Metro Shoes & "Skechers" - More Then Products

Introduction

The most common terms encountered in marketing are Product and Brand. There is a dynamic difference in both where the first is created by a company and the latter is built by the customers using it (S, 2015). A Product essentially is a single or a combination of tangible or intangible thing that fulfills a consumer’s needs, whereas a brand doesn’t only fulfill a consumer’s needs but also their wants (Joseph, 2015). A product which has been expired becomes out-dated and has to be reinvented by adding new features only to eventually become obsolete once again.

In the consumers minds the brand is more than a name, its an image which is associated with reliability and credibility that often leads to consumer satisfaction (S, 2015).

At any given time in the market there exists a lot of products which have similar functionality but a Brand is something that helps the consumer’s make a choice (Landor, 2010). One can say that the defining factor between a product and a brand is the emotional attachment a consumer has with the brand as its viable to develop fondness for a brand but not a product.

Get quality help now

Bella Hamilton

Verified writer

Proficient in: Company

5 (234)

“ Very organized ,I enjoyed and Loved every bit of our professional interaction ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

(Joseph, 2015). A product made by a company can be easily bought by a consumer, but a brand is built through the perceptions and experiences of the consumer with all the products or services under the brand name. When a product is launched, it can easily with no time be consequential to the consumers as the product is built to serve a specific function.

However, a brand is inconsequential in the beginning until it has been built upon by the consumers trust, belief and experience (Gunelius, n.d.).

The discussion can be further explained through the following brand examples: Metro Shoes. The company was founded in the year of liberation 1947 with its first ever store opened to the public in Mumbai, India. 71 years later, Metro shoes as a brand has evolved drastically and has become a household name in the country. The brand is almost synonymous with unequalled quality, seasoned craftsmanship and high fashion design in the Indian footwear industry. Metro shoes has now developed a countrywide network of absolute Metro showrooms in more than 197 key locations which span across 96 cities in India. To suite the various needs of different consumers, the company over the years have launched an extensive collection of footwear and in doing so has become a nationwide chain of exclusive family-oriented footwear brand (Metroshoes.net, n.d.)

India is the 2nd largest global footwear producer capturing 13 percent of the world’s footwear production only second to China. The Indian footwear market is expected to reach $ 258.22 billion by the end if the fiscal year 2023 (Sen, 2016). India is on the verge of a retail revolution due to the entry of a large number of major players in the footwear, clothing, beverage, etc industries (Kaushik, 2017). In the fiscal year of 2016-2017, Metro generated a revenue of over $ 130 million through e-market places (Das, 2017). The company has reported in a CAGR growth of 24% in the past 5 years (Sen, 2016). Metro rose as the leader in the fashion retailing segment due to the brand’s commitment to produce cutting edge designs which are durable in nature. Metro is closely associated to family and thus creates footwear for all member age groups of the family (Sen, 2016). The brand presents its customers with ever changing fashion trends to keep them updated by launching near to 40 new designs every month so that its customers don’t miss out (Sen, 2016). This dedication and perseverance has helped Metro to preserve its 70 year legacy.

Skechers

Started as an American dream 26 years ago, Skechers today is a worldwide name. The brand was incorporated in a small beach house in Manhattan Beach, California. Owing to the huge popularity of the grunge era at the time, the first ever shoes manufactured were a pair of logger boots for men (Blog.Skechers.com, 2016). From there, the brand started gaining momentum in the American markets. Skechers quickly extended their collection for children and women as well. The brand’s main strength was its target audience - the millennials. Changing of the decade from 1990s to 2000s saw a drastic change in fashion (Blog.Skechers.com, 2016) To remain at the forefront of the retail market required diversification and following new trends which Skechers heavily complied with. Simultaneously, Skechers also focused on growing its brand name and started tapping foreign markets, choosing Canada as its first step into the global markets. As of December 2017, Skechers shoes are available in over 160 countries and in nearly 3500 designs (Reuters.com, n.d.).

One of the main reasons for Skechers boom in the fashion market is its association with major celebrities such as singer and recording artists Camila Cabello, Demi Lovato and Megan Trainor, football players Tony Romo and Howie Long, model and actress Kelly Brook, renowned musician Ringo Starr amongst many others (Blog.Skechers.com, 2016). The celebrity-driven advertising style escalated the revenues of the company to a point where by the end of 2015, Skechers was the No 2 sneakers brand in the United States after Nike/Jordan (Powell, 2015). Another vital factor contributing to its ever-growing success is affiliation with champion marathoner Meb Keflezighi, thus giving birth to the charity- focused line of BOBS and Skechers Performance Division that made a huge impression in the fitness and running world which became the new frenzy for youngsters around the globe. Today the brand stands with an enormous net worth of $6 billion with a foot in every major market around the world (Powell, 2015)

Conclusion

Metro Shoes and Skechers both are giants of the footwear fashion industry. Although the product is the same, both the brands enjoy immense fame and recognition due to its loyal and ever-growing consumer base. However, Skechers being a globally established brand has more consumers in India than the local brand Metro shoes.