Levi Jeans Marketing Influences - Essay Example

Levi Jeans Marketing Influences Affiliation Introduction Levi Straus is a key global brand for jeans that designs and markets casual wear, jeans and related products for children, women, and men. The brand is prevalent on a spectrum of adaptation versus standardization, setting it in a position close to internationalization polarity. As such, the brand has considerable advantage over its rivals. The market for jeans is global, allowing Levi Straus to realize benefits from global uniformity, economies of scale, and consistency with the mobile consumer. The global tactical and strategic approach plays a major role in allowing Levi jeans to boost the brand’s competitive advantage globally (Anderson & Maduranga, 2012). This paper will discuss Levi jeans for men based on personal influences as opposed to rivals as well as segmentation and targeting initiatives. Discussion Personal Influences of Levi Jeans for Men Levi jeans for men have been around for many years and are still popular today. Various brands have come and disappeared, but the Levi jeans brand is still dominant in the market, showing that the company has considerable market power. The brand satisfies and appeals to the needs of its male clients regardless of the age brackets with diverse style senses. The name of the brand is what makes one to purchase the jeans. Since they have existed in the market for quite some time, the name has acquired the trust of consumers from different parts of the world. When one sees the name of the brand, he thinks of quality and picks the product for that reason. The brand receives this major benefit for addressing the requirements of its clients for many years (Fuller, 2011). Levi jeans are attractive since they provide various types of cuts. One has a broad range of denim cuts to select from, meaning that you can select the cut that you are most comfortable with. Although other jeans provide various cuts, they do not offer a broad selection as in the case of Levi, particularly because it is always updating, offering, and adjusting (Fuller, 2011). Levi has undertaken processes, which other brands struggle with while trying to keep their brands relevant in the marketplace. Levi jeans are popular because one is aware that they offer a broad range of relevant styles. Most jeans brands arise and disappear since they fail to get in touch with the client. As such, they cannot keep producing products that clients do not need. Levi is unlike its rivals in the marketplace. It has managed to provide great jeans and relevant styles that are appealing to clients in different parts of the world (Fairchild, 2014). The prevalence of means jeans does not hurt the popularity of Levi. This is because most jeans brands are sold either in departmental stores or in a single store whereas Levi jeans dominate all markets. Since Levi jeans are found in almost any store, a client that had not worn it before comes across them and starts wearing them. Furthermore, Levi jeans are considered phenomenal. Almost all denim brands are known worldwide, particularly because of the prices that the jeans fetch in the market. The diverse cuts, styles, and washes are availed by Levi’s, making clients to consider Levi jeans as their brand of choice ranging from men of different ages (Barbaro & Creswell, 2012). Segmentation and Competition Influence Over the years, a large number of players have penetrated the jeans market. As such, rivals threaten the brand since barriers to entry in the jeans market are low. The major competitors for Levi jeans include Gap Jeans, VF Corp, Calvin Klein, and Tommy Hilfiger. Entrance of rivals into the jeans market has had various effects on Levi jeans for men. Competition in prices has grown considerably forcing firms to reduce their prices. As such, Levi jeans has realized considerable decline in its profits over the years. Furthermore, the prevalence of substitutes in the market has led to a rise of elasticity of demand. In this case, consumers prefer other brands, leading to lowered competitive advantage on the side of Levi jeans (Anderson & Maduranga, 2012). New market entrants manage to capture a considerable share of the market when they focus on certain segments. For instance, VF Corp emphasizes on low-end jeans consumers while Calvin Klein targets high-end consumers. In the premium jeans sector, for instance, Levi jeans failed to identify the booming market in the early 2000s. As such, it was dominated by brands such as True Religion, Seven for All Mankind, and Rock & Republic. Here, the company was forced to embark on radical cost cutting, closure of dozens of factories, and laying off workers. The premium jeans market has also witnessed considerable growth in the past five years, leading to reduced market size in the case of Levi jeans (Barbaro & Creswell, 2012). Based on the growth of competition and decline of brand image, Levi jeans use edgy advertisements in order to cope with the market trends. For instance, in order to sustain brand loyalty, the brand uses the term “original” many times. Some of the advertisements in television are set 1800s when the brand was introduced in order to stress the historic value of the brand (Fairchild, 2014). The commonly targeted products include Denizen, Dockers, Levi’s, as well as signature brands since they are the most trusted based on their integrity, quality, and originality. Nonetheless, regardless of the growing competition in the jeans market, Levi jeans brand is still dominant. Clients have developed confidence with the brand based on quality, originality, and reliability it portrays. In this case, it is true that if the company keeps up with the developing trends influencing the new generation, the brand will be a dominant force in the industry. It will be in a position to outdo other key rivals in the marketplace, and claim its position as the dominant jeans brand globally (Barbaro & Creswell, 2012). Levi Jeans Targeting Levi jeans targets two major types of markets. These include the upper class and the upper middle class markets. Levi jeans brand mostly targets youngsters aged between 13 and 24 years, although individuals aged more than 30 years can use its products. The strategy that the brand employs emphasizes on developing long-term relationships with clients by designing jeans with appealing shape and color. It also mixes the clothes with fashion accessories to make the brand more attractive to the clients. In this case, in order to remain relevant in the marketplace, Levi jeans should aim at addressing the market trends to sustain a competitive advantage (Anderson & Maduranga, 2012). Conclusion Levi jeans for men have been in the market since the late 1800s. Based on the emphasis that the brand lays on durability, originality, and quality, it has managed to sustain a competitive advantage over the years, regardless of the growing rivalry in the market. In this case, in order for the brand to cope with the intense competition evident in the jeans market today, it should aim at developing fashionable jeans that rhyme with the tastes and preferences of the current generation. References Anderson, W. M., & Maduranga, M. M. (2012). Marketing Audit for Levi Strauss & CO. Dublin: Levi Straus & Co. Barbaro, M., & Creswell, J. (2012). Levi’s Turns to Suing Its Rivals. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/29/business/29jeans.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 Fairchild, C. (2014). Does Levi Strauss still fit America? Retrieved from http://fortune.com/2014/09/18/levi-strauss-chip-bergh/ Fuller, C. (2011). Why Levis Jeans Remain So Popular. Retrieved from http://ezinearticles.com/?Why-Levis-Jeans-Remain-So-Popular&id=1741522 Read More