Under Armour (Case 26) Essays

Under Armour (Case 26) Essays Under Armour (Case 26) Essay Under Armour (Case 26) Essay Student 9/23/13 Under Armour (Case 26) Technological Hot and sweaty t-shirts are a thing of the past. New and innovative material for making clothing has changed the game for sports apparel. Now, high-tech fibers are woven into shorts, shirts, Jackets and more that can adapt to and regulate the bodys temperature. This advancement is huge for athletes of all kinds, allowing increased performance and endurance. New water-resistant material and fibers that prevent ultraviolet and infrared rays are among the long list of technological advancements taking place in the sports apparel industry. Demographics Performance sports apparel has not always been so widespread. It started off as being primarily utilized by major sports teams, but over the recent years the market has extended to accommodate nearly all sporting activities. Not only are all of the major sports teams using some sort of performance apparel but also active lifestyle consumers and youths. Research has shown that nearly 80% of activewear is worn for non-sports activities. Another study determined that more than 85% of athletic footwear is being used for a different sport other than what they were made for. Only sports teams and sporting activities used sporting apparel until recently. Now sporting apparel extends to men, women and children of all shapes, sizes and walks of life. Economics The sports apparel industry has grown exponentially in the past few years mainly due to heavy marketing and advertising, technological advancements and a vast catalog of new items in new product categories. The ever-prolific sporting world has seen consist Political/Legal Large companies in this industry must stay up to date with the most modern clothing ine and accessories in order to be competitive. With new products and materials come legalities to maintain dominance over specific innovations. Outsourcing production and manufacturing also plays a huge role in legal policys and political conflicts. Sociocultural and Global Climate has a big effect on when, where and how often you can exercise or train. With innovative clothing lines that can repel water, prevent harmful rays from the sun and moderate body temperature, come new possibilities to train anywhere, anytime and for longer periods of time. And sports apparel is available to all who seek increased pertormance. Porters Five Forces Model†Apparel Supplier Power (High) Businesses in the performance apparel industry establish credibility with their suppliers. The suppliers use new and technologically advanced materials and create highly differentiated products; thus, giving them more power over their buyers. Barriers to Entry (High) A few very large sports apparel companies, i. e. Under Armour, Nike, Adidas, Columbia, that have been well established for many years dominate the market. Over he years, the larger companies have been able to establish themselves through brand recognition, advertising and various distribution channels. Thus, a company trying to start off in this industry would struggle initially but could profit in the long run due to fewer competitors. Competitive Rivalry (Moderate) The large companies are constantly inventing or reinventing their product lines depending on the consumer market and modern design. Due to a large degree of differentiation in performance and quality, there is less rivalry among performance apparel businesses. Threat of Substitutes (Moderate) There are a few substitutes when it comes to performance apparel. Only a few have been at the cutting edge of technological advancement and quality enhancement by which they have established themselves as being among the top leaders for quality and performance. However, there is still a major threat of substitution for cheaper alternatives if the economy were to weaken. Buyer Power (High) Customer buying power for apparel is strong due in part to the availability to switch to other products at little, if any, cost, but mostly due to the percent of revenue that he large companies sell from their individual product segments. If a company has a large percentage in a single product category, they are more vulnerable than a company that has a well-diversified combination of products. Competitive Analysis Under Armour has several large competitors; the largest being Nike, Adidas and Columbia Sportswear. These companies are similar in that they all stress product innovation, advertising and sponsorships. Adidas is broadly focused in all sporting categories but fails to stand out. Columbia is known almost solely by its winter gear, imiting its growth potential and creating strong seasonality trends. Nike strives to be the best in every segment while Under Armours goal is to be a leader in each process of its product development, concentrating on quality over quantity. An advantage for Under Armour is that it is focused more on improving its brand and unique products, licensing o ther items and accessories manufacturers. Internal Analysis through independent Under Armour is continually improving their apparel line and broadening there market. The company has been growing at a substantial rate, 30. annually over a 5-year period, largely due to the ambition of Kevin Plank, founder, and also to heavy marketing and promotions. Plank attributes the success of the company to brand recognition and the ability to market to all consumers. Under Armour makes head- to-toe apparel for anyone during any season. It has pushed its image into as many stores as it can, reaching college universities and numerous distribution channels. Suggestions to the Firm Over 80% of Under Armours revenue comes from the sale of its apparel line. While it eans that it has been very successful in this segment, there needs to be more diversity to increase competitiveness and decrease supplier power. While creating a footwear line will aid in Under Armours aim to create a full apparel product line and increase the pressure on competitors, many challenges will need to be overcome in order to penetrate this product market. Under Armour will need to reinvent and reengineer its footwear line. Alternative Strategies Expanding the product line to diversify its product portfolio may dilute Under Armours image and label thus causing consumers to deviate from premium-priced products. Alternatively, Under Armour could focus more primarily on the development of its footwear product and increase those sales. This option will be very costly and challenging due to the huge market players that already have dominance in footwear, i. e. Nike and Adidas. I suggest Under Armour pursue other product opportunities as well as the footwear to put more pressure on its competitors and to keep the focus on quality and performance rather than quantity.

CS Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

CS - Coursework Example Chapter 1 of Neubauer and Fradella’s book examines the controversy in courts and crime that is brought about by change. The controversy in courts and crime is also atrributable to the extensive attention to law by the media. This extensive media attention on courts and crime has its merits and shortcomings. Neubauer and Fradella argue that, media coverage of fictitous and real trials offers a suggestions that the oucome of decisions in courts is influenced by people’s actions, law as it is-by the books-, and law in controversy (5). This clearly helps illustrate how dynamic courts and the criminal justice system is dynamic. This book offers a substantial argument that, the U.S criminal justice system is heavily dependent on the courts, which, arguably play a pivotal role. Court decisions, actions, and process affect or have important consequences on the other components-the police and corrections personnel-of the criminal justice system (8). Likewise, the actions and operations of the corrections department and law enforcement have important consequences on the judiciary. Despite this obvious i nterdependence of these compononents of the criminal justice system, Neubauer and Fradella, concede and argue that, conflicts and tensions exist. Reading Chapter 1 of America’s Courts and the Criminal Justice System, gives one a sense of how or what it is like to be an actor of the court-a prosecutor, juror, judge or a defense attorney. This makes it easy for a lay man to understand the process and role in brininging a case throught the court system. The approach by the authors of trying to illustrate fictious or dramatical court proceedings, as well as real court proceedings makes it easy for peopele to understand the criminal justice system from a common or popular perspective. Stepping into Chapter 2 of America’s Courts and the Criminal Justice System book helps the readers understand the key elements that define

Defend or criticize the claim, There is no significant moral Essay

Defend or criticize the claim, There is no significant moral difference between killing and letting die - Essay Example On the other hand, many argue that there is no significant moral difference between these two actions that bring about death. Choosing not to act and ignore is an action itself, and that puts the responsibility of the end result on the person. Therefore, there is no moral difference between killing and letting die, but in some cases active euthanasia is preferred. Considering the limited resources available, the letting die part can be justified. There will always be people who will die naturally or unnaturally. Nobody can escape from death, and so everybody would have to go through it someday. Those who die because of some disease there is a relevant and a genuine explanation for that. Some people will embrace death because the available sources are not enough to save them. Spending huge amount of time to save those whose injuries and diseases are so fatal that it is certain that they will die would be useless. Considering this bitter reality consuming resources for those who have no hope of surviving would be a waste. It would be better to divert these resources to someone who has a hope of surviving. The term passive euthanasia describes this approach of allocating resources to those who have a better chance of living. There is some difference between killing and letting to die. Killing is an action that involves activating the process of death and the events that lead to death. However, letting someone die is different as it involves refraining from any further actions to save the person who is already counting his last breaths leading to his death. So in this manner a person is not killed by human hands but dies of a natural phenomenon. Apparently, there doesn’t seem to be a difference between passive and active euthanasia. Deciding to withdraw from treating the patient is almost equal to injecting the patient with a

Teachers Day Essay Example for Free

Teachers Day Essay On the 22nd of October 2012, PSC held its annual Teacher’s Day. The Supreme Student Council was the reason behind this program, and in fact, they did a job well done. As the MC of the program, it was a blast to see everyone smiling and it was grateful to know that everyone had fun, especially the teachers. The quadrangle was literally crowded with students who wanted to greet and spend the day with their beloved teachers. The program started off with a prayer and a speech from the Supreme Student Council’s president, and was topped off with a dance number from the Grade 6. The teachers were called one by one after, and were given gifts from the SSC and of course, their students. They were also given a chance to take photos with their students. Some students even presented a song number for the teachers, while the others preferred to give a simple gift. First up was the teachers from the pre-school department, we had a hard time with the children since we had to take them up to the stage, but we eventually made it through. Next was the teachers from the elementary department, the students were so sweet, some would just run up to the stage and hug their teachers. Last but not the least, the teachers from the high school department. The high school students put a lot of effort into their gifts; it just proves how much they love their teachers. The teachers were also given a chance to showcase their talents, whether it was at singing or at dancing. It was nice to see, just for once, the other side of our teachers. Since it was Teacher’s Day, the teachers were given a break from their stressful job, and just enjoyed the show which was prepared by their students. The program ended with a song number from the Supreme Student Council. Once again, the program was a complete success thanks to the cooperation of the students, and of course the reason why we made this program; the teachers.

Essay --

Before I explain and talk about why a ball goes farther when hit with an aluminum bat, I would like to present and explain some vocabulary concept and words. A collision, transfers momentum or kinetic energy from one object to another object. There are two types of collisions, elastic collision and inelastic collision. An elastic collision is a collision that occurs when two objects bounce apart when they collide; the total kinetic energy in the system is the same before and after the collision. For example, elastic collision occurs when equally massive balls move in the same direction; in this case momentum is transferred from one ball to another ball. And an inelastic collision is a collision that occurs when two objects collide and do not bounce away from each other; the collision changes the total kinetic energy in a closed system. For example, inelastic collision occurs when two cars crash and join themselves into one; the objects stick together after colliding. In inelastic c ollision all that happened is the loss of some kinetic energy, objects don not necessarily need to stick together in an inelastic collision. Whether a collision is an elastic collision or inelastic collision momentum would always be the same before and/or after the collision as long as you have a close system. According to Asif Shakur, Chair of Physics and Engineering at Salisbury State University, explains, â€Å"Aluminum is a hard material. It doesn't have a lot of "give." In other words, aluminum is highly elastic. Therefore, very little of the ball's initial kinetic energy (the energy associated with motion) is used up in permanently deforming the aluminum. Indeed, the aluminum springs back quickly and the ball retains much of its initial energy. In co... ...reased the animosity between the two players† (Russell). The point of all of this is that Piazza’s bat broke; professional players typically go through a lot of bats during a baseball season. In conclusion, there are a various numbers of reasons why a ball go farther when hit with an aluminum bat; such as, aluminum bat can be swung faster, aluminum bats have the trampoline effect, aluminum bats have winder sweet spots, and aluminum bats don’t break. A ball goes farther when hit with aluminum bat because of the fact that the bat is very lightweight and have a large 'sweet spot' in which to hit the ball. In order to have a ball with a high speed, in other words, lots of kinetic energy, the collision has to an elastic collision. Aluminum bats can be swung faster because the barrel of an aluminum bat is empty; the distribution of mass along the length of a metal bat.

The novel Jekyll and Hyde

Written in the 1880's by famous British author Robert Louis Stephenson, the novel Jekyll and Hyde is about one man with dissociative personalities. Jekyll and Hyde, although are portrayed to be two very different characters all together, are in fact the same man, wanting to fulfil certain â€Å"evil† pleasures whilst still being a well respected member of society. However both of these desires cannot be overcome without a magic potion created by Dr Jekyll, used to transform himself into the ghastly looking and somewhat evil being, known in this book as Hyde – his other half. In the late 1800's there were a few ideas and theories arising which could be what inspired Stephenson to write such an odd and interesting book. The significant developments in ideas which could be associated with this story are Charles Darwin's theory of evolution and Sigmund Freud's psychological theories on dissociative personalities, which came around at the time of Stephenson writing this book. These could be linked to how Hyde is from an era where there was no such thing as morality, Hyde can also link to Freud's id (animal instinct), ego (what controls us in order to achieve others approval) and superego (sense of self), in this way Jekylls id takes over. Stephenson could also be proving a point about the class system at that time in the UK as there was a large class division, where as Jekyll has a rich, well off posh lifestyle and Hyde is a character who is â€Å"crude† and appears to be of a lower class, not at all respected in the society in which he lives. The first example of Stephenson portraying Hyde as being evil comes midway though the first chapter where he is first described as â€Å"a little man stumping along. † Already he is portrayed to have an ugly negative appearance, and his physical descriptions are one of the main ways which Stephenson describes Hyde overall. Next he is shown to knock over a small child in the street, and one may assume this was an accident, and it most likely was, however when Hyde shows no affection to the girl he just knocked over, and literally tramples over her, the audience knows he is a bad character. Mr Enfield (a friend of the lawyer; Mr Utterson) after seeing this describes the incident as â€Å"hellish† and Hyde as â€Å"a damned juggernaut†, which relates Hyde to becoming violent as the Indian God of war known as Jaggernafth. Here he is also compared to Satan, which refers him to evil yet again. Another way in which Stephenson portrays Hyde to be evil is through his physical descriptions, however there is a vagueness of his facial descriptions due to the fact other people find him indescribably ugly. In chapter 8 he is said by Poole (Jekylls butler) to â€Å"have a mask upon his face† as such an appearance is too inhuman and unnatural to be that of a normal man. Also in that chapter Hyde is commonly referred to as â€Å"it† rather than â€Å"him† which suggest he has a lack of humanity. He is also called a â€Å"creature† and described as having a dismal screech, as of mere animal terror. This creates a sense of animal imagery, which is one of the ways that Stephenson portrays Hyde as being evil. Hyde's clothes are described to be far too big, and that is because they are the exact same clothes worn by Dr Jekyll. This therefore shows that Jekyll is considerably taller than Hyde, and Stephenson here could be saying that not only does Jekyll overshadow Hyde in a physical sense, but also in the sense that the good in Jekyll is much greater than the evil in Jekyll. Dr Jekyll is a rather interesting character who wants and respects his good reputation, but still craves some of life's somewhat quirky pleasures. Should we question if Jekyll is as morally good as people, such as his close friends think he is, or if he is simply a scientist with urges to fulfil? In chapter ten Jekyll describes his â€Å"duplicity† and he also describes his first feelings of his â€Å"new life† as Hyde. After the â€Å"racking pangs† of the initial transformations, Jekyll describes himself as feeling â€Å"indescribably new† and â€Å"incredibly sweet†. He feels â€Å"younger, lighter happier in body† and he also talks about the â€Å"freedom† of his soul, what is also interesting is how he felt â€Å"wicked† yet delighted. This is the first point in which the audience know Jekyll and Hyde are in fact one, but also that Jekyll enjoys his transformation from good to evil. This idea of Jekyll enjoying his transformation suggests that maybe Jekyll is actually not so morally good. Also Jekyll describing his † dual nature† and saying â€Å"I concealed my pleasures† also go to show maybe Jekyll isn't the most morally good character which goes beside other character opinions on him such as Dr Lanyon's â€Å"He began to go wrong in the mind. He does however get more pleasing and positive descriptions at the start of the story, where Mr Utterson compliments him, saying he is a â€Å"well-made, smooth faced man† who throws â€Å"pleasant dinners† and who's personality was one of sincerity. As well as himself, his house is described as â€Å"comfortable† & â€Å"warmed† by Utterson which could reflect Dr Jekyll as a person. On top of this, the denotations â€Å"F. R . S. are next to his name, which stand for Fellow of the Royal Society, and to be in such a highly respected club portrays Jekyll as a man with a much esteemed reputation and a man of high intellect. These qualities of Jekyll alongside others like his â€Å"nature to industry† and â€Å"high head† that when put against his dark secrets and new good feelings after his first transformation, show that Jekyll is generally good but is only human so he will have his secrets, which as deep as they may be, show that he is not evil, but nobodies perfect? From reading this book, it is clear to see that Stephenson uses several ways to show the true personalities of Jekyll and Hyde. The first way in which Hyde is depicted to be evil is through the descriptions of his actions, in Chapter one he is described to be stumping along and this creates a sense of negativity rather than just walking. The violence and severity of the verbs Stephenson uses also contribute to the portrayal of Hyde's evil nature. He also uses animal imagery such as â€Å"ape-like fury† which compares him to an animal, a creature with no morals, and of a lower class. Then there is Jekyll, who Stephenson portrays to be the complete opposite of Hyde, and does this by talking about his privileged background, good stature and good looks, and also gives him the title Dr rather than Mr, as anyone would think of a Dr as a well respected and highly intellectual member of society.

World War II Boeing B-29 Superfortress