,

Millennials reported on their multi-faceted approach to health. Fifty-two percent of Millennials reported incorporating four or more health focuses to their wellness routine, including

“exercising,” “eating right,” “self-care, maintaining balance to control stress, engaging the mind, and cultivating positive connections” (Marketing Health to Millennials).

The use of “wellness” in the English language once meant the absence of illness or the

“state of being well or in good health” (“History of Wellness”), but Americans now take the idea of “wellness” far beyond illness prevention. The Global Wellness Institute (GWI) reports the wellness industry as 3.4 times larger than the worldwide pharmaceutical industry. Beyond the

$446 billion “Fitness & Mind-Body” Industry, the wellness industry encompasses 9 other sectors including “Beauty & Anti-Aging” ($1.03 trillion), “Healthy Eating/Nutrition/Weight Loss”

($574 billion), “Wellness Tourism” ($494 billion), “Preventative/Personalized Health” ($433 billion), “Complementary/Alternative Medicine” ($187 billion), “Wellness Lifestyle Real Estate”

($100 billion), Spa Industry ($94 billion), Thermal/Mineral Springs ($50 billion), and

Workplace Wellness ($41 billion) (“History of Wellness”). The all-encompassing cast of the wellness industry calls for an all-encompassing style that can transcend all applications. A 15 wellness lifestyle integrates focus on health into beauty routines, eating habits, and vacations; as a wellness lifestyle integrates activewear into everyday outfits, restaurant visits, and travel.

Dressing up one’s workout outfit to look good walking out the gym and beyond requires stylish activewear selection and/or adding pieces to transcend activewear to sportswear through athleisure styling. Millennials are not a generation too lazy to get “properly” dressed but too busy to be held back by the functionality of their clothing.

Athleisure’s impact has even made its way to the world of high-fashion. Ready-to-wear runway looks as recent as Spring 2020 have featured athleisure influences in fabric choice, print, and design. Exemplified, Stella McCartney’s Pre-Fall 2016 collection featured modern styled rugby jerseys (Figure 5). Burberry’s Spring 2017 Ready-to-Wear collection included a dress inspired by sweatshirts in material and design (Figure 6). FILA’s Spring 2020 Ready-to-Wear collection featured a sleek dress with a futuristic runner’s uniform print (Figure 7). These athleisure looks go as far as to separate all functionality from their activewear inspirations, leaving only the stylistic elements to remain.

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Figure 5 Stella McCarthy Pre-Fall 2016 Ready-to-Wear Stella McCarthy Pre-Fall 2016 Look #9. Vogue Runway, 13 Jan. 2016

Figure 6 Burberry Spring 2017 Ready-to-Wear Burberry Spring 2017 Ready-to-Wear Collection Look #16. Vogue Runway, 20 Feb. 2017

17

Figure 7 FILA Spring 2020 Ready-to-Wear FILA Spring 2020 Ready-to-Wear Look #9. Vogue Runway, 2020

As outlined here, developments in sportswear have followed three major themes: the benefit of performance derived from technological advancements in fabrics, the desire for comfort derived from changes in lifestyles, and the consideration of fashion derived from increased personal visibility through developments in media. The athleisure movement will continue to grow, as these themes further progress. On the longevity of athleisure, Chief Retail

Industry Advisor of The NPD Group Marshal Cohen comments, “other apparel categories are declining, which tells us that consumers are getting just what they need and want in athleisure wear. There is no doubt that the category will continue to evolve, but it’s definitely here to stay for the foreseeable future.” Further elaborating on this claim, “When you have comfort and function combined with fashion, it’s difficult to go back to anything else on a regular basis”

(Wardak). Cohen echoes Derek Thompson’s earlier comment on the phenomenon of taking

“clothes designed for activity, and [adapting] them for inactivity” (Thompson). Wider tolerance 18 for comfort and function in clothing for women, technological developments in clothing, and the developments in media that have facilitated visibility to clothing worn for comfort and function have established strong consumer preferences. Comfort and function are now a consumer expectation, and as the market continues to meet this expectation while also delivering fashionable design, this expectation will endure.

The presence of activewear is taking priority in stores and in the minds of consumers. As of 2018, Mintel values the activewear industry at $46 billion, and “retail analytics company

Edited reported a 33% lift in the number of activewear items in stock at traditional active retailers in 2017 compared to 2015” (Activewear). Additionally, the strength of consumers opting for a wellness-focused lifestyle presents an opportunity for activewear. The Global

Wellness Institute reported “the wellness market reached $4.2 trillion in 2017, a 12.8% increase since 2015” (Wroble). Ninety percent of consumers believe that their current lifestyle is somewhat healthy, and 42% exercise as their primary method of health promotion (Mintel). As wellness remains a priority for consumers so will their activewear.

Population demographic changes shift focus for key buyers. Adults aged 25-44 represent the core of activewear buyers and are expected to grow 5% from 2018-2023. Adults 65+ are growing as a demographic and tend to only buy activewear for comfort. Men under 55 are estimated to own the most activewear, as men are “more likely than women to prioritize fitness and are more likely to wear activewear specifically for exercise purposes.” However, per 2014-

2018 Simmons data, no notable differences were found in men’s purchasing of activewear YOY, unlike workout clothes purchased by women which grew by 4% during this time (Activewear).

This juxtaposition exemplifies the impact of women on the athleisure movement. 19

There are three segments in which to categorize the usage occasions for activewear: casual wearers, crossovers, and exercisers. Casual wearers and those who wear activewear for both sport and casual use outnumber their fitness-focused counterparts (Activewear). A quarter of all activewear consumers are casual wearers, primarily men 45+. The crossover consumers tend to be women aged 18-34 or iGen and Millennials; after comfort, these consumers seek out multi-purpose as their most significant attribute. A majority of consumers are exercisers; these people tend to be women 35-54. Crossover usage occasions is where athleisure styling takes place, notably dominated by women aged 18-34.

Often the term “athleisure” is used as a bucketed-term to encompass all of the unique intentions behind casual and crossover activewear usage occasions; however, each of these unique intentions and corresponding usage occasions are worth noting. The first intention is the casual wearers; these women wear activewear in everyday life because of its comfortability. The second intention is transcendent wearers who would be considered crossover users; these are the physically active women who choose fashionable activewear for exercise purposes and their use of this clothing transcends beyond the gym. But the third intention is unique to athleisure in its fashion-first focus. Replacing the exercise-focused consumer is the fashionable wearers; these are women who use activewear and activewear styles for fashionable applications that are not practically intended for the facilitation of active movement.

The activewear market has lifted the entire apparel market as consumers become more health conscious, but the future of activewear seems to move away from exercise occasions to everyday activities. Mintel states “it is becoming increasingly difficult to discern clear distinctions between activewear, athleisure, , and casualwear… This style of dress has moved from a trend into more of just a lifestyle preference” (Activewear). The adaptation of 20 athleisure styling of activewear has ultimately caused some loss of meaning to the “active” part of the word “activewear.”

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Chapter 3

The Law of the Few

If it is true that consumers construct their worldview and sense of self from the people and media that they interact with and that clothing is a central expression of that sense of self, then the people and the media that we interact with directly translate into our clothing choices

(Stratico). The Law of the Few states that there are few particular messengers that can have significant impact on a movement. Social media has created incredible opportunities for more people to harness the power of the few. Within the athleisure movement, some influencers have harnessed that power. An “influencer” is defined as “a person who inspires or guides the actions of others” or “is able to generate interest in something (such as a consumer product) by posting about it on social media” (“Influencer”). By some reports, brands are set to spend $8 billion on influencer marketing with 17% of brands spending at least half of their marketing budget on influencers (Schomer, Bailis). Influencers are an increasingly integral piece in the mix of people and media that consumers interact with. Furthermore, the fashion/beauty industry consistently ranks within the three industries for influencer .

Instagram is the most impactful channel for influencers. ‘Internet users age 18+ who follow people they do not personally know’ tend to follow certain types of accounts in the following order: entertainment, food/drink, news and information, health and fitness, travel,

DIY, and finally fashion and beauty (“Internet Influencers”). However, the most popular sponsored influencers on as of July 2017 based on engagement are fashion blogger/designer @chiaraferragni, @christiano, supermodel @gigihadid, and actress

@brunamarquezine (Most Popular). These big-name influencers don’t follow the same category popularity as the majority of influencer accounts followed. They do, however, all focus on 22 fashion and/or athletics. @chiaraferragni and @brunamarquezine are more obviously fashion oriented, but @gigihadid and @christiano blur the line between fashion and athletics.

@christiano is one of the world’s most famous soccer players who also models for Armani, and

@gighadid is a supermodel who is sponsored by (Harper’s Bazaar).

Social media has made it possible for the power of the few to grow stronger. For one,

Mavens are socially motivated information collectors that seek to find the highest quality of information to help others make the most informed decisions possible, and the internet provides unprecedented access to information and the ability to curate it. Mintel reports on the power social media has to spread consumer knowledge: “59% of influencer followers say they have learned about a product or service from a social media account. Further, 45% say they have purchased a product they have seen on their social media feed, while 39% say they have used a discount code” (“Internet Influencers”).

Additionally, the speed and of social media as a platform allow people to communicate in a more relatable, seemingly authentic way, allowing more people to become

Salesmen; Salesmen are naturally charismatic people who are powerful persuaders within their sphere of influence. The speed and frequency of communication on these platforms creates a sense of intimacy that often eliminates division between public and private lives. Chief Marketer reports “Influencer marketing outperforms traditional digital advertising by 11X because consumers would rather hear from real people than brands” (Philon). Even when consumers recognize they are being sold to by influencers, they tend to not directly associate the as advertisements, instead appreciating “the entertaining and honest depictions of real life that are projected online” (“Internet Influencers”). 23

As social media democratizes the power to influence and reduces traditional barriers to gain reach, Connectors are further enabled to do what they do best: “span many different worlds

[with a] combination of curiosity, self-confidence, sociability, and energy” (Gladwell). Fifty-four percent of social media users report following accounts outside of their personal networks.

Notably, these users are most likely to follow celebrities over other types of accounts (“Internet

Influencers”). This is unsurprising in that, throughout history, people have been interested in the personal lives of public figures, and social media provides even deeper, more personal access to these figures.

Selena Gomez exemplifies the kind of “influencer” that through social media has successfully harnessed the power of the few to not just become a Maven, Salesmen, or

Connector; Selena Gomez is a Maven, Salesman, and Connector. Gomez is a 27-year-old singer, songwriter, actress, television producer, and owner of a beauty line. Gomez to fame as the star of 2000s Disney Channel television show Wizards of Waverly Place. During and following her time with Disney Channel, Gomez released seven studio albums, acted in and voiced dozens of TV shows and movies, produced two television series, and launched a beauty line.

Gomez has collaborative lines with and endorsements from the likes of , Coach, Coca Cola,

Louis Vuitton, and Pantene. On top of it all, in 2017 Selena Gomez was the most followed person on Instagram with 69.7 million followers. In 2020 Gomez is the fourth most-followed person on Instagram with 167 million followers, falling behind only Christiano Ronaldo (201M),

Ariana Grande (174M), and Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson (170M), preceding Kylie Jenner, Kim

Kardashian West, Lionel Messi, and Beyoncé.

Through her success and celebrity as an actress, musician, and producer, Gomez has earned a status of expertise within the entertainment industry. She uses this expertise to share the 24 goings-on of her world in music, fashion, film, and activism, earning the status of a Maven.

Through her choices in content and messaging, Gomez’s balances her aspirational, glamorous lifestyle by sprinkling in casual photos and captions that often express attitudes of gratitude and groundedness. Gomez’s tone holds that of a peer, projecting the authenticity to and intimacy with her followers needed to earn the status of a Salesmen. Through her diverse set of career holdings, interests, celebrity friends and willingness to share this with her followers, Gomez is quite simply and naturally a Connector.

The power of the few trifecta is exemplified all over Gomez’s Instagram. On December

13, 2017, Gomez wished popstar Taylor Swift a happy birthday by posting a video of the pair making silly faces into the camera (Figure 8). Although seemingly simple, this post shares valuable information to entertainment industry followers of Taylor Swifts’ birthday, shares an intimate and fun moment of her life, and directly connects them to a whole other fan-base that is the Taylor Swift empire. On September 7, 2017, Gomez introduced her TIME cover for Firsts,

Women Who Are Changing The World, “Sometimes it's incredibly difficult to wake up every day knowing there is so much going on in the world. At times I feel , I ask why, I ask how can this change?” continuing, “When I read about the beautiful women who wake up consciously every day to make a change, it inspires me to want to do so much more” (Figure 9). Gomez alerts her followers to this new TIME special project, shares her intimate thoughts with the tone of a peer, and connects her fan base to the realm of politics and news through TIME. On August 26,

2017 Gomez posted a portrait of Elle Fanning and another of Timothée Chalamet, neither with captions, both tagging the celebrities pictured (Figure 10, 11). These endorsements spotlight notable people-to-know in the entertainment industry, relate to her followers in being a mutual fan of these celebrities, and quite literally link her followers to these other fan-bases. Gomez’s 25 simple and seemingly effortless execution of blending characteristics of the few into a trifecta of influence has made her incredibly successful. It’s no coincidence that the same year that Gomez became the most followed person on Instagram she also scored a 2-year $30-million contract with Puma and $10-million collaboration with Coach (Gonzales, Gay).

Figure 8 Gomez Taylor Swift Post Gomez, Selena. Instagram

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Figure 9 Gomez TIME Cover Post Gomez, Selena. Instagram

Figure 10 Gomez Elle Fanning Post Gomez, Selena. Instagram

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Figure 11 Gomez Timothée Chalomet Post Gomez, Selena. Instagram

Activewear brand Outdoor Voices (OV) has also mastered the power of the few trifecta.

OV has adopted a strong voice and personality through their social media platforms. The brand primarily posts user-generated content or takes images from their own massive community events. There is one main Outdoor Voices account and individual accounts corresponding to cities with store locations; this includes @ovlosangeles, @ovaustin, @ovnashville, @ovhtx,

@ovboston, and @ovwashdc. Outdoor Voices is not posting direct celebrity endorsements, instead posting on-the-go shots of celebrities organically wearing the brand. Celebrities featured include Lizzo, , and Harry Styles. However, the account’s main focus seems to be on their community members, with a large portion of content credited to other accounts. By primarily collecting user-generated content for their account, Outdoor Voices becomes a funnel for messaging from their entire community and a platform by which to share 28 the message of an entire group. In doing so, the entire entity of Outdoor Voices becomes an influencer, one with the power of the few.

Outdoor Voices’ power of the few is best demonstrated on the city-specific accounts. The

Los Angeles account, @ovlosangeles, provides valuable information, projects authenticity and relatability, and connects members of their community to each other and to new outlets. Some of their posts successfully simultaneously achieve each of these tasks. On November 24, 2019, OV

LA posted an active shot from one of their workout dress dance events as the instructor leads with her class visible. The photo’s caption included “big thanks to everyone who joined us and got groovy! And an extra big thanks to DJ Este Haim from @haimtheband” and goes on to tag six other contributors including a photo credit to one of their followers @viviankimx (Figure 12).

The action shot recaps an event while also notifying followers of their partners, sharing an untouched, un-posed moment of community members, and connects followers to other LA businesses and to another community member by tagging them. On December 12, 2019, OV LA posted a ‘mirror pic’ of Brandi Bombard, founder of Forma Floral, holding a bouquet of flowers in the Outdoor Voices store mirror marked with the “Doing Things” slogan. The post, again, is tagged for both Forma Floral and Brandi Bombard (Figure 13). Here the brand alerts community members to similarly-minded LA company Forma Floral, presents the store space casually through the relatable lens of a mirror pic, and directly connects followers to both the company and its founder through the tags. On January 30, 2020, OV LA posted a photo of a class, seemingly adorned in Outdoor Voices, smiling around two large boxing bags with the caption

“#doingthings with @crubox”. The post shares the LA fitness club, projects women dressed in all different styles and still sweating from their class, and tagged not only @outdoorvoices and

@crubox, but also many of the women in the class (Figure 14). It is incredibly unique for a 29 company to include so much outward facing messaging by sharing other businesses showcasing unfiltered moments and tagging community members; however, in turning the focus in part away from the product, the brand is elevated to meaning more than just activewear. They themselves become a community member.

Figure 12 OV Workout Dress Event Post Outdoor Voices LA, Instagram

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Figure 13 OV Brandi Bombard Post Outdoor Voices LA, Instagram

Figure 14 OV Crubox Post Outdoor Voices LA, Instagram

The power of the few has amplified the significance of many digital influencers, and many of these digital influencers have backed the athleisure movement. Christine Bibbo Herr is a 31 great example of a digital influencer with trusted expertise, charisma, and connections that has backed the athleisure movement. Former Fashion Director of Good Housekeeping Christine

Bibbo Herr is now a blogger and freelance and stylist. Her blog’s Instagram

@NYCPretty seamlessly showcases Bibbo Herr’s active lifestyle to her 30 thousand followers by balancing the influencing characteristics of the few (NYC Pretty). Bianca May Cheah is another supporter of athleisure that leverages influencing characteristics of the few. Bianca May

Cheah does so through her ‘mommy blog’ @biancamaycheah by leveraging her expertise as a yoga instructor, her honest testimonials on motherhood, and her expansive network of LA boutiques (Bianca May Cheah). Bibbo Herr and May Cheah are just two of the many fashion/fitness/lifestyle bloggers that have leveraged the power of the few while showcasing their adoption of athleisure. Further, some of these influencers have opted to start their own activewear lines over pairing with existing brands. These are the messengers that are bringing the message of athleisure and demonstrating that lifestyle to the masses.

While digital influencers are moving the message of athleisure, activewear brands choose different kinds of messengers to represent their brands. There is clear differentiation in each brand’s approach to what type of messengers they choose to represent their brand. Traditionally activewear brands have concentrated their marketing efforts on endorsing high-profile , sports teams, and events. These athletes have served as brand messengers. Almost all of Nike’s messengers are athletes, including Charles Barkley, Tiger Woods, Maria Sharapova, Kobe

Bryant, LeBron James, Colin Kaepernick, Serena Williams, Lacey Baker, Odell Neckham JR,

Shaquem Griffin, and perhaps most notably Christiano Ronaldo (Joseph, Majia). Forbes ranks

Christiano Ronaldo as the second highest-earning athlete of 2019 based off salaries, prize money, bonuses, endorsements, appearance fees and licensing income. Ronaldo reportedly made 32

$800 million in 2019 benefiting largely from “his massive Instagram and Facebook followings, which both rank as the biggest of any person on the planet” (Badenhausen). However, Nike signed with supermodel Bella Hadid in 2016 as the only non-athlete endorsed by Nike at the time

(Fisher). The same year as her Nike endorsement, Hadid was voted Model of the Year for 2016

(models.). Adidas, while endorsing many athletes such as Lionel Messi and James Harden, focuses most of their commercial advertising on their celebrity endorsements and collaborations such as , Beyoncé, , Katy Perry, , , 2

Chainz, 21 Savage, Fan Bingbing, and Karlie Kloss (Madden, Pfanner, Gordon, Karlie Kloss

Apparel, Parsons, 2 Chainz, ‘Free to Create’, ‘My Way’). Historically, Under Armour has primarily focused on athlete endorsements such as Michael Phelps and the US Women’s

Gymnastics team during the 2016 Olympics, but more recently have taken on some untraditional messengers for the brand including model Gisele Bundchen and ballerina

(Michael Phelps’, Misty US Women’s , Bundchen, Copeland). Lululemon signed their first and only endorsement deal to date with former NFL quarterback Nick Foles in 2019

(Lululemon men). Fabletics has leveraged their founder Kate Hudson’s celebrity in advertisements and have exclusively collaborated with celebrities over athletes including Demi

Lovato and Kelly Rowland (Ward, Kelly Rowland). Outdoor Voices has yet to sign any endorsement deals to date, largely sticking to the brand’s user-generated content and community events as sources of advertising; however, this is not to say that the brand does not aspire to sign endorsement deals, as the brand is still young and growing. These brand messengers communicate through traditional brand communications such as advertisements and by wearing branded gear, but often these messengers use their own social media platforms as well. 33

Social media has created the unprecedented opportunity for more individuals, and entities in the case of Outdoor Voices, to develop the power of the few trifecta. The ability to harness this power will continue to determine the impact of influencers and brands regardless of the message they communicate. Influencers and brands that have successfully executed the power of the few have undisputedly impacted the athleisure movement and will continue to do so.

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Chapter 4

The Power of Context

Athleisure has brought rapid disruption within the activewear industry. When activewear was produced exclusively for sport, the major players were clear. Adidas, Nike, and Under

Armour dominated gyms, fields, and studios. When activewear was adopted as sportswear, these giants struggled to adapt product lines and messaging to fully meet market needs. This new market demanding a wider perspective on activewear birthed some new major players in

Lululemon, Fabletics, and Outdoor Voices.

Overview of Brands

Adidas

Adidas’ roots are deeply ingrained in creating great for athletes. Adi Dassler’s original purpose in founding Adidas was to “provide athletes with the best possible equipment,”

He found success in doing so as his shoes helped Olympic athletes to win as early as 1928.

Adidas is credited with creating the foundation for the activewear industry, and they have been loyal, long-term partners of the FIFA World Cup. In 1949, Dassler registers his company as "Adi

Dassler adidas Sportschuhfabrik", and the logo included the iconic three-stripe (History).

These stripes are a key element of the Adidas brand and allows the brand to announce its presence across product lines. In 1967, Adidas released the 3-stripe tracksuit as their first piece 35 of apparel in alignment with the “space-age” technology of the time with the synthetic nylon fabrics. Their European origin and affiliation with soccer has allowed their naturally sleek design and highly adaptable brand elements to build a following for style that extends beyond the field.

In 1972, Adidas launched , it’s collection for lifestyle and street. Their current marketing strategy developed in 2015, “Creating the New,” is a strategy aimed at “[translating] competence in sports into streetwear and fashion because sport is an attitude and a lifestyle”

(History). Adidas of 2019 released luxury Kanye West and sponsored models like

Kendall Jenner. Adidas has positioned themselves within the pop culture and international fashion mainstream, yet they remain an activewear brand.

Adidas brings the European heightened focus on style to sport. Adidas helps to draw the connections between their position as an activewear powerhouse and culture icon with their 2015

“Creating the New” 5-year strategic plan. The plan focuses on speed, cities, and open source:

“speed in responding to consumer needs, focusing on cities that drive culture, and utilizing every stakeholder to be a part of the brand through open sourcing” (History). This plan aligns with the needs of both athletes and style-conscious consumers. As Adidas creates the structure for a brand that quickly responds to consumer needs, they trust that their consumers will drive their innovation.

Moving forward, it will be interesting to see where Adidas pushes forward in culture and sport. In 2017, Adidas turned down the opportunity to bid for an extension on their NBA apparel deal. Adidas followed their decision with this statement: “We are reimagining and reshaping our business and have evolved our strategy to look at new, cutting-edge ways to drive our brand and support our business over the long term. We will invest more in telling stories that matter to our consumer, building category-disrupting innovative products, reinvigorating youth with 36 our new Next Generation programs and doubling our roster of professional athletes to authenticate our brand on-court” (Rovell). This decision is an example of Adidas’ commitment to understanding how to best relate to their customer.

Nike

Nike is a relatively young company with an impressive growth stunt relative to their nearest competitor Adidas. Nike was founded as Blue Ribbon Sports in 1964 by Bill Bowerman, a coach, alongside former student Phil Knight at the University of Oregon. Blue

Ribbon Sports only became Nike Inc. 12 years later, following the incredible success of the Nike brand shoe featuring the classic winged Nike (Nike Inc.). Their famous “Just Do It” slogan debuted in 1988, embodying the brands essence of a supporter and empowerer of athletes

(Nazario). Nike has historically made some of the largest endorsement deals in sports with athletes like , Tiger Woods, and Christiano Ronaldo (Nike Inc.). Nike has been making waves as a big name brand ever since, regularly earning the title of “Marketer of the

Year” by Advertising Age since 1996 (Nazario). They have continued to expand their reach in the activewear market with launches like Nike ACG “all condition gear” for extreme sports

(1996) and innovations such as the sports hijab (2017) (Nike Inc., The Nike Pro Hijab). Nike’s expansion into sportswear also comes in the form of partnerships with high-end designers such as Off-White and Sacai through NikeLab (Women’s NikeLab).

Nike has consistently positioned themselves alongside the athlete. Nike’s award-winning

2016 ad Nike Copa America exemplifies a classic Nike ad. Aspects of the advertisement include demonstrations of athletic performance and all individuals dressed in performance-focused 37 activewear (Nike Copa America). In 2018, Nike spotlighted the NFL’s controversy over players kneeling in protest during the national anthem by featuring athlete and social justice advocate

Colin Kaepernick. Even as Nike claimed their stance on a social justice issue, they did so through the perspective of the athletes affected (Draper). By choosing to address the issue through the perspective of the athlete as opposed to social justice workers, politicians, or even the NFL, Nike demonstrated a steadfast position alongside the athlete.

In 2017, Nike launched its growth plan called the Triple Double Strategy. The strategy focuses on the three prongs of doubling innovation, speed, and direct consumer interaction. Nike plans to “edit-to-amplify” in order to scale innovation faster, utilize end-to-end digital capability investments to improve their speed to market, and become a leader in retail as they double direct connections with consumers (“Nike, Inc. is Accelerating”). Within Nike’s own spaces, they plan to utilize Nike Live store data to implement a fast-fashion model of rotating 15-25% of product offerings every two weeks as opposed to the traditional 30-45 day cycle. Michelle Grant, head of retailing at Euromonitor, claims that this strategy has dramatic impact on the sportswear industry specifically stating, “With this new distribution strategy, Nike is opening a new front for competition in sportswear: the best retail experience. Its competitors will have to catch up to meet the standards that Nike is setting when it comes to physical and digital retail through its own and partner channels” (Danzinger).

Nike’s digital channels include a suite of shopper experience apps that transcends a transactional relationship including the main Nike shopping app, the SNKRS app which exclusively sells sneakers, and the Nike Training Club that offers guided workouts. Heidi

O’Neill, President of Nike Direct, shares Nike’s intent behind these platforms, “We see our

SNKRS app as not just a shopping experience, but kind of the hub of sneaker culture” (Safdar). 38

Ultimately, Nike has identified the focus categories expected to fuel their growth as Running,

Basketball, Nike Sportswear, Men’s and Women’s Training, Global and Young

Athletes, even dedicating an entire team to Women’s offerings (“Nike, Inc. Announces”).

Under Armour

Kevin Plank got the idea to create Under Amour (UA) through frustrations with how his cotton shirts bunched up underneath his gear while playing football at the University of

Maryland in 1996. Plank simply wanted to create a better t-shirt, one that was breathable, comfortable, and would wick-away sweat. The company was founded in Washington, DC and relied heavily on word-of-mouth amongst players for new customers. Plank sent prototypes to players like Tennessee tight-end Frank Wycheck (Baer). The product line expanded with the introduction of temperature controlling HeatGear and ColdGear in 1997 (Our Story).

The first major exposure for Under Armour was in winning the exclusive apparel deal for the football team in the 1999 film ‘Any Given Sunday’, including superstar Jamie Foxx (Baer).

Shortly thereafter in 2000, the Under Armour team opted to forgo their paychecks in order to fund the brand’s first print ad. From then on, the sponsorship and endorsement deals, product launches, and breakout advertisements didn’t let up. Under Amour became the first official sponsor of the National Hockey League in 2001, launched Under Armour underwear in 2002, and aired the first UA TV ad “Protect this House” in 2003. After going public in 2005, within the year Under Armour won the rights to put their logo on the jerseys of the cast of ‘Friday Night

Lights’ and became the first official sponsor of the National Football League with the 39 launch of the first pair of Under Amour cleats (Our Story). A huge endorsement followed as

Under Armour signed NFL quarterback Tom Brady in 2010 (Baer).

Under Armour then went on to focus more attention on their women’s market with the endorsement of Misty Copeland and Gisele Bundchen under the “I will what I want” campaign in 2014 (Baer). In 2015, Under Armour focused on reaching consumers in the home instead of on the field with the launch of their digital wellness community. The Under Armour app suite includes MapMyRun, Endomondo, and MyFitnessPal. Recent innovations have remained aligned with Under Armour’s history of focusing on the athlete with their recovery sleepwear in

2017 (Our Story). The brand has yet to introduce any women’s lines clearly defined as sportswear.

In a 2015 interview, Under Armour Marketing Executive Adrienne Lofton reveals that

Under Armour believes in the “long game,” in building a constant brand that supports consistency in athletes. Lofton remarks, “We work with athletes who most people wouldn't or didn't draft in the first round, or who they wouldn't traditionally give a prima ballerina title to.

We pick that athlete with a chip on their shoulder and their desire to win because it aligns with our own attitude... A lot of brands are about that initial motivation — just do it, get up, and go — we talk about how sustaining that effort is what makes the difference for an elite athlete, and we want to be the brand to show you how to do it” (Schlossberg). This mindset is mirrored in Under

Armour’s 2023 Strategic Growth Plan that outlines a “single-minded focus on innovative athletic performance product and experiences” (“Under Armour Announces”). Under Armour plans to execute by, as Plank puts it, “developing a digital ecosystem that provides us with unparalleled data” to drive a more engaged, higher performing wellness community (Baer). Other execution points echo that of Nike’s strategists in being more selective in distribution while creating a more 40 seamless omni-channel retail experience. Under Armour identifies their footwear and women’s business as a major long-term growth opportunity (“Under Armour Announces”).

Lululemon

Lululemon was founded in Vancouver in 1998 by Chip Wilson in his “design studio by day and yoga studio by night” (Meyersohn). When Wilson started Lululemon, he was equipped with a retail background, as he previously owned a technical snowboard apparel brand. Wilson claims that he was inspired to create Lululemon in a time where people “wore their worst clothes to the gym” and their performance was limited while sweating in baggy clothing (Meyersohn).

Lululemon broke into the market with their original fabric, Luon, that used more nylon then other available options. More innovative fabrics followed including moisture-wicking Luxtreme and compression focused Nulux (Bhasin). The brand’s first offering, the Boogie Pant, was featured in a 2018 MoMA exhibit, showcasing Lululemon’s innovative style elements including flat stitching to prevent chaffing, thick waistband and the diamond-shaped gusset to further enable movement (Wilson). Lululemon outlines a desire for an impact beyond their athletes’ interests in apparel, “A constant that has never wavered is our desire to empower people to reach their full potential through providing the right tools and resources, and encouraging a culture of leadership, goal setting and personal responsibility” (“History”). Lululemon now designs for yoga, running, , training and has over 440 locations internationally (“History”, Lululemon

2018 Annual Report). Recent moves for Lululemon include an investment in home-fitness startup Mirror and launch of luxury streetwear brand Lab (Hanbury, Segran). 41

Wilson rejects the term ‘athleisure’ based off its associations with casual wearers and even fashionable wearers. Wilson claims the brand is strictly for athletes and transcendent wearers and to wear such technologically-advanced activewear solely for casual purposes is a disgrace. To CNBC he states, “We come from function first and then make it look good, where athleisure is looking good and then trying to make it look athletic” (Fox).

Lululemon seeks to position themselves as an aspirational, or even exclusive, brand.

Wilson narrowed in very specifically on his target group, who he calls “super girls.” He believes that focusing in on that one specific segment of the market was key to Lululemon’s success; “We focused in on just that 32-year-old professional woman who owned a condo, and traveled, and was fashionable, and athletic. We didn't care for the 33-year old, or the 31-year old. We just built for that one person” (Meyersohn). On the intended audience for Lululemon, Wilson comments

“quite frankly some women’s bodies just actually don’t work for [the pants] … It’s really about the rubbing through the thighs, how much pressure is there over a period of time and how much they use it” (Chip Wilson). Wilson initially sold pants in stores for $100 each, a huge divergence from his nearest competitors, but he believed that his “super girls” would be willing to pay the price for long-lasting quality (Meyersohn). Quality perception is protected on the Lululemon website, as the page that hosts sales items is labeled as “We Made Too Much”, not the typical

“Sales” (Lululemon).

Fabletics

Fabletics was built under the JustFab e-commerce subscription by co-CEOs

Don Ressler and Adam Goldenberg alongside founder Kate Hudson in 2013. The Fabletics site 42 states that the co-founders “saw a gap in the activewear marketplace: there were plenty of luxury brands, but none that offered stylish and high quality gear at an accessible price point.” Fabletics projects diverse messaging by claiming to fill a need for both athletic and non-athletic activities.

Although Fabletics launched a men’s line in 2015, the brand focuses almost all marketing communications on their women’s lines (About Kate). The brand’s major offering is to join the subscription service as a VIP member to receive two pairs of leggings for $24, a $99 value offer.

Although Fabletics heavily advertises the VIP membership/subscription, customers can purchase individual items without a subscription. Fabletics also operates based on a fast-fashion retailing model of frequently rotating product offerings, and identifies their supply chain management, logistics, and operational efficiencies as the keys to success in competing on price and quality

(Ladd). Since their initial launch in 2013, Fabletics has significantly expanded on and offline. In

2014 the brand launched internationally and opened six brick-and-mortar stores the following year (About Kate). Fabletics expanded into footwear with their “Push” line in 2017, claiming to finally offer customers a head-to-toe look (Hamanaka). Digitally born, Fabletics now has 25 US stores and has announced plans to open 75 new stores internationally (Ladd).

Goldberg, speaking on learning from hiccups as a young brand, states a commitment to

“listening to the customer and trying to give them what they want” (Schlossburg). This is consistent with the data-first image that Fabletics projects. WWD is of the perspective that

Fabletics is a “tech company that happens to be in the apparel business.” Goldberg further remarks, “Fabletics launched in 2013 to fill a void in the market and deliver a truly unique shopping experience to today’s modern, active consumer. The combination of our flexible membership model and FashionOS technology platform has enabled us to elevate customer satisfaction through rapid data-driven decision making that results in personalized selection and 43 service. When you know what customers want and have the ability to leverage that data, it is so much easier to make them happy” (Greenstein).

Most other subscription-based services consistently charge a monthly fee, but Fabletics allow their members the option to opt-out each month. President of Fabletics, Gregg

Throgmartin, speaks to this option as a strategy to both build trust with customers and to draw customers to the site each month. Even when customers choose to opt out for the month, they must go to the Fabletics site to do so, where they will be exposed to new and potentially enticing product offerings (Greenstein).

As seen in the diversity of women used to promote the brand, founder Hudson seeks to project body-positive messaging from not only a corporate-social responsibility standpoint but also an opportunity for growth (Ladd). As for the pricing model, Throgmartin claims “Our goal was to be the same quality as the leaders in the space at half the price.” One way the brand is able to accomplish this is through their “direct response advertising” model that prompts prospective customers to respond immediately and directly to the Fabletics site, allowing for other marketing expenses to be diverted elsewhere (Greenstein). In Fabletics brick-and-mortar stores innovations include customer scanning and inventory predictive software. In store, VIP members can in for personalized product recommendations. Predictive modeling software helps the brand to build in-store inventory to be stocked to customer preferences, resulting in an average of only 5% excess inventory to date (Greenstein). 44

Outdoor Voices

Outdoor Voices is an activewear brand born out of Austin, TX in 2013 with a mission to get people moving in any way they see fit. Founder and CEO Ty Haney was a 24-year old graduate of Parsons School of Design and a former nationally-ranked track athlete when she started Outdoor Voices. Haney was struck with the inspiration for Outdoor Voices when she felt silly going for a 10-minute jog in high-performance, flashy activewear intended for professional athletes. Haney believed in the importance of everyday movement without all the intensity that other brands at the time were advertising (Raz). Outdoor Voices’ mission statement “to inspire recreation and help people lead happier, healthier, and more active lives together. We believe that fitness isn't measured by performance and celebrate making activity a fun, sustainable part of everyday life” speaks directly to the athleisure movement (About Us). Outdoor Voices not only carries a competitive message, but their focus on innovation in fabric technologies and their ability to educate their customer on their product is in line with, if not stronger, than their more established competitors. Parallel with the brand’s encouragement of diverse exercise routines, they’ve diversified their fabric offerings with a focus on technology to fit the needs of specific movement. On their site, customers can shop by fabric. For example, products are listed by their fabrics like RecTrek, “wind and water resistant knit that is flexible, crisp to the touch, and deceivingly lightweight on or off the trail” (Our Fabrics). Since the brand’s launch online,

Outdoor Voices now has six physical locations and eight more in the making (Hanbury).

Outdoor Voices, although they offer men’s lines, is largely focused on the female wellness journey, as 80% of the company’s sales is attributed to women’s apparel (Tolentino).

The brand creates a system of customer empowerment, as they treat customers as stakeholders and heavily rely on them to spread the word. The company popularized their tote bags adorned 45 with the phrase “Technical Apparel for Recreation” as a to mark their customer community, and almost all of the company’s advertising utilizes user-generated content. The Outdoor Voices feed on Instagram #doingthings features almost no paid influencers. The brand’s marketing team looks for particularly enticing user-generated content in order to invite new community members to become one of the few OV ambassadors, “a noticeably diverse group of dancers and climbers and fitness coaches and vegan-recipe developers who get free clothes in exchange for posting photos of themselves wearing them”

(Tolentino).

The consumers, more than just the brands’ external marketing force, are the pillars of the

Outdoor Voices community. Haney goes as far to claim to prioritize their wellness experience over their engagement with the product. She speaks to her intentions for the brand, “What I get really excited about is decoupling community growth from product revenue. How do we grow a

Doing Things community that could be ten times what revenues are, and then, over time, we understand the correct way to get them into product?” (Tolentino). Outdoor Voices has demonstrated this community-focus with events such as the celebration for the re-introduction of the Exercise Dress, a brand staple. The celebration consisted of a free dance class hosted by

Haney for 1,5000 people at ’s Lincoln Center. On the event, Haney remarks, “We activate locally and amplify digitally, meaning our real life connection with our community is just as important as the way we show up online… ‘Doing Things’ is synonymous at OV, so it made sense to host a 1,500-person at one of the most iconic places in the world for our most iconic style” (Moore).

OV is in line with Lululemon in terms of aspirational price point, offering leggings at about $95. OV Ambassadors are one way the brand avoids discounting, as additional product is 46 given to ambassadors for promotions (Tolentino). Additionally, a fast-fashion model of rolling out innovations in small batches helps to avoid excess inventory in the first place (Hanbury).

Looking forward, Outdoor Voices plans to open the company’s internal app, Hearts and Stars, to the greater Outdoor Voices community with the intention of further connecting the brand’s following (Tolentino).

Analysis of Brand Product Offerings vs Messaging

A brand’s advertising is a significant indicator of how the brand wants to be perceived by consumers. Sampling available television and print advertisements issued by activewear brands since the 1980s provided a basis for analysis of these messages and their place within the market.

These samples revealed three dominant categories of messengers in the advertisements: the level or source of celebrity (athlete/celebrity/non-entity), the type of activity featured (exercise/non- exercise), and the competitive environment surrounding the messenger (competitive, non- competitive). These categories can be classified as either active messaging or leisure messaging.

It is worth noting that a single advertisement can have multiple labels within a category. For example, a Fabletics commercial may feature non-entity models as well as celebrity founder and actress Kate Hudson. Labels classified as active messaging include athlete source of celebrity, exercise activity, and competitive environment. Labels classified as leisure messaging include celebrity or non-entity source of celebrity, non-exercise activity, and non-competitive environments.

Once advertisements are tagged under these categories, their labels reveal an average percentage of messaging classified as active or leisure. Brands ranked by active messaging are 47

Under Armour, Nike, Lululemon, Outdoor Voices, Adidas, and Fabletics. Brands ranked by leisure messaging are Fabletics, Outdoor Voices, Lululemon, Adidas, Nike, and Under Armour.

Under Armour and Nike were the only two brands to predominantly display active messaging;

Under Armour is labeled 79% active messaging and 25% leisure messaging, and Nike is labeled

75% active messaging and 33% leisure messaging. The remaining brands favored leisure messaging; Lululemon is labeled 44% active messaging and 67% leisure messaging, Outdoor

Voices is labeled 33% active messaging and 75% leisure messaging, Adidas is labeled 27% active messaging and 61% leisure messaging, and Fabletics is labeled 10% active messaging and

79% leisure messaging [Appendix A].

Advertisements that focus on exercise more often feature more competitive environments, exemplified by Nike and Under Armour. Regardless of if the featured activity was non-exercise or equally exercise and non-exercise, the environment surrounding the messenger more often features less competitive environments, exemplified by Adidas, Outdoor Voices,

Fabletics, and Lululemon. Nike and Under Armour consistently feature more athletes exercising in competitive environments. However, Nike heavily features non-entities, whereas Under

Armour split their remaining airtime equally between celebrities and non-entities in these competitive environments. Adidas displays celebrities in non-exercise activities in non- competitive environments. Fabletics also features non-exercise, non-competitive environments but more equally leverages non-entities and celebrities. Outdoor Voices and Lululemon exclusively focus on non-entities in non-competitive environments, but equally feature both exercise and non-exercise activities.

The composition of these six brands’ product offerings indicates what these brands offer versus what they claim to offer in their advertisements. I coded a sample of each brand of about 48

200 products from some variation of each brands’ “All Women’s Clothing” pages during the week of February 17, 2020. The sample for Outdoor Voices only includes 53 product results, as limited by their total offering. Color variations of the same product, accessories, and footwear are excluded from the sample. Products were assumed to be activewear until they indicated sportswear/leisure components such as outerwear (Figure 15), dresses or skirts without sport , impractical detailing or fabric used. Impractical detailing is anything that may inhibit physical movement such as a fit designed to be loose (Figure 16), tight, or revealing (Figure 17), and uncomfortable aesthetic details (Figure 18). Fabric choice that indicates leisure components is any material composition dominated by cotton. Although cotton absorbs moisture, it does not wick away sweat, resulting in the material gaining weight and losing shape which is not beneficial for exercise.

Figure 15 Outerwear "Kosaten Shell lululemon lab." Lululemon 49

Figure 16 Impractical Detailing, Loose Fit "Wide-Leg Lace Pants." Adidas

Figure 17 Impractical Detailing, Revealing "Nike Sportswear JDI." Nike 50

Figure 18 Impractical Detailing, Uncomfortable Aesthetic Addition "Nike Sportswear NSW." Nike

The resulting product offering compositions based on this classification does not directly correlate to the messaging classifications previously identified. Although all brands yield a majority offering of active products, the number of leisure products offered by predominantly active-message focused brands and vice versa is surprising. Brands ranked by active product offering are Under Armour, Fabletics, Outdoor Voices, Lululemon, Adidas, and Nike. Under

Armour and Nike both yield 88% active products. Outdoor Voices and Lululemon yield 72% and

71% active products respectively. Adidas and Nike yield 67% and 57% active product respectively [Appendix A].

Comparing brand messaging and product offering reveals a brand’s greater intention and fit within the market. A brand with low active product but high active messaging is for the

“Stylish Athlete,” the athlete who wants to also be fashionable. A brand with low active product and low active messaging is for the “Athletically Styled,” the person who enjoys the aesthetic 51 and themes of athletic clothing. A brand with high active product and high active messaging is for the “All Athlete,” the person focused on athletic performance all the time. A brand with high active product but low active messaging is for the “Lifestyle Athlete,” the person who integrates activity seamlessly throughout their life [Appendix B]. Within this framework, Nike serves the

Stylish Athlete; Adidas, Lululemon, and Outdoor Voices serve the Athletically Styled; Under

Armour serves the All Athlete; and Fabletics serves the Lifestyle Athlete [Appendix C].

52

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Movement Equity

In Gladwell’s Tipping Point Theory, there are three important lenses through which to analyze the spread of any epidemic or sensational message: the message, messengers, and environment. These three components act as antecedents to the growth of a movement.

Researchers at The University of Massachusetts at Amherst developed a conceptual framework that provides a “closed-ended system” whereby antecedents are identified and manipulated to create brand equity, resulting in market place consequences (Gladden). Applying this framework to the athleisure movement, the lenses of message, messenger, and environment are the antecedents contributing to the movement’s equity.

Specialist in marketing and brand strategy David Aaker defines brand equity as a set of assets “linked to a brand, its name and symbol, that add to or subtract from the value provided by a product or service” (Aaker). Intangible assets such as associations and general awareness of the brand can contribute to brand equity as well. The same collection of assets that create the equity of a brand can also create the equity of a movement. Therefore, brand names, symbols, associations, and awareness of the athleisure movement contribute to the equity of the movement. Otherwise stated, the three lenses of message, messenger, and environment contributing to the prevalence of athleisure are the assets that contribute to this movements equity. 53

“Understanding antecedent conditions is important because each has a particular influence on the four components of brand equity. Likewise, the consequences of equity also directly impact the four components of brand equity,” state The University of Massachusetts at

Amherst researchers on the close-ended loop connecting the consequences of a movements equity back to the antecedents (Gladden). Based on marketplace perception, antecedents can be manipulated in order to change aspects of movement’s equity, hereby affecting the resulting consequences and marketplace perception of the movement (Figure 19).

Figure 19 Athleisure Equity Conceptual Framework 54

Future Growth, Maturity, or Decline of Athleisure

Traditional adoption cycles of any new product/idea/movement follows an arc of introduction, growth, maturity and eventual decline. During the period of growth and maturity there is some level of acceptance of the adopted movement (Figure 20). What classifies a movement as fad vs fashion vs classic is the length of the acceptance period (Figure 21).

Athleisure is past the stage of introduction and is at a point of either growth or maturity. I hypothesize that athleisure is still experiencing growth and will continue to do so based off of the observed consequences of the movement. As previously mentioned, the activewear industry has been valued over $46 billion (Activewear). Although Mintel projects growth for the apparel, footwear, and accessories markets to slow from 3% YOY from 2012 to 2017 to 1.8% through

2022, activewear sales grew seven times faster than that of the apparel industry at large from

2011 to 2016 (Activewear). Even as the apparel industry seems to be losing steam, activewear continues to grow and be the focus of the industry.

Figure 20 Adoption Life Cycle Easy, M. Fashion Marketing. Cambridge, MA, Blackwell Science Ltd, 1995. Soloman, M. R., and N. J. Rabalt. Consumer Behavior in Fashion. Upper Saddle River, NJ, Pearson Prentice Hall, 2009. 55

Figure 21 Adoption Classification Bannon, E. L. . 3rd ed., New York, Fairchild Books, 2010

It is challenging to predict the future of athleisure and when the movement will reach maturity. Changes in consumer shopping habits, how consumers gather information, and consumer values, preferences, and lifestyles are constantly evolving, thereby constantly evolving athleisure’s equity. Continued development of global supply chains and technology are expanding consumers access to new products, brands, ideas, and styles. Further, fashion is tightly related to sense of identity and beauty. Popstar and fashion icon is quoted saying, "The way I dress depends on how I feel... Usually it just feels like it works" (“The 70 Greatest”); if individual style is largely driven by intangible factors such as individual sense of identity and perception of beauty, the athleisure movement can be expected to as well, and the impact of these factors is very difficult to interpret. With that being said, it is possible to identify relevant trends that are likely to impact the future and longevity of activewear’s place within the fashion industry.

56

• Body Positivity and Size Inclusivity As recently as 2010, Lane Bryant’s body positive,

size inclusive ad was pulled from major new networks for being too controversial

(Ilyashov). Now, brands such as Dove with their Real Beauty Pledge and Aerie with

AeireREAL are paving the way to creating consumer expectation around size inclusivity

in both brand messaging and product offering (The 'Dove Real Beauty Pledge, Get Real).

Mintel reported a 109% increase in mentions of activewear alongside size inclusivity

from September 2017 to October 2018 (Activewear). The brands featured in this thesis

are diverse in the depth of their size-inclusive offering. Fabletics offers over 500 products

in their “Plus Shop.” Nike and Under Armour offer over 100 plus-sized products. Under

Armour offers 42 plus-sized products. Lululemon and Outdoor Voices do not offer plus-

sized lines, instead offering up to an XL or size 14 option for most of their products.

• Social Media Developments Social media will remain a key communication tool of the

fashion industry. Instagram’s Head of Fashion Partnerships, Eva Chen, comments

“Nowadays, in fashion, it has to stand out on Instagram for it to have an impact. You

know, millions of people around the world are going to see it. It’s something that can

make or break a career” (Chen). Changes in format and regulation of social media

platforms, especially Instagram, will inevitably impact the fashion industry. For example,

in 2019, the Federal Trade Commission published guidelines as to how influencers

should responsibly disclose their posts as ads. Staff Attorney for the FTC’s Bureau of

Consumer Protection Michael Atleson claims, "Many consumers rely upon influencer

recommendations in making purchasing decisions, and they should know when a brand

paid an influencer for an endorsement, because it affects the weight and credibility the

consumers may give to that endorsement” (Zialcita). This transparency could either build

or dismantle the perceived authenticity, or Salesmen-factor, of influencers. Furthermore,

Instagram is to remove the “likes” feature, as it is sampling in several markets, Edelman’s 57

Head of Influencers Philip Trippenbach projects, "These changes will further

incentivize brands to put paid media support behind their influencer posts, and also

to focus on Instagram Stories. Influencer content will need to become higher

quality, since users won’t be able to lean on the amount of likes their posts are

receiving when a brand considers working with them. Brands and individuals will

have to work harder at creating and building an engaged community" (Hickman).

• Consumers De-Prioritizing Brand-Name The challenge of keeping up with and

defining athleisure, paired with consumers’ focus on price, comfort, and durability, may

pose as a threat to some brands as technical aspects and branding are de-prioritized. Only

14% of activewear consumer respondents listed brand as an important attribute and “52%

of shoppers say they don’t pay attention to brands or labels” (Activewear). However, “the

data suggests that for most consumers, brand name is not the primary driver for a

purchase. Style, fit, and price might draw a customer’s attention in the first place but

being a credible and respected brand can help to close a deal” (Activewear). As athleisure

continues to saturate the market, brands must clearly define their positioning and focus on

how they fit into the lifestyle of their consumer. As quality is defined differently by

consumers, brands are challenged to extend quality perceptions beyond clothing through

brand experiences.

• Amazon Amazon’s e-commerce site provides an additional purchase path for brands. In

Mintel’s 2018 study, 35% of respondents had purchased activewear from Amazon

(Activewear). As of 2018, Nike had over 16,000 products listed on Amazon (Thomas).

This opportunity to engage with consumers who utilize Amazon as a search engine,

product comparative tool, and peer review source comes with challenges. Brands are

limited in their ability to integrate unique brand elements into product listings and are 58

subjected to Amazon’s changing search algorithms and partnership conditions. Whether

or not to list on Amazon, and how to do so, may shape consumer awareness and

perception of brands. Further, Amazon’s logistics services lower the barrier to entry for

emerging activewear brands. A 2020 brands-to- type article by Cosmopolitan

featured “26 Cute Activewear Brands That’ll Give You the Ultimate Gym ‘Fit Inspo’;”

Nine of the 26 brands featured in the article were listed exclusively on Amazon (Adhav).

Additionally, Amazon itself is entering the activewear market, listing 439 products with

34 sub-brands under Amazon Fashion’s Women’s Activewear as of March 2020

(Women’s Clothing, Active, Our Brands). The significance of this competition is still to

be observed.

• Shifting Professional Environments The US is experiencing a shift to a more casual

culture as more opportunities for untraditional work environments emerge and traditional

office settings relax dress policies. Technological advancements have facilitated self-

employment and telecommuting. In 2017, reported that “43% of

employed Americans said they spent at least some time working remotely” (Chokshi).

Further, the Society for Human Resource Management reported that almost half of their

surveyed firms allow daily casual dress (Bhojwani). These untraditional settings align

well with the lifestyle of athleisure users. Additionally, ss activewear brands continue to

develop innovative fabrics, some are beginning to offer business-appropriate product

offerings created from traditionally activewear fabrics. For example, the Gap family’s

activewear brand Athleta offers an entire “Travel and Commute” line complete with

, slacks, breathable dresses, and jackets (“Travel and Commute”). New lines such

as this provide an opportunity for activewear brands to even further extend their market.

59

This thesis seeks to answer how athleisure has reached its point of prominence in

American culture by analyzing the “Stickiness Factor” of athleisure, the power of its messengers, and its surrounding context. The emerging trends surrounding athleisure stated above will determine the continuation of athleisure’s period of acceptance and continued growth.

Athleisure’s equity is malleable. Diligence in managing the athleisure message, messengers, and context will determine future equity of the athleisure movement.

60 Appendix A

Brand Product Offering and Messaging

Brand Active Product Offering and Active Messaging

Brand Active/Total Offering Athletes Exercise Competitive Active Messaging Avg Nike 57% 66% 83% 75% 75% Adidas 67% 20% 35% 25% 27% Under Armour 88% 64% 86% 86% 79% Outdoor Voices 72% 0% 100% 0% 33% Fabletics 88% 0% 29% 0% 10% Lululemon 71% 33% 100% 0% 44%

Brand Leisure Product Offering and Leisure Messaging

Leisure Leisure/Total Non- Non- Non- Messaging Brand Offering Entity Celebrities Exercise Competitive Avg Nike 43% 50% 17% 33% 33% 33% Adidas 33% 25% 65% 75% 80% 61% Under Armour 12% 29% 36% 14% 21% 25% Outdoor Voices 28% 100% 0% 100% 100% 75% Fabletics 12% 57% 57% 100% 100% 79% Lululemon 29% 67% 0% 100% 100% 67%

61 Appendix B

Brand Positioning by Product Offering and Messaging

Active Product

Low High

High Stylish Athlete All Athlete

Athletically Lifestyle

Active Messaging Low Styled Athlete 62 Appendix C

Brand Product Offering vs Messaging Matrix

Brand Active Product Offering vs Active Messaging

Active Offering v Messaging 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Under Armour Fabletics Outdoor Voices Lululemon Adidas Nike

Brand Leisure Product Offering vs Leisure Messaging

Leisure Offering vs Messaging 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

Fabletics Under Armour Outdoor Voices Lululemon Adidas Nike

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ACADEMIC VITA

Ally Edwards

EDUCATION The Pennsylvania State University | The Schreyer Honors College University Park, PA Smeal College of Business, Bachelor of Science: Marketing May 2020 Minor: Digital Media Trends and Analytics PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE Mars Confectionery Hackettstown, NJ Sales Intern May 2019- Aug 2019 ▪ Established a common language around a complex and ambiguous sales process by conducting interviews and pulling knowledge across functional teams ▪ Identified a $4 million opportunity and developed a tool to allow any stakeholder in the sales network to educate and align their customer with this sales process ▪ Presented key learnings in formal presentation to an audience including 20 senior leaders ▪ Sold in 6 displays during 1 week training as a territory sales manager for the grocery channel Whiteboard Marketing Dublin, OH Marketing Intern May 2018- Apr 2019 ▪ Reimagined company Facebook page content strategy and doubled posted content to more effectively engage clients and potential new hires resulting in doubled social engagement ▪ Interpreted sales lead information to evaluate service opportunities for potential new clients ▪ Analyzed client web presence for SEO advancement opportunities Penn State Prime Spring 2018 Class, Neutrogena Cosmetics Case Study State College, PA Project Manager Jan-Apr 2018 ▪ Established brand objectives, core competencies, and market positioning through focus groups, surveys, and secondary research for formal campaign proposal to our corporate partners Ki’netik Fitness State College, PA Marketing Consultant Oct 2017-Jan 2018 ▪ Orchestrated Relaunch Celebration for 70+ guests to promote new ownership ▪ Evaluated management challenges to recommended future general marketing framework ▪ Designed event fliers, all-purpose information fliers, and social media visuals Penn State Global Brigades - Business Brigade Tegucigalpa, Honduras Consultant Mar 2017 ▪ Collaborated with translators, business students, and community bank members to conduct market research and build a comprehensive business plan for a new community business

CAMPUS LEADERSHIP Penn State Lion Ambassadors University Park, PA Tour Guide, University Ambassador Jan 2018-Present ▪ Communicates Penn State’s history, personality, and traditions along with my personal experience to students, alumni and friends as a tour guide and university representative ▪ Restructured the marketing strategy for “Haunted Valley” event, introducing a social media and community engagement strategy resulting in record event attendance Alpha Delta Pi Sorority University Park, PA Chapter President Jan 2019-Dec 2019 ▪ Developed and executed long term strategic plan for chapter culture, community engagement, and risk management while coordinating all officer and membership activities for 200 members ▪ Acted as representative advocate and liaison in all external communications including media, contractural and financial transactions, University relations, and campus partnerships