Nike vs Adidas Essay Example for Free

Nike vs Adidas Essay My area of study for this project would be more on comparing the performances for Nike and Adidas for the past 5 years. In this project I would explain the performance such as growth in profits, revenues, market share, the company employers and employees, size of the market share, steps for increasing the social performance, products performance, dividends per share, assets and the company investment. Nike and Adidas and have been the top two leading sport companies in the sport industry over the past few decades. These two companies sell and offer wide range of products for the customers and their products offered is mainly on sports wear for men and women and caters to consumers from different age groups. Their products consist on clothing such as jerseys, shirts, t-shirts, shorts and pants. These companies also provide the customers varieties of footwear such as sports shoes, casual shoes, boots, sandals and stockings. Besides that, fashion accessories are also offered from these three companies such as bags, watch, bracelets, wallets and purse. And lastly they also offer a wide range of sport gears for their customers. Nike and Adidas have also been the top sponsors in the sport industry. Sponsoring their products is important for the companies to get brand recognition, building their brand image and to promote their latest products. Nike and Adidas have been sponsoring equipments, clothing and accessories for athletes and coaches in sport tournaments and events. For instance, these three companies sponsor their products for football, soccer, basketball, baseball and many more. These companies also include slogan and motto for their company. Nike’s motto is â€Å"Just Do It’ which is the signature of the brand which makes their products and the company recognizable to consumers. As for Adidas, their current motto is â€Å"Impossible is Nothing† which serves as an encouragement to athletes for their sports. Origins and History of Nike and Adidas Nike, originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports was founded by University of Oregeon track athlete Philip Knight and his coach Bill Bowerman in January 1964. The company initially operated as a distributor for Japanese shoe maker Onitsuka Tiger, making most sales at track meets out of Knights automobile. The companys profits grew quickly, and in 1966, Blue Ribbon Sports opened its first retail store, located on Pico Boulevard in Santa Monica, California. By 1971, the relationship between Blue Ribbon Sports and Onitsuka Tiger was nearing an end. BRS prepared to launch its own line of footwear, which would bear the newly designed Swoosh by Carolyn Davidson. The Swoosh was first used by Nike in June 1971, and was registered with the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office on January 22, 1974. Adidas was founded in 1948 by Adolf Adi Dassler, following the split of Gebruder Dassler Schuhfabrik between him and his older brother, Rudolf. Rudolf would later establish Puma, which was the early rival of Adidas. Registered in 1949, Adidas is currently based in Herzogenaurach, Germany. The companys clothing and shoe designs typically feature three parallel bars, and the same motif is incorporated into Adidass current official logo. The Three Stripes were bought from the Finnish sport company Karhu Sports in the 1950s. Objective The objective of the project is to measure and compare the marketing strategies of the top two sport fashion companies which are Nike and Adidas. So this project would be mainly conducted to resolute the similarities and differences of the two sport companies marketing strategies. Besides that, this project will compare on the performance of Nike and Adidas which include the company’s growth in revenues, profits or net income, dividends per share, size of company in the market, performances of employees, steps for increasing the social responsibility performance, products performance, stock performance and the company performances in investment. Problem Statement Firstly, the sport industry is becoming ever more competitive, with new brands competing for a share of consumers for the products in the market. Building a relationship with customers is a challenge facing for Nike and Adidas. This is because the companies need to be followed up with new trends and styles in the industry for their customers in order for them to build their products brand and image. Secondly, there was a case happened in China where a local Chinese domestic sports goods manufacturer company called Li Ning opened 6917 stores in mainland China by December 31,2008 aking it 1241 more than the year of 2007. During the year 2008, Li Ning has published its financial report which states that due to the Beijing Olympic Games, the company made total revenues of CNY 669(million) a year on-year-increase of 53. 8% compared to the year 2007. Not only that, Li Ning made an overall entry into the market of Southeast Asia. Now they have stores in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and other Southeast Asia countries. This became a problem for Nike and Adidas where the two international giants see recession in their performance in China. According to the financial report of Adidas, the company’s net profit decreased by 95% to â‚ ¬ 130 million in the first half of the year. As for the sales revenue, it decreased by 2% to â‚ ¬ 5. 03 billion. As for Nike numbers of distributors were reduced in the year 2008 due with the bad performance. Thirdly, the problem that attracted me to do this project is because I would like to know why Nike had low growth in revenue in the year of 2009. Nike had only increased 3% of its revenue to $ 19176. (million), with net income falling 21% to $ 1486. 7(million). As for Adidas, they also had the same problem. But the problem for Adidas was worst compared to Nike because at the year of 2009, the company net income is â‚ ¬ 10381(million) which decreased compared to the year 2008 which is â‚ ¬ 10799(million). These two companies had their difficulties is the year of 2009. So I would eager to find out about the problems they faced during that year. Significance of Study The importance of doing this project would be very important to other parties and companies. In this case, small and medium enterprise (SME) would get the advantages and benefits because they would know how the bigger companies such as Nike and Adidas operates their businesses, how they sell their products and services to their customers, what kind of marketing strategies they use, how the companies measure their performances and the most important reason is how Nike and Adidas continues to become a big market player in the sports industry. As part of that, this project will comprise mainly of small to medium-sized companies to engage in a diversity of activities which includes manufacturing of sport goods, sport tourism, media, and construction of venues. For example, small and medium enterprise (SME) in Malaysia can take the opportunity to get involved with sport products, services, sponsorships, hosting up international sport tournaments and events. And not to forget, the involvement of (SME) would also helps our country in the tourism sector because many athletes and participants will get to travel and visit our country and this will relatively build the countries economic performances. Corporate social responsibilities (CSR) also play a role for every sport companies in responsibility to act in a way that positively contributes to their stakeholders and the communities in which they exist. In this case, it is increasingly important for the social and economic issues such as rapid technological change, a diverse and aging population, environmental changes and mounting concerns regarding the country’s growing social divide have resulted in focusing on the responsibility of firms to the communities in which they operate. (Margolis Walsh 2003; Sagawa Segal 2000) Justification The reason I chose this topic is because the project is interesting as sports is an important part of todays society and plays a large role in many peoples lives. From a social standpoint, sport plays a positive role in uniting people from different social backgrounds. This can aid peoples understanding and tolerance of each other. As far as education is concerned, sport is an important part of every childs schooling, as it plays a big role in both their physical and mental development. It teaches children how to work as a part of a team and cooperate with others, while at the same time improving physical condition. The second reason I chose sports industry because this industry is growing rapidly in Malaysia. There are continuous demands from customers, sports athletes, and models for these sport products. The Malaysian sport industry is considered as a young industry comprising of small and medium-sized businesses. The Malaysian sports industry comprises of companies engaging in a diversity of activities, from the manufacturing of sport goods, sport tourism, media, to the construction of sport facilities. The third why I chose these two companies is because Nike and Adidas has been the biggest market share player in the sports industry. Nike controls 31% of athletic sportswear which is the highest market share compared to other sport companies in the year 2007. As for Adidas, they control the second highest share of athletic sportswear which is 16% of the market in 2007. As for other companies Puma controls 7%, Reebok 6%, New Balance 6%, and Converse 4%. Expected Outcomes The expected outcome which I can conclude is Nike would have the better performance for this year 2010 because their net income/profit for the past few years have been stable. Ever since the year of 2006, Nike’s net income/profit stands at $ 1392. (million). As for the year 2007, it increased to $ 1491. 5(million). At the year 2008, Nike’s net income/profit increased with huge and outstanding amount of $ 1883. 4(million). But by the year of 2009, their company had a decreased in their net income/profit which is $ 1486. 7(million). As for Adidas, the company would not have a better performance compared to Nike because in the year 2009, their net income was only â‚ ¬ 245(million). Their net income decreased with a huge margin compared to the year 2008 which is â‚ ¬ 642(million). So the key impact from the financial statement of year 2009. The net income of Adidas reduced more than 60% in 2009. But Nike was capable of stabilizing the results with a minor reduction of only 20% in 2009. As for the performance of dividend development, Nike has shown increases in its number. For the year 2006, Nike’s dividends declared per common share stands at $ 0. 59. Their company dividend increased to $ 0. 98 in the year 2009. But as for Adidas, they showed a decline from the year 2006 to 2009. In the year 2006, Adidas dividends declared per common share stands at â‚ ¬ 0. 42. While in the year 2009, Adidas dividends declared per common share felt to â‚ ¬ 0. 5. As for the expected outcome for the year 2010, Nike would be expected to increase their dividends successfully because their dividend declared per common share has been rising steadily. As for the company’s asset assessment, I can expect that Nike would do better in the assets performance in the year 2010 because their total assets have been increasing from the year 2006-2009. The total of assets that Nike had in the year 2006 was $ 9,869(million), in the year of 2007, Nike’s assets increased to $ 10,688. 3(million). Last year, Nike had a total of assets of $ 13,250(million). This shows that Nike’s assets have been increasing and it is expected to rise in the year 2010. As for Adidas, their company’s total asset is not stable from the year shown in 2006-2009. In 2006, Adidas totals assets stands at â‚ ¬ 8379(million). It decreased on the following year to 8325(million). As for the year 2008, their total assets were increased to â‚ ¬ 9533(million). As for 2009, their total assets decreased to a total of â‚ ¬ 8875(million). Ever since Adidas total of assets is not stable, I can expect that Nike would do better in the assets performance. References http://condor.depaul.edu/~aalmaney/StrategicAnalysisofNike.htm http://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1693768.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nike,_Inc http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adidas http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reebok

Film History Essays -- The Silent Era of Film

In the early years of narrative cinema there was little pressure on filmmakers for the ‘evolution of film forms before nickelodeons’ (Salt, 1990, pp31) as cinema neither became a mass nor high cultural product and was still a novelty but ‘Production companies’ profits were based principally on the sales of longer fiction films’ in the later years (Musser, 1990, pp256) so focus was made for the production of popular narratives so I will show how the early development of narrative evolved from trick films to complex narrative. I will analyse the short film Mary Jane’s Mishap (1903, Smith) and an extract from the seminal The Birth of a Nation (1915, D.W.Griffith). Mary Jane’s Mishap was made when ‘multi-scene films were becoming popular’ (Salt, 1990, pp32) It is notable for its use of experimental transitions. To ‘separate successive scenes’ (Salt, 1990, pp32) Smith used vertical wipes to transition to wider framed shot. This efficiently showed an ellipsis in time from the funeral to people visiting her grave. D.W.Griffith also used inventive shots but popularised them rather than inventing them, such as tracking shots adding pace the characters movement and the narrative. In the silent-era of film insert titles were important in explaining the narrative to the primitive viewer not well-versed in film, especially in films where the audience were not familiar with the story unlike ‘Porters The Night before Christmas‘(Musser, 1990, pp258). Griffith used insert titles which ‘changed around 1905 into summaries of the action’ (Burch, 1990, pp221) As the film had a ‘self-sufficient narrative’ (Burch, 1990, pp221) that ran for over three hours, with poor camera quality to recognise characters. But they were ‘systematically anticipating t... ...ows this film as being a transition between the early trick films and narrative cinema. The Birth of a Nation has evolved in ‘relation to the articulation between shots in term of space and time’ (Gunning, 1990, pp89) it is of the third and fourth cinà ©-genres. As the ‘multi-shot narrative’ of approximately three hours long is edited as to the ‘cut is de-emphazised’ (Gunning, 1990, pp89) and is placed in the ‘fourth genre’ as the plot is disrupted through parallel editing (Gunning, 1990, pp90). In conclusion, we can see in film narrative The Birth of a Nation has progressed from the trick film narrative of Mary Jane’s Mishap to being identified according to Gunning as being of the third genre, due to both profitability and popularity of realistic cinema Moving from being of theatrical proscenium to complex cinematography to tell a story suited for the screen.

The Character of Blanche DuBois in Tennessee Williams A Streetcar Named Desire :: A Streetcar Named Desire Essays

The Character of Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Blanche, Stella's older sister, until recently a high school English teacher in Laurel, Mississippi. She arrives in New Orleans a loquacious, witty, arrogant, fragile, and ultimately crumbling figure. Blanche once was married to and passionately in love with a tortured young man. He killed himself after she discovered his homosexuality, and she has suffered from guilt and regret ever since. Blanche watched parents and relatives, all the old guard, die off, and then had to endure foreclosure on the family estate. Cracking under the strain, or perhaps yielding to urges so long suppressed that they now could no longer be contained, Blanche engages in a series of sexual escapades that trigger an expulsion from her community. In New Orleans she puts on the airs of a woman who has never known indignity, but Stanley sees through her. Her past catches up with her and destroys her relationship with Mitch. Stanley, as she fears he might, destroys what's left of her. At the end of the play she is led away to an insane asylum. This is indeed the story of what happened to Blanche in the play but what flaws in her own character were to blame for her subsequent tragedy. Blanche is by far the most complex character of the play. An intelligent and sensitive woman who values literature and the creativity of the human imagination, she is also emotionally traumatised and repressed. This gives license for her own imagination to become a haven for her pain. One senses that Blanches own view of her real self as opposed to her ideal self has been increasingly blurred over the years until it is sometimes difficult for her to tell the difference. It is a challenge to find the key to Blanche's melancholy but perhaps the roots of her trauma lie in her early marriage. She was haunted by her inability to help or understand her young, troubled husband and that she has tortured herself for it ever since. Her drive to lose herself in the "kindness of strangers" might also be understood from th is period in that her sense of confidence in her own feminine attraction was shaken by the knowledge of her husband's homosexuality and she is driven to use her sexual charms to attract men over and over. Yet, beneath all this, there is a desire to find a companion, to find fulfilment in love.

Existentialism and Human Nature Essay

Absolute individuality and absolute freedom: the basis of all existentialist arguments. The existentialist’s conceptions arise from their held views that since we are all ultimately alone, we have absolute freedom over our nature. Existentialists emphasize the â€Å"free and conscious self† which opponents constantly attack, exclaiming that there is a â€Å"higher power† enabling our consciousness. But are humans so simple? Can things be explained solely on blaming ourselves or another being for our nature? The existentialist generally believes in a sole existence; meaning that we are alone in the world, and that we have no one but ourselves. They also believe in the human being’s capacity to feel more than one kind of pain, and that there are three different levels to our pain, physical, psychological, and emotional. All of these types of pain can cause us to become irrational and anxious. But are we really anxious because of this pain, or is it because we ultimately feel alone? And if we are all individuals, can we really feel the same kind of pain as someone else? Existence precedes essence is also dominant in the mind and thoughts of the existentialist. That is, the idea that we are born into this world without a predetermined nature, and only later in life do we shape out nature through actions and choices. This opposes the traditional view that is that essence precedes existence, according to which we are seen as having a purpose, and values, all of which is determined before birth. (I personally think that the idea of essence preceding existence is rather obscure. There is no way that our values and purpose can be determined by genetic code. DNA is what we are, not who we are.) Existentialists pose another question to the opposition: how can we be happy in a world devoid of significance and meaning? The loss of external values allows us to derive value from within ourselves. This value is greater than any imposed by outside forces, and thus cannot be taken away from said sources. Although many human beings live a life devoid of true happiness, it does not mean that we are incapable of attaining such a goal. If a person finds the meaning for their life, whether it be one meaning, or many, there is a large chance that they can achieve such a utopia without recognizing outside influences. People of different viewpoints follow different methods, as well as believe in different forces that shape our nature. It is in my opinion, as well as that of the existentialist, that we shape our own nature through decisions and actions made by our own free will; that we are ultimately free to act independently from the influences of outside forces. That we can ultimately ignore the views imposed on us, and achieve a sustainable level of happiness in the process. Human nature is a frail thing; people are just looking for someone else to blame for their actions and for who they are, even when there isn’t any. Therefore, there is no one to blame for who we are, but ourselves.

Economic Indicators essays

Economic Indicators essays The million (or should we say 'billion' now) dollar question is whether or not the United States' economy will stay in it's record 107 month expansion (according to the index of leading indicators) or come out of the boom and take a downturn into a recession. Nobody, including the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan has a crystal ball to provide insight as to what will happen if interest rates are raised, lowered, or left alone. However, Economists have developed a set of indicators to aid in predicting when a recession is about to occur and when the economy is in one. Indicators should not be mistaken for predictors. They are simply forecasting tools, and like any forecast can be misleading. The index of leading indicators that is reported in the popular press shows our economy is still in an expansion. For the purposes of our evaluation of the economy, we chose the Principle Economic Indicators tracked by the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau under the Economics and Statistics Administration at the U.S. Department of Commerce. There are thirteen Principle Economic Indicators, and they fall into five major categories: National Output and Income; Orders, Sectoral Production, and Inventories; Consumer Spending; Housing and Construction; and Foreign Trade. The first of the five major categories directly relates to measuring the growth of the U.S. economy. National Output and Income consists of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Personal Income, and Corporate Profits measurements. GDP is the primary measurement of growth and measures the total amount of goods and services produced by governments, businesses, people, and property located within the United States. Both real (adjusted for inflation) and nominal (current value in dollars) data is collected for computing the GDP. The base year for the real data is 1997. The GDP is normally reported as an annualized quarter-to-quarter change. ...

E-DV Entry Status Confirmation Message

E-DV Entry Status Confirmation Message Every year in May, the U.S. State Department grants the opportunity to obtain a visa- based on availability in each region or country- to a random number of applicants in a lottery system. After entering, you can check your status on the electronic diversity visa (E-DV) website. There, you will receive one of two messages letting you know if your entry has been selected for further processing for the diversity visa. Types of Messages This is the message you will receive if your entry was not selected for further processing: Based on the information provided, the Entry HAS NOT BEEN SELECTED for further processing for the Electronic Diversity Visa Program. If you receive this message, you were not selected for this years green card lottery, but you always can  try again next year. This is the message you will receive if your entry was selected for further processing: Based on the information and confirmation number provided, you should have received a letter by mail from the United States Department of States Kentucky Consular Center (KCC) notifying you that your Diversity Visa entry was selected in the DV lottery.If you have not received your selectee letter, please do not contact KCC until after August 1. International mail delivery delays of one month or more are normal. KCC will not respond to questions they receive before August 1 regarding non-receipt of selectee letters. If you still have not received your selectee letter by August 1, however, you may contact KCC by email at kccdvstate.gov. If you receive this message, you were selected for this years green card lottery. Congratulations! You can see what each of these messages looks like on the Department of State website. What Is the Diversity Visa Program? The State Department publishes instructions every year on how to apply for the program and establishes a window of time when applications must be submitted. There is no cost to submit an application. Being selected does not guarantee an applicant a visa. Once selected, applicants must follow instructions on how to confirm their qualifications. This includes submitting Form DS-260, the immigrant  visa, and  alien registration application and submitting the required supporting documents. Once appropriate documentation has been submitted, the next step is an interview at the relevant U.S. embassy or consulate office. Prior to the interview, the applicant and all family members must complete medical examinations and receive all required vaccinations. Applicants also must pay the diversity visa lottery fee prior to the interview. For 2018 and 2019, this fee was $330 per person. The applicant and all family members immigrating with the applicant must attend the interview. Odds of Being Selected Applicants will be informed immediately after the interview if they have been approved or denied for a visa. The statistics vary  by country and region, but overall in 2015, under 1 percent of applicants were selected for further processing. Its also important to remember that immigration policies are not static and subject to change. Always double check to make sure you are following the most current versions of laws, policies, and procedures.

Plural Forms of English Nouns

Plural Forms of English Nouns Have you ever tried explaining to a child why two feet arent foots, or two mice arent mouses? Of course, the grownup response to such questions is, Thats just the way it is. As youngsters, we learned that most nouns in English change from singular to plural with the addition of -s or -es. But regardless of our age, its the few hundred exceptions that can be perplexing. Rule-breakers: mass nounssuch as mud, music, and peacewhich have no plural because they name things that cant readily be countednouns that show up only in the plural (called pluralia tantum)scissors, jeans, and congratulations, for examplea few nouns, like ox and child, that still rely on the Old English plural marker, -ena few other nouns (foot, mouse) that form the plural by changing a voweland several borrowed nouns that hold on to their foreign plural endingssuch as Latin alumni (or alumnae) and Greek criteria To illustrate some of these eccentric plural forms, here are two versions of an amusing little verse by our favorite poet, Author(s) Unknown. The English Lesson (version one) Well begin with a box, and the plural is boxes;But the plural of ox should be oxen not oxes.One fowl is a goose, but two are called geese,Yet the plural of moose should never be meese.You may find a lone mouse or a nest full of mice,But the plural of house is houses, not hice.If the plural of man is always called men,Why shouldnt the plural of pan be called pen?If I spoke of my foot and showed you my feet,When I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet?If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth,Why shouldnt the plural of booth be called beeth?If the singular is this, and the plural is these,Why shouldnt the plural of kiss be kese?Then one may be that, and three would be those,Yet the plural of hat would never be hose.We speak of a brother and also of brethren,But though we say mother, we never say methren.So plurals in English, I think youll agree,Are indeed very trickysingularly. The English Lesson (version two) Now if mouse in the plural should be, and is, mice,Then house in the plural, of course, should be hice,And grouse should be grice and spouse should be spiceAnd by the same token should blouse become blice.And consider the goose with its plural of geese;Then a double caboose should be called a cabeese,And noose should be neese and moose should be meeseAnd if mamas papoose should be twins, its papeese.Then if one thing is that, while some more is called those,Then more than one hat, I assume, would be hose,And gnat would be gnose and pat would be pose,And likewise the plural of rat would be rose.