Nike is the biggest sportswear brand globally, but rivals Under Armour and adidas "have invested heavily in digital to try and snatch that crown," according to Shona Ghosh of MARKETING MAGAZINE. Under Armour said that it is working on "connected clothing and a sports social network that could rival Facebook or Twitter." Adidas earlier this year bought wearables maker Runtastic. But Nike this week "came out fighting fit, announcing plans to increase online sales seven-fold" from $1B in fiscal '15 to $7B by '20. Overall, the brand plans to boost revenue to $50B over the same period. Nike announced a new partnership with animation company DreamWorks, new steps in 3D printing and "the imminent launch" of mobile personalization. The company also predicted that personalization "would become a mainstream consumer demand in future." The idea is to cater to the "have-it-now generation," with Nike planning to boost customization options on mobile and speed up the time it takes to get footwear to customers. While adidas and Under Armour have "publicly talked up the importance of wearables and other connected devices," Nike said hardware was only "one dimension" of the wider digital puzzle. Nike Brand President Trevor Edwards said, "We ... obviously have great partners with the likes of Apple and certainly the wearable market, which is a piece that is an input to that." One way the brand hopes to boost online sales is to target "underserved" markets, like women. The category has become a "growing focus for other big sportswear brands," like Puma and adidas. Nike Women launched its "Better For It" campaign. The brand boasts the biggest athletic sales for women globally, but wants to grow the category from $5.7B currently to $11B by '20. Nike partnered with Instagram this year, allowing women to "shop the look" from photos. The first Nike Women's shop also opened in London this year, the first in Western Europe (MARKETING MAGAZINE, 10/16).
