Does it have to be Bonds? Re-launching an iconic brandBonds is an iconic Australian clothing brand founded almost a century ago in Sydney in 1915. Its core business is basic underwear and leisurewear for men, women, children and babies. In catering to these markets, the Bonds range includes tracksuits, hoodies, singlets, boxer shorts, briefs, bras, socks and baby basics. Within their segment, Bonds products are positioned as being relaxed, fashionable
and durable. With products sitting within the mid-to-low price range and catering to a comparatively wide range of sizes, Bonds apparel is also positioned as being highly accessible. Bonds has several target markets that are based on age and sex. Although it provides basic underwear for all ages, it chooses to focus its marketing efforts on female teenagers, female young adults, male young adults and mothers of babies. In marketing to teenage girls and young adults, Bonds’ advertising targets women with outgoing, extroverted and fun ideal selves. In marketing to mothers of babies, it targets a segment that is more value-conscious and practical while still trendaware, through the presentation of happy, comfortable babies and children in cute attire. In marketing to men, Bonds targets an athletic, laid-back personality who values comfort as well as style.The two primary brands competing with Bonds for market share within these segments are Jockey and Cotton On Body. Like Bonds, Jockey has wide distribution in the Australian market and is stocked in many of the same department stores.
Priced slightly higher than Bonds, Jockey targets adult men and women with products of higher quality than Bonds. It also has a strategic advantage over Bonds within the adult women category in that it includes slimming ‘shapewear’. At more than 130 years old, while Jockey shares the quality of having a long history, Bonds retains a competitive advantage in that Jockey’s history is international while Bonds’ is Australian. The dominant advantage Bonds has over Jockey, however, is that Jockey is positioned as being less fashionable and fun than Bonds. Due to the global financial crisis, the Australian retail industry as a whole is experiencing a significant downturn, with specialty clothing down by 2.7 per cent and department stores (including discount retailers) down 1.9 per cent. This is reflective of a more price-conscious Australian public particular Bond’s target market characteristic. In difficult economic times, consumers become more price conscious than they would be in times of prosperity and price therefore becomes an essential
criterion for differentiation.
As a result of the retail downturn, and following major company losses the previous year, in 2009 Bonds announced a major company restructure that would involve shifting all manufacturing from Australia to China in order to cut costs. As a brand whose image centred on its Australian identity, this decision resulted in a major backlash from consumers and media that had a significant effect on sales. The aftermath of this, coupled with the continuing retail downturn, continue to have a devastating effect on Bonds, with analysts linking its sales losses directly to consumer anger over the restructure. As a company whose key point of difference is its brand image, these reputational issues need to be considered and addressed in future marketing communications.
Conclusion
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Clearly restate the aim of the report
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