Here’s the brief on the two new brands being promoted by the e-tailer.
Source: Amazon Quietly Rolls Out Activewear
In the article link above Cooper Smith of L2 delivers the scoop on Amazon finally rolling out their private label sportswear. If you’ve been following along with the discussions here on ARCH you might remember when I wrote this:
adidas, Nike and Under Armour Should Be Worried | The Sportswear Disruption No One Is Discussing
Amazon hosted a New York Fashion Week event a few years back. There wasn’t any hype or events to promote the launch of their own labels. They simply introduced the brands into the platform with very little promotion. It was a subversive attack that allowed for search to do its job. People don’t often look for “Brooks Brothers Sportcoat” they simply type in “Black sportcoat”. Amazon understands the search criteria and in their private labels they created keywords and ensured that their products are as highly ranked as traditional, more prominent brands.
According to L2 the name of the brands introduced are Rebel Canyon and Peak Velocity. The brands are already available on the platform and this is just before the holiday shopping season. Rebel Canyon has items as low as 12.00 dollars.
While L2 has stated that the apparel in Rebel Canyon is men’s there are over 7 pages of apparel for both men’s and women’s.
Amazon’s entrance comes at a precarious time for Under Armour as they are continuing to reel from their recent Q3 performance. More important, if you look at the chart below in Men’s, Under Armour is the largest share of athletic apparel sold on the platform. In my recent analysis I stated that shareholders of UA should worry that the brand looked at Amazon as an asset. This is exactly why I said that the lack of emphasis on “de-emphasizing” Amazon is a problem.
What Amazon understands is that the majority of holiday shopping will be done via search and that apparel is a major item of purchase during the holidays. Both adidas and Under Armour should be paying very close attention to this introduction of sportswear by Amazon. One look at the chart explains why. Specifically in Men’s. Women’s brands should also find reason to worry as the majority of items purchased in women’s sportswear isn’t brand specific.
I’ve said it already and I will repeat it, Amazon will shape sportswear simply because it will drive prices down. Now more than ever brands need to stress and emphasize quality and drive engagement on their platforms to offset Amazon’s quiet, but deadly entrance.
Use the source link to visit L2