Happy Friday!

Welcome to Newsletter #4. The format is the same as past newsletters with the exception of adding some great books and podcasts that I've recently enjoyed reading / listening to. Be sure to check them out below.

Jacob
LATEST NEWS IN THE INDUSTRY
A summary of recent events happening in the sports and outdoor industry.
My Takeaways on This Week's News

  • Brands are prioritizing female consumers in historically underrepresented areas (i.e. Basketball & Outdoors... two categories that are addressed in this newsletter). While this is long overdue, if brands in the sport & outdoor industry continue to make impactful products that are designed and developed for her, the industry will be in a better place for years to come.

  • Unlikely brands are emerging to compete against well-established industry giants. The growing adoption of digital tools and ever-changing consumer preferences has allowed smaller brands and private label brands (who don't bear flashy logos, designs, or product innovations) to compete for market share. While this may be a concern from a brand point of view, this ultimately benefits the consumer with better products that fit their exact needs.

WNBA superstar and Seattle Storm (my favorite WNBA team) legend, Breanna Stewart, is making the move over to Puma which ends her endorsement with Nike. In the announcement, Puma also confirmed that Stewart would get her own signature shoe with the brand, something that hasn't happened for a WNBA player in over 10 years. This move by Puma will hopefully lead to more signature shoes for WNBA athletes in the coming years.

Following up on my last newsletter's article about the upcoming collaboration between adidas and Allbirds, the two brands recently released a proof of concept for the FUTURECRAFT.FOOTPRINT.
Each pair creates 2.94kg CO2e (carbon dioxide emissions) which is far less than the industry standard. This will pave the way for future cross-brand collaborations to create better products for the consumer and the planet.

Target continues to invest in its own private label brands, announcing that they will be committing $4 billion to enhance supply chain capabilities.
Target's most notable brand, All In Motion, earned $1 billion in revenue in its first year. Target is experiencing great success in these brands, but they are not alone in this movement. Dick's Sporting Goods and Nordstrom are a few other retail giants that are making a jump into private label as well.

Wrangler first introduced their ATG line in 2019, but only with men's styles. 2 years later, they're dropping an apparel line focused on the female consumer. Thousands of people across the world experienced the outdoors in a whole new way during the COVID lockdown. We're now seeing inspiration from the outdoors carry into everyday style looks. Wrangler ATG has a big opportunity in this space if they build meaningful products for the female consumer.

Google, in partnership with Shopify, is helping small businesses get noticed on the internet. As COVID has shifted how consumers shop, people are ditching traditional means of shopping at brick-and-mortar locations for convenient e-commerce experiences. It's more important than ever to allow emerging brands to be noticed alongside the already-established retail giants.
Book & Podcast Recommendations