"Clothes make the brand"

From the Sports Business Journal: http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2011/08/22/In-Depth/Branding

Review by Renard Robinson in Kin 332 (Section 2)

In Street & Smith’s Sports Business Journal, I chose the article “Clothes Make the Brand” to write my critique on. In the section, it discusses how the idea came about of being different in designing new uniforms and the importance of having unique uniforms to attract top level recruits to their universities. With some traditional powers succumbing to modern day styles; it seems the only option to go is with the evolution of new uniforms.

It all started in 1996 following a disappointing bowl loss. Nike chairman and Oregon alum, Phil Knight, had asked his design team a simple question: “How can we help the University of Oregon attract better students and student athletes?” In order to help get Oregon on the college football map, its simplest decision was to create uniforms that were out of the norm. Like always, with change comes controversy. Many sports writers despised the uniforms, but it was all part of the grand scheme of things. Over the past 5 years, the University of Oregon has been a perennial top 25 caliber team. Prior to that, they were arguably the laughing stock of the Pac – 10. What helped them attract the recruits they needed to compete in the Pac – 10 and nationally was the best uniforms in college football.

The success of their uniforms has spread throughout the country. In 2009, Nike released the Pro Combat Uniforms featuring 10 universities; Miami, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Ohio State, Texas, TCU, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Virginia Tech. Over the past few years, they’ve expanded to include West Virginia, Arizona State, and Boise State among others. With the popularity of these uniforms, top teams are annually at an advantage from a recruiting standpoint because these uniforms are a high commodity to high school athletes. It’s evident considering all of the universities sponsored by these uniforms are traditional powers or have been relevant within the past few years since unveiling new uniforms.

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Review by Cathleen Crouch in Kin 332 (Section 2)

This article which appeared in the Sports Business Journal, written by Michael Smith, is about how it is becoming more prevalent for schools to alter their looks by changing their uniforms in hopes of gaining more exposure and attention. In the article’s introduction it discusses how the University of Oregon revamped their football team that had no recognition with a new look and now has one of the best known football organizations in the country. This was all possible due to the use of smart decision making with their marketing and branding. Oregon’s athletic director, Rob Mullens said, “We had not had much success, so why not be bold and try something new. We used to be ridiculed for being out there, but now you look across college football and it’s the trend”. Other colleges around the country are now starting to see the success that Oregon has had with being edgy and daring with their branding and merchandise. Many more universities are now starting to follow in Oregon’s footsteps hoping for the same successful results. But for some schools, tradition over flashy merchandise is what gains recognition respect, with teams such as Penn State, Auburn and Alabama. These schools don’t need to rebrand their look to be successful. Instead, they have a tradition of being successful on the field.

Although rebranding a team in some cases proves to be more successful, universities must keep in mind that while finding a new marketing strategy can prove to be a worthwhile. However, it is also a good idea to spend time focusing on teamwork.