Nike was tops in terms of perceived quality of manufacturing and quality but the tied competitor Adidas in terms of overall customer service scores. Essentially, Nike was deemed to be the better shoe but the higher price point of Nike shoes allowed Adidas to be perceived as the better overall value in terms of "bang for the buck" (Siemers, 2011)
Moreover, if one looks at the Latin American example, where child laborers are oftentimes organized with union representation, child labor can be one component of a society that is transitioning out of third-world status. For example, "In countries like Bolivia, more than 100,000 children and teenagers have organized unions to defend their right to work, demanding government protection and improved job conditions" (Friedman-Rudovsky, 2011)
The third practice is related to the first two practices and is more comprehensive; "Nike was an early target for the very reason it's been so successful. Its business model was based on outsourcing its manufacturing, using the money it saved on aggressive marketing campaigns" (Nisen, 2013)
In fact, what Ballinger believed about Nike's business model was that if fostered abuse of workers. "Ballinger believed that Nike's policy of competing on the basis of cost fostered and even encouraged contractors to mistreat their workers in pursuit of unrealistic production quotas" (Spar, 2002)
Moreover, Nike chose to use subcontracting factories to manufacture its produces. In 1998, Nike had a 47% market share of the domestic footwear industry, with almost all of its manufacturing done in Asia (Van Dusen, 1998)
Roland Christensen report, "Running was never the lifeblood of running shoe sales. Comfort was" (Rikert, Christensen 1990:3)
This is so because the shoes and the balls are hand made as compared to other sports wears and accessories that are machine made. The countries where employees suffer these violations from Nike appointed contractors are majorly India, Taiwan and Pakistan (TED Case Studies, 2014)
Ethics audits are useful because they render, in objective and quantifiable terms, how ethical conduct is measured by a company and hold the company to specific benchmarks. It is often said that in the corporate world "what gets measured, matters" and that is also true of "corporate responsibility: when information and metrics are combined with disclosure and transparency, corporate posturing on issues that affect society can be quickly replaced with fact-based analysis and discussion" (Connor 2011)
Its philosophy of being the best one can be seemed to cohere with a particular ethical worldview that stressed personal empowerment. Thus, it was a great shock to the world when it was revealed that Nike products were manufactured under ethically questionable circumstances (Ferrell, Fraedrich, & Ferrell 2011: 217)
An ethical audit would have demonstrated the costs to the company of noncompliance. A similar problem was suffered by the toy manufacturer Mattel, when it was discovered that, because of its desire to price its toys as cheaply as possible, it had selected a Chinese subcontractor that used lead paint that was hazardous to children (Wisner & Gilbert 2010)
Nike has made its presence in many countries as mentioned above and some of the most prominent countries in the Nike list of domination are China (where it is said Nike opens 1.5 shops each day on average) (Matthew Forney at.al., 2004), India with its new and richer brand of consumers (Marketing Teacher Ltd
The company also has head gears for offer under their Sports Specialties brand, they also manufacture and distribute skate blades, ice skates, in-roller skates, hockey sticks, protective gear as well as hockey accessories and jerseys. In general, Nike invests in products that deal with running, basketball, cross-training, outdoor activities, tennis, golf, soccer, baseball, football, bicycling, volleyball, wrestling, cheerleading, aquatic activities and other recreational activities (Marketing Mixx, 2011)
al., 2004), India with its new and richer brand of consumers (Marketing Teacher Ltd., 2000), Dubai where Nike sells sportswear to big teams and the local squads as well as people opening multi-million stores just for Nike brand (The National, 2011) and the U
Bill saw the endless possibilities that existed within people in terms of sports potential and it was with this that they set the tone for the company in 1972. This has remained the inspiration that runs the company to date and keeps the employees of the company from one generation to the other motivated to uphold the motto of the company (Nike, 2011)
And has worked very well for them just as it is for Nike. The brand Nike commands high premiums in the market and consequently, their pricing strategy utilizes the vertical integration in the pricing, however, they own participating stores in every channel levels and take part in several channel levels of operation (Steven Van Dusen, 1998)
, 2004), India with its new and richer brand of consumers (Marketing Teacher Ltd., 2000), Dubai where Nike sells sportswear to big teams and the local squads as well as people opening multi-million stores just for Nike brand (The National, 2011) and the U
Women, being demanding and highly fashion-conscious, offered up the potential for the company to widen their market share. Since the 1970s, women were in the workplace in even higher numbers than before increasing their buying power in the economy at large (Goldman & Papson, 1998)
If you've been running in traditional shoes for a long time, a romp in the Frees will remind you that you have toes." (Murphy, p
Accordingly, "Running sneakers cater to a wider range of foot types and are built to last longer,' says Megan Leahy, a doctor of podiatric medicine at the Illinois Bone & Joint Institute, in Chicago." (Smith, p
She is regarded to have engendered the stars, sun and the moon, as well as her own gods and goddesses, including her son Huitzilopochtli and her daughter Coyolxauhqui. Similar to the legend of Nike, Coatlicue was also engaged in conflict with her immediate family, who were supposed to be "outraged" by the fact that "she was magically impregnated by a ball of feathers" (Robles & del Castillo)