Marketing Plan for Gymshark

This marketing plan for Gymshark provides an analysis of the external environment, industry, and internal environment using frameworks like PESTEL, Porter's five forces, and SWOT. It also discusses the marketing objectives, strategy, and the use of marketing mix to improve growth and market share.

Running head: MARKETING PLAN FOR GYMSHARK
MARKETING PLAN FOR GYMSHARK
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary
The report is based on the analysis of the external environment and industry of Gymshark
with the implementation of PESTEL framework and Porter’s five forces framework. The
internal environment on the other hand has been analysed with the help of SWOT framework.
The marketing objectives that have been set by the organization are based on the results of
the SWOT analysis framework. The marketing strategy has been developed by the
organization with the help of segmentation, targeting and positioning based activities of
Gymshark. The development of marketing mix of the organization is related to the proper
development of market share and growth of Gymshark in the fitness industry.

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Table of Contents
Introduction....................................................................................................................4
External analysis of Gymshark......................................................................................4
PESTLE analysis........................................................................................................4
Porter’s five forces analysis.......................................................................................6
SWOT analysis of Gymshark.........................................................................................8
Three marketing objectives of Gymshark......................................................................9
Development of marketing strategy based on segmentation, targeting and positioning
..................................................................................................................................................10
Use of marketing mix to improve the growth and market share of Gymshark............11
Conclusion....................................................................................................................12
References....................................................................................................................13

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Introduction
Gymshark was established by Ben Francis in the year 2012 along with his friends who
were still in the university. The business is currently being operated by the business partners,
Steph Green, Steve Hewit, Richard Chapple and Paul Richardson. Gymshark has further been
able to become a well-known online gym apparel based brand in fitness based industry
(Gymshark.com 2019). The company offers a diverse portfolio of products for women and
men that include, tank tops, t-shirts, stringers, hoodies, pants, leggings and shorts. The
organization has received a recognition as a fast growing and largest brand based on gym
apparel in the United Kingdom. The organization has been able to experience rapid levels of
growth in the last few years due to the fast expanding customer base (Gymshark.com 2019).
The marketing plan development process is important for Gymshark in order to plan
the future operations of the organization in the online fitness industry. The objectives will
also be developed based on the ways by which the company aims at improving its growth
process and maintain its position in the industry as well. The strategy will be developed with
respect to the marketing mix and market segmentation based activities of Gymshark (Brindle
2017).
External analysis of Gymshark
PESTLE analysis
Political factors – Gymshark has its operations in the fitness based industry and needs
to comply with different political guidelines in order to assure that the business can operate in
a legal manner. The development of civil liberties and human rights in the UK is highly
accountable and transparent in nature. The government of the country had developed a
program named “Change4life” that is able to boost number of consumers or citizens who

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wish to lead a happy life. This has led to the increase in sales of the products offered by
Gymshark (De Lyon, Neville and Armour 2017).
Economic factors – The economy of UK has shown an expansion of 0.3% in the year
2017. The levels of fixed investments had proved to be major drivers in the growth of the
economy. The service industries have been able to provide major levels of contribution to the
levels of growth of the GDP of UK. The high rates of GDP per capita has been helpful in the
development of a favourable climate for the operations of Gymshark in the fitness industry
(Engert, Rauter and Baumgartner 2016).
Social factors – The socio-cultural based factors have been able to play a key role in
the ways by which elderly people in the country have increased. The people belonging to a
higher age have started developing a healthy lifestyle with the help of regular exercise. The
healthcare system of the UK is considered to be a successful venture based on the social
factors of the world (Fahy et al. 2017). The involvement of private sector and an effective
healthcare based infrastructure had led to the increase in levels of investments. The residents
of the country are able to enjoy the levels of quality and the efficiency of the healthcare based
system. The living standards of the people in UK are high and Gymshark can use this as an
opportunity to expand the size of is market (García-Fernández et al. 2018).
Technological factors – More than 38 Million active users of the social media are
present in the United Kingdom, that amounts to around 59% of the total population.
Facebook is considered to be the most used social media based channel in the UK. The social
media users in the country mainly belong to the age group of 20 years to 40 years (Hahm
2017). This is considered to be a major opportunity for Gymshark in order to maintain the
growth levels in the country for a longer period of time. The analytical tools of Facebook can

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be used in an effective manner in order to monitor the feedback and result from consumers
based on the products that are offered to them (Hanson et al. 2016).
Environmental factors – The factors related to the environment have proved to be
highly important for the effective operations of Gymshark in the fitness industry. The
consumers in the UK have been seen spending more money on the products that are
environment friendly in nature (Harrison and Smith 2016). The size of the carbon footprint
that is being developed by the organizations in the United Kingdom needs to be considered in
order to maintain the operations and levels of profitability as well. The sports clothing based
organizations like Gymshark needs to develop environment friendly sports-wear based
products that can be offered to the customers (Hitt, Ireland and Hoskisson 2016).
Legal factors – Legal system that has been developed in the UK is transparent,
efficient and organized in nature. The business environment that is developed in the country
is thereby conducive in nature and is based on the consideration of needs of the stakeholders.
The development of ethical practices is also a major opportunity for Gymshark in order to
develop its operations in the sports based industry (Larrosa et al. 2017).
Porter’s five forces analysis
Threats of new entrants – The requirement of high levels of investments has been
able to develop a major barrier based on the entry of new organizations in the fitness
industry. The costs related to production in the industry are also high and it is quite tough for
the new organizations to compete with major organizations that are already operating (Mann
and Truswell 2017). The total assets that have been developed by Gymshark in the industry
amount to 4.8 Million Euros. The development of product differentiation is also a major
challenge for the new organizations. The threats related to new entrants in the fitness industry
are thereby low (Mooney et al. 2017).

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Bargaining power of the suppliers – The suppliers have a high influence on an
industry and are able to affect quality and prices of the products as well. Gymshark works
with manufacturers in order to develop the products based on new style and technical fabrics.
Most of the manufacturing processes of Gymshark have been outsourced to China in order to
reduce the levels of production costs (Morschett, Schramm-Klein and Zentes 2015). The
number of suppliers of Gymshark are lesser in comparison to the buyers of the organization.
The switching cost of suppliers are also quite high for Gymshark. The organization thereby
has to face a major force based on the power that is depicted by the suppliers (Pinto and
Yagnik 2017).
Bargaining power of the buyers – The bargaining power of the customers is mainly
based on the levels up to which prices of the products can be reduced by potential customers.
The development of similar types of products by the sellers leads to the increase in levels
price based competition in the fitness industry (Raven 2018). The consumers are provided
with a choice of wide variety of supply based firms and costs based on switching are also
quite low. The availability of the substitute products in the market are able to affect the power
of customers (Powers and Greenwell 2017).
Threats of the substitute products – The availability of substitutes of the products
offered by Gymshark are higher and this has been able to reduce the switching costs of the
customers as well. The price based performance that has been depicted by the organizations
is based on different types of apparels that arte offered by the fitness organizations (Steinbach
et al. 2017).
Rivalry between the competitors – The levels of flexibility based on proper
development of a working environment are higher for the operations of Gymshark. The
organization has faced intense levels of competition based on the ways by which the internet

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services can be reached by the customers. The price related wars on the internet have an
impact on the levels of profitability that have been gained by Gymshark in the fitness
industry (Wheelen et al. 2017). The levels of ability, agility and innovation in the industry are
high and the trends in the market have been able to provide a major competitive advantage to
Gymshark.
SWOT analysis of Gymshark
The internal environment of Gymshark can be analysed in a detailed manner with the
help of implementation of the SWOT framework,
Strengths – The outsourcing activities of Gymshark in China is considered to be an
effective step to reduce the costs based on production. The organization has been able to
enjoy the levels of stability in the fitness industry of the United Kingdom. Gymshark also
charges reasonable prices for the products in comparison to the competitors that are offered to
the consumers (Morschett, Schramm-Klein and Zentes 2015).
Weaknesses – The manufacturing process of Gymshark in China can lead to the
increase of import costs of the products. The levels of investments that are required for the
development of research and development related activities of Gymshark in order to develop
a new product. The substitutes of the products that are offered by the organization are
considered to be important factors that are able to reduce the levels of profitability and
differentiation of products of Gymshark (Mann and Truswell 2017).
Opportunities – The increase in levels of aged population in the United Kingdom are
higher in comparison to the other countries. The age of customers who are active on social
media are a part of the age group of 20 years to 40 years. The government of the country has
stared providing encouragement based on the healthy lifestyle levels of the people who are a
part of the United Kingdom (Fahy et al. 2017).

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Threats – The products that are offered by Gymshark to the customers have many
substitutes in the industry that are offered by the other organizations in the fitness industry.
The alternate products that are offered by the organizations are considered to be important
factors that have an impact on the customer base of Gymshark. The competitors of the
organization have provided similar range of products and are able to target the niche market
as well (De Lyon, Neville and Armour 2017).
Three marketing objectives of Gymshark
The three major objectives of Gymshark can be developed based on the SWOT
analysis based framework.
SMART objective 1
Specific Increasing the sales of the organization in
fitness industry.
Measurable The achievement of the objective can be
measured with the analysis of total
revenues.
Achievable The goal is achievable with the sales of the
fitness products offered to customers.
Relevant The goal is relevant for improving the
position of Gymshark in the industry.
Timely The time required for achievement of the
objective is 1 year.
SMART objective 2
Specific To develop awareness of the brand in
different parts of the world.
Measurable The objective can be measured with the help
of development of the customer base of
Gymshark.
Achievable The goal can be achieved with the help of
proper development of advertisements.

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Relevant The goal is relevant for proper operations of
Gymshark in the fitness industry.
Timely The time required for achievement of the
goal is 1 year.
SMART objective 3
Specific The enhancement of customer relationships
is another major objective of Gymshark.
Measurable The goal can be measured by proper
analysis of social media accounts of
Gymshark.
Achievable The objective is achievable by increasing
the levels of communication of the
organization with customers.
Relevant The achievement of the objective is relevant
for the development of position of
Gymshark.
Timely The time required for achievement of the
goal is 1 year.
Development of marketing strategy based on segmentation, targeting and positioning
The process of segmentation, targeting and positioning is used in order to analyse the
buyers in the industry.
Segmentation – The demographic segmentation strategy is used for the dividing the
target market of Gymshark based on different factors like, family size, income, gender,
occupation and age. The age group that is targeted by Gymshark range between 18 years and
25 years who are concerned about the factors like, fashion, fitness and music (Engert, Rauter
and Baumgartner 2016).
Targeting – The targeting based process is implemented in order to offer the products
to customers who are a part of different market segments of Gymshark.

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Positioning – The positioning process is based on the position that is developed by
Gymshark in the industry based on the levels of prices and quality of the products as well.
The products offered by the organization are able to fulfil the needs of different types of
consumers (De Lyon, Neville and Armour 2017).
The marketing strategy that is developed by Gymshark is based on the ways by which
three different objectives can be fulfilled with the help of the products, the promotional
activities and communication process of the organization as well.
Use of marketing mix to improve the growth and market share of Gymshark
The development of an appropriate marketing mix is considered to be an effective
step that can be implemented by Gymshark in order to maintain its position in the fitness
based industry. The three objectives that have been set by the organization can be achieved
by Gymshark with the help of proper development of the marketing mix of Gymshark
(Mooney et al. 2017).
Product – The core products that are offered by the organization include gym apparel.
The unique materials that are used for development of the products of Gymshark are used for
development of products of the company. The return and delivery based support, the
branding and designing of the products are helpful in the improvement of the revenues of
Gymshark.
Price – The prices that are set by Gymshark for the products are helpful in proper
penetration of the market and development of revenues as well (Powers and Greenwell 2017).
Place – The process of selective distribution of the products is considered to be an
important factor that is able to affect the operations of Gymshark.

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Promotion – The promotional activities developed by Gymshark are based on the
implementation of the concept of pop-up stores and Black Friday based watch list is
developed for women and men (Engert, Rauter and Baumgartner 2016).
Conclusion
The report can be concluded by stating that the organization named Gymshark can
develop its position in the industry with the help of proper achievement of the objectives that
have been set by the organization. The external and the internal environment of Gymshark
have been able to depict that although the organization had been able to grow in the fitness
industry, the threats are mainly faced based on the levels of competition that have been
developed in the fitness industry.

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References
Brindle, F., 2017. The impact of digital marketing disruption on the localization
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De Lyon, A.T., Neville, R.D. and Armour, K.M., 2017. The role of fitness professionals in
public health: a review of the literature. Quest, 69(3), pp.313-330.
Engert, S., Rauter, R. and Baumgartner, R.J., 2016. Exploring the integration of corporate
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Fahy, N., Hervey, T., Greer, S., Jarman, H., Stuckler, D., Galsworthy, M. and McKee, M.,
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García-Fernández, J., Gálvez-Ruíz, P., Fernández-Gavira, J., Vélez-Colón, L., Pitts, B. and
Bernal-García, A., 2018. The effects of service convenience and perceived quality on
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Hanson, D., Hitt, M.A., Ireland, R.D. and Hoskisson, R.E., 2016. Strategic management:
Competitiveness and globalisation. Cengage AU.
Harrison, L. and Smith, R., 2016. Developing food products for consumers concerned with
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