Li Ning Co. Ltd., one of China’s leading sports-apparel makers was founded from a family business by the well-known Olympic gymnastics gold medallist, Li Ning (Meuer and DiVito, 2010). With the reputation of its founder, the extension of its product range, some influential sponsorships and the success of penetrating second- and third- tier cities in the Chinese market, Li Ning has gained the popularity and high brand awareness in China, also a high market share. However, when the international companies began to value and target at the growing Chinese sportswear market, Li Ning gradually faced an intensified competition from international firm like Nike and Adidas in Chinese market, as well as from few local rivals in terms of the price, such as Anta and Peak. Li Ning firm has made some internationalization efforts in recent years like export activities, building its R&D centres abroad and other attempts, but it remains overwhelmingly China focused and all the actions aim to establish a global brand in Chinese consumers’ eyes. Besides, those internationalization attempts did not bring any considerable revenue. The purpose of this paper is to summarize the challenges which Li Ning may face in the process of establishing its global brands and put forward the feasible international brand strategy and the foreign market entry strategy by referring to some theories of international marketing.
The paper proceeds first by discussing some problems associated with Li Ning trying to be a global brand respectively and rational recommendations will be raised during the discussion. Second, the suggestion about the market choice and a foreign market entry strategy will be illustrated in terms of three aspects: the choice criteria for the entry market, the selection of entry mode and some key marketing communication strategies.
1. Examine the problems associated with Li Ning trying to become a global brand. From a marketing perspective, what do you think Li Ning should do to address those challenges?
Facing the fierce competition from international and local rivals, the company reaches an agreement to build its international strategy and its global brand apart from protecting the domestic market. However, Li Ning has to take some potential problems into account in the process of internationalization and seven related considerations will be illustrated in this part.
1.1 The competition with local and international rivals in domestic market
It can be seen that some well-known international brand such as Nike and Adidas possess relatively high market revenue in Chinese sportswear industry, as well as Li Ning and Anta, two top domestic brands (appendix 1). As far as Li Ning concerned, how to block international brands and also successfully retain the local market is one of the key points to become a global brand. Looking at the entire Chinese market, Li Ning positions itself as a competitive rival in providing price-quality bargains product and penetrates different levels of Chinese markets through its extensive network of distributors, sub-distributors and retail stores, especially in second- and third-tier cities where about 76% of Li Ning’s stores are located (Meuer and DiVito, 2010). However, temporarily leading position may be weakened when global brands gradually shift their focus to less developed regions in China where incomes are rising and consumers’ brand loyalties and shopping preferences have not been established (Burkitt, 2010).
With regard to global sportswear marketers, Nike and Adidas have both aimed at China as their second largest market in the world and put a lot of efforts in first-tier cities of China, like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. They set up their own retail channels like flagship stores or brand centres respectively in Beijing to create strong brand and retail experience (Meuer and DiVito, 2010). With higher brand positioning and name recognition, international brands are more effective in capturing market share in major cities where Li Ning has not paid more attentions. In order to become a global brand, Li Ning realizes that more emphasis should be put on the market of top- tier cities, but the reality is that Li Ning may have to use lower prices to distinguish its brand in this stiff competition with international firms (Burkitt, 2010). Thus, Li Ning needs to rethink its brand positioning both in local and international markets rather than only rely on price-quality bargains and utilize marketing communications to boost its brand awareness which will be discussed in the later paragraph.
1.2 Country of origin (COO) effects and the brand image
In the eyes of most Chinese consumers, Li Ning’s brand identity is always associated with its founder, a national sport hero, so it is easier for Chinese consumers to understand and recognize Li Ning’s logo design, ‘flying red flag and initials of its founder’. Taking consumer ethnocentrism into consideration, domestic consumers may have more favourable attitudes to this brand because of the company’s history and culture. ‘Consumer ethnocentrism’ which was introduced by Shimp and Sharma (1987), refers to the consumer prefers domestic goods due to strong nationalistic beliefs and feelings. As the chief executive of Li Ning Co. said, ‘we want people to look at our brand and feel proud that they are part of something- proud of China’s growth’ (Burkitt, 2010). In addition, with the potential growth and importance of younger segments, Li ning has moved its sight towards them However, using consumer ethnocentrism to affect the purchase decision of young urban Chinese may not work, because Javalgi and White (2002, p. 568) summarized that ‘younger, better-educated and high-income consumers seem to be less ethnocentrism to foreign goods and services’, as well as people who are more open to foreign cultures. Besides, country of origin (COO) also has a negative impact on product and brand evaluation among young Chinese consumers. Many Chinese young consumers, especially teenagers, are keen on the American culture and other western cultures, such as freedom, risky spirit and personality, so they are more likely to choose a global brand which originated from western countries.
While in the eyes of international consumers, it is hard for them to make any resonance with Li Ning without related cultural background, and they may perceive its logo as being similar or a copy of Nike swoosh. Similarly, think of the effect of COO, international consumers will use COO cues when they meet the unfamiliar brand and the bias against products generally from developing countries, so some country-image stereotypes, such as low price or low quality may hurt Li Ning’s brand image. Thus, in order to weaken the negative COO perception, Li Ning should alter the consumer attitude towards the product and brand through marketing communication and give its brand a unique identity. Thinking of Nike and Adidas, they both have their unique global identities which are created and preserved by variety communications such as advertising, celebrity endorsement and marketing campaigns. Therefore, there is still a big gap between Li Ning and global brands in terms of brand awareness and brand image. In order to attract the younger generation worldwide, Li Ning need to find out and build its unique brand image through redesign a more differentiated brand logo and slogan, strengthen the product range and design, and also create more targeted marketing campaigns.
1.3 The product portfolio and R&DSportswear can be divided into the following categories: professional sportswear, casual sportswear and fashion sportswear (Euromonitor International, 2007) and there are some overlaps among these groups. Based on the statistic from Euromonitor International (appendix2), it is shown that fashion sportswear, which is the hybrid of casual sportswear and fashion wear, is growing more rapidly than other sportswear segments in China market, so the company which can rapidly discover this potential demand and launch the new products will differentiate itself from rivals. Nike and Adidas have experienced substantial growth after they introduced fashion sportswear series, and yet, in this segment Li Ning has left behind other global brands’ steps. Besides, the global sneaker company has also developed new technologies which would be introduced into high end product to differentiate its brand because international consumers believe that global brands usually develop new products and technologies faster than rivals (Holt et al., 2004), such as the Nike Air max 360 (features a foamless mid-sole technology), the Adidas 1 (includes a microprocessor technology)(http://www.scribd.com/doc/39006282/Athletic-Footwear-Industry-Analysis accessed 22 April 2011). In short, there is still a long way to go for Li Ning to catch up with those global brands in new product development and the range of product line, especially in new technologies and high end products.
Now Li Ning, which established two R&D centres abroad, has recognized product research and development as one of important steps to its internationalization strategy. Making full use of that can help Li Ning develop high-end products which can stimulate its starting point for brand positioning, better satisfy customers’ needs for fashion or performance and also upgrade the brand image. It is also recommended that Li Ning could also try to get access to some professional and well-known designers who have rich experience of customers’ preferences and global fashion trends to design its product.
1.4 Price decision
On the basis of pricing strategy prototypes (Solberg et al., 2006), Li Ning falls into the global price follower position. Its price decision can be summarized as follows: first, under the same quality but it is much cheaper than international competitors, meanwhile it provides higher quality, but more expensive than local rivals. Second, Li Ning has to lower down the price in domestic market when larger and more experienced global brands have put pressure on it. Third, Li Ning has limited preparedness for its international attempts and set the price slightly cheaper than Nike and Adidas on its direct access to the foreign market (Meuer and DiVito, 2010). Holt et al. (2004) mentioned that international people think it is rationale for global brand to charge premium price if offering more quality and guarantees than others, three opportunity for Li Ning to reduce the pressure from globally branded counterparts and set a better price to increase its profitability are to identify the niche market or a new segment or to develop a new technology which is difficult for its rivals to imitate (Solberg et al., 2006).
1.5 International marketing
As the increasing level of income and the improving quality of life, the purchase decision among Chinese people less depend on price and functionality, but more on brand image, product design and style (Euromonitor International, 2007). Similarly, the main competition for market share among global brand lies in non-price competitions and the brand loyalty is quite high in this industry, In retrospect to the success of two dominators brands in the sporting goods industry, Nike and Adidas, they have some things in common for their international marketing communication strategy: using extensive marketing campaigns, creative advertising and celebrity endorsements to establish a differentiated brand image (http://www.scribd.com/doc/39006282/Athletic-Footwear-Industry-Analysis accessed 22 April 2011). In addition, due to their leading roles in the global market, they have a financial advantage on marketing and advertising expenditures, also on access to endorsement. Even though Li Ning’s cannot compete with them for these marketing resources, it has also sponsored different international sport events and teams, as well as some world well-known sports stars (Meuer and DiVito, 2010). However, those efforts aimed to increase its brand awareness among Chinese consumers rather than international consumers. Facing those difficulties of establishing popularity with brand-conscious consumers, two feasible strategies may help Li Ning create more targeted advertising and marketing campaigns. First, with the growing fashion trend in sportswear, the celebrity in other areas, such as music or film could also produce the similar influence as sports celebrity on younger targets, so using music celebrity endorsement may rejuvenate the brand image and enlarge the potential buying groups which not only includes the sports fans. Second, Li Ning can sponsor some competition like basketball, soccer or running at region level to fit targets’ particular needs. After all, the quality and suitability to the wearer are more convincing than other factors.
1.6 Distribution agreements
The management of existing domestic channel distributors and the access to distribution opportunities in global markets constitute another barrier for Li Ning’s internationalization attempts. In terms of the domestic market, Li Ning has took the leading role of establishing a national franchised distribution system in 1993 (http://brand.icxo.com/htmlnews/2008/08/13/1304126_0.htm accessed 26 April 2011) and this entry mode helps its open average 840 stores per year mainly focus on second- and third- tier cities from 2004 to 2008 (Meuer and DiVito, 2010). Second, Li Ning also has its wholly ownership retail stores- 11 flagship stores located in major first- tier cities, but they are only accounts for 7.8% of Li Ning’ total revenues, others generated from sales to franchised distributors ibid. Third, with the rise of e-commerce, Li Ning cooperated with two big online trade platforms, ‘taobao and tanyou’ to launch the online sportswear store in 2008 (http://brand.icxo.com/htmlnews/2008/08/13/1304126_0.htm accessed 26 April 2011). This marketing alliance gathers each advantage, and also let Li Ning gain the knowledge about e-channel which has laid a good foundation for setting up its official online store in 2010 and optimizing the new official website ibid. However, the network channel seems be lack of the interaction between customers and products, so the online shop could be better used to disseminate and strengthen its brand image rather than generate revenue.
With regard to the global market, the big brand company prefer to select the local distributors with experienced management teams, nationwide distribution abilities and sufficient resources to help them expand its global market rapidly (Frost & Sullivan, 2008). Besides, the prominence of a brand among global customers also has an important impact on retailers, so retail stores would be more likely to leave shelf space for the brand which has established a history of good sales (tttp://www.scribd.com/doc/39006282/Athletic-Footwear-Industry-Analysis accessed 22 April 2011). Therefore, the small scale of Li Ning means it has no position to compete with Nike and Adidas in local distributors when entering a new market. Li Ning has to work harder on overcoming the relationships with foreign retailers who may narrow its entry to the foreign market and having its goods seen comparing to its international rivals. Apart from that, franchising and running its own name stores could be considered, both of them can boost company brand presence and are high control of assets, but meanwhile the former one involves complex operation procedure and long time to select and the later relates a high risk and high investment.
1.7 Culture dimensions
Hofstede (1994) defined that the category of people which shares the different cultures can be a nation, region …, gender culture or age group. Foremost, it is important for Li Ning to assess the cultural differences among regions of China, first-tier cities versus other less developed regions. Consumes in different regions of China have their own distinct characteristics and shopping preferences. Second, ‘power distance’, one of Hofstede’s (1994) national culture differences dimensions, refers to the level of inequality between followers and leaders, should be considered among Chinese young urban consumers who are more fashion demands on sportswear and more brand-consciousness (Frost & Sullivan, 2008). In order to display their identity and personal value among their reference groups, they are more likely to spend on global brand. Even one may feel ‘lose face’ if he or she wears with a local brand compared to others who wear the global brand. Thus, if Li Ning not redefines its brand image or just simply pretending to be western, it is unable to compete with those high-ended international brands among Chinese young urban consumers in first-tier cities of China.
Additionally, organisation culture management is another factor should not be neglected on Li Ning’s way to be a global brand. The brand culture is derived from the company culture, so the primary task for a strong global brand is to build its unique company culture and transfer the company into a modern management enterprise. Originally, Li Ning grew from a family business which later becomes a big obstacle to the development of the brand. The incoherence between enterprise management mode and its business development urge Li Ning reform the enterprise personnel and recruit professional talents in production, research, marketing and other areas (http://pp.hw01.com/a/1003/10/1210467_2.htm accessed 24 April 2011). Soon afterwards the specialization and standardization of the management help the company experience a rapid growth in business.
2. Considering the current stage of the internationalization of the company, for a market of your choice, develop a foreign market entry strategy.
Li Ning makes many efforts step by step and has gained a little experience in exploring the foreign market and during the period of 2008 Beijing Olympic Game, Li Ning has become a brand widely recognized in the west due to the fact that its founder lighted the Olympic flame wearing Li Ning’s shoes magically (English website). Besides, at the end of June, 2011, Li Ning launched its new logo and English slogan to refresh its global brand image. All those efforts make clear that Li Ning has fully prepared to expand to the foreign market and it is worth learning that all possible entry strategies must share one element which the essential for the success of internationalization, that is, commitment (Yip et al., 2000). Specifically, many aspects of the firm should be committed to the entry market: organization structure, human recourses, marketing mix strategies and market research ibid. The rest of this essay will respectively focus on the choice of which country to enter and the related entry mode and key marketing mix activities.
2.1 The choice criteria for the market chosen
Based on Whitelock’s (2002) summary of international market entry method, a comprehensive market entry decision cannot disassociate different approaches from one to another, so the choice criteria for the US market relies on the combination of experience-related, resource-related and competition-related considerations (Madhok, 1996).
Experience-related considerations drawn from the Uppsala model will be assessed firstly. This model put an emphasis on a firm’s previous experience and the capabilities acquired from that (Madhok, 1996), also considers the concept of ‘psychic distance’ which refers to firms are suggested to entering the market which is psychically close and they have certain knowledge basis to reduce the uncertainties and risks in the process of internationalization (Whitelock, 2002). According to Hofstede’s (1994) summary of five dimensions of national culture differences, China and the Unite State have a big difference in cultural background, and the extended psychic distance seems more problematic for Li Ning in terms of understanding the American culture and being lack of local customers’ preferences and behaviours. However, if Li Ning enters into some cultural similar market, like some Asian countries, lower brand awareness and risks still exist. Besides, the negative effect of a Chinese brand also set a barrier to enter in those psychically close markets. Instead, if Li Ning could have a good performance in the US market, then its status of an international brand will not be questioned; at the same time, some previous efforts made in the US market, such as indirect export activities, the establishment of R&D centre and a small retail store, can also bring a lot of feedback and information about the US sportswear industry and the local customers.
Second, resources-related considerations mainly focus on the characteristic of the environment and interactive networks in it. From the tables in appendix 3, it is shown that US is the largest globally sportswear market and holds in the top position in the total sportswear expenditure per capita in 2008 (approximately $232.8) which was far more than that in China (approximately $7.4). Moreover, the sportswear expenditure in 2008 represented 0.49% of the US GDP per capita (Chu, 2010). On the other hand, the US sportswear industry seemed to be affected by the global financial crisis and increased by only 0.5% in 2010, but this industry may experience a promising rise after the economic recovery (Frost & Sullivan, 2010). As far as the relationship with potential consumers is concerned, the prosperity of a good interaction lies in effective marketing strategies including celebrity endorsement, creative advertising and technological expertise in product design ibid. Similarly, those style-conscious and image-conscious consumers respond will them with more brand-consciousness and stronger brand loyalty.
In terms of competition-related considerations, two elements should be addressed: the intensity of competition in the entry market and Li Ning’s strategic brand positioning. Undeniably, the sportswear industry of US market is a relatively mature industry which is dominated by a few large firms, such as Nike and Adidas who have already gained their strong brand image; Nike’s products are considered to be high quality and stylish, while superior performance and professional are associated with Adidas (copy). Additionally, there are some relatively high entries barriers set by them, such as higher brand awareness, unique brand image, and established agreements with big named athletes, celebrities and retailers. They even launch the product for every sector of the market in terms of price and intended purpose (for performance, lifestyle or fashion) ibid. However, some smaller firms which specialize in particular purpose of shoes can also successfully capture particular segment in the US market, such as K-Swiss in tennis, Vans in skate and lifestyle shoe ibid.
In summary, there are three reasons to support Li Ning enter into the US market: First, previous efforts made and the network built in that market. Second, the big US sportswear market size and the potential market opportunity seem very attractive for Li Ning’s foreign expansion. Third, the success cases of sportswear firms who target at the niche market or design for a particular activity in such a competitive environment also contribute to Li Ning’s entry strategy.
2.2 The analysis of market entry strategy
After deciding which market to enter, the firm should concentrate on how to go there, that is the selection of entry mode. Yip et al. (2000, p.15) stated that various entry modes-export strategies, licensing, franchising, joint ventures and others “differ in the degree of control the firm exerts on foreign operations.” Several recommendations on that will be given then.
First, Li Ning has adopted a few entry modes to test the US market previously, including indirectly exporting its products to the American market at the beginning of the 1990s, building a small R&D centres in Portland in 2008 and more recently establishing its first US retail stores in Portland (case) and the purpose of doing that is to acquire some local resources and experience to better understanding the US market. Because of the fierce competition in the US sportswear industry, great control on channels, high brand presence and local expertise should be Li Ning’s priority to select the entry mode, so the suitable entry strategy could be the combination of direct export through both company owned overseas facilities and some local well-known retailers, such as Footlocker, Finish Line, and franchising. Meanwhile, those entry modes involve relatively moderate control and investment in marketing channel activities by the parent firm (Goodnow and Hansz, 1972), as well as certain risks. Besides, the United States market which shows a greater equality among society level and has a more stable cultural environment could be an advantage to pursue an entry strategy involving greater control and investment in marketing channel activity.
Second, the image and positioning of distributors or partners is a very important criterion. Based on Arnold’s (2000) seven rules of international distribution, it is not necessary to look for the best distributor who has already served major customers with similar product line. The choice of partners should regard the distributor with an image or strategy which is in line with the brand image Li Ning wants to maintain. For example, if Li Ning decides to position itself as mid- to high-end sportswear marketer in the US market, it should not choose any discounted retailer or other partners who may lower Li Ning’s brand image and may cooperate with some retailers who specialize in stocking goods with high price point and the newest trends.
Third, the e-commerce of the United State is well developed, but online stores are only used by few shoes retailers and sportswear makers, so it is too early to evaluate its effects. However, making full use of the e-commerce can make up Li Ning’s limited access to local distributors and sports celebrities, and this business model is cost-saving and low risky.
However, choosing the right entry mode is only the necessary condition due to the possibility of country-specific problems and contingency. In order to enhance the possibility of successfully entering a new market, some cultural dimensions between China and Unite State cannot be neglected. First, according to Hofstede’s (1994) summary of dimensions of national culture differences, China (20) and Unite State (91) lie in the two extreme sides of the individualism dimension which indicate China is a society with collectivist culture and strong relationships among members, families and groups, while the population of the United State are more individualistic and self-reliant attitudes and relatively loose bonds with others ibid. This difference may result in consumers’ various responds to promotion strategies. Word of mouth and reference groups seem more effective among Chinese consumers. Second, similarly, the comparison in power distance dimension also displays a big gap. There is a high level of inequality of power and wealth within the Chinese society that means consumers more prefer to choose the brand which is desired by many people or can represent their social status and high standard of living; however the United States shows a greater equality among society level and has a more stable cultural environment. Thus, an in-depth research about the real reason for US consumers’ brand loyalty needs to be conducted, whether the unique brand image, celebrity effects or the product design.
2.3 Key marketing mix activities for initial entry to the US market
The related products and marketing mix activities should meet the common needs of local customers, so before achieving the US market, the firm should identify the US sportswear market segment and decide its product and brand positioning. Li Ning does not have clear targeted segmentation in China and the brand positioning is also very vague, but compared with other rivals in domestic market, Li Ning’ brand tends to focus on mass to mid-end markets both in sports footwear and apparel and the price also set in the middle level (Chu, 2010). Next, some specific suggestions will be given in the following aspects: product portfolio, brand positioning, price decision and the marketing communication strategy.
First, sports products can be designed for various sports areas. Li Ning positions itself as the global brand for running and badminton because of the fact that Adidas covered football area and Nike firmly held the basketball area worldwide (case). Linked to the condition in the US market, running footwear has been experiencing the biggest growth and its sales accounts for 25% of total athletic shoe sales (copy). Thus, the running product is suggested to be the focused product category for Li Ning. Then according to the consumer-specific usage with the running product, consumers can be divided into three segments: performance-orientated, causal-orientated and fashion-orientated customers; and this division can also be used in the domestic market. Another point cannot be ignored is the unity of product size system with the target region must be implemented because normally foreign people have larger-size feet. Li Ning has experienced the consequence of this defect by closing its Maastricht store in Netherlands (Meuer and DiVito, 2010). Actually, Li Ning has learned from the former lesson and remodelled the size of its product with the same method which Nike and Adidas have used.
Regarding the brand positioning, Li Ning needs a strategic brand positioning to break out the US market. Li Ning has currently developed a big multi-brand family in domestic market including the well-known Li Ning brand, the French top outdoor brand- AIGLE, the international leading brand in badminton and pingpang- Hongshuangxi and a hypermarket brand advocated fast fashion- ZDO. In order to avoid foreign consumers linking the low price to the brand and lower the brand image, it is better to only establish and launch the high-end brand in the US market at first.
Thinking of the price decision of the US market, Nike, such a big global brand, also launches low price product to reach all areas of the market (copy), so it is risky to compete with them in the US market by adopting a low price strategy. To be a global price follower is more appropriate for Li Ning to first enter the US market, so Li Ning need to obtain some formal marketing research about market intensity information and the average retail price of the US market from local agencies and rivals’ company reports, then picks up the leading competitor based on the product positioning and set the price which closely follows its rival’s price of similar product. Furthermore, the price decision should always be in line with the brand positioning. As Nagle and Holden (1995) claimed, price can be used as a competitive tool only when the company seeks more advantages by offering a less expensive product but with same values than its competitors. Thus, overall middle to high price brackets should be applied in the US market due to the high brand positioning of Li Ning’s product.
Finally, referring to the marketing communication strategy, creative advertising, celebrity endorsement and sponsoring events all play an important role in helping the company build a good brand image and gain the popularity in the US market. On one hand, the design of local advertising is very important. Li Ning can cooperate with some local professional agencies specialize in branding and advertising which may maximize their local resources, knowledge and experience to better deliver the brand message. On the other hand, although the excellent performance on 2008 Beijing Olympic Games has vigorously promoting Li Ning’s brand to the whole world, owing to those global brand’s unbeatable economies of scale and scope as well as financial advantages in their home market, Li Ning has to make use of some specific local collaboration or sponsorship to promote its products, such as the athletics competition at regional or national level, the NBA basketball competition, some local running community.
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