Running shoes, cross-training shoes, rugby shoes.
This basically covers all parts of Lu Ke's daily life, and it is a comprehensive gift package! It is worth mentioning that running shoes and comprehensive training shoes are still different. The more professional athletes are, the more attention they need to pay attention to details. Running is running, training is training, and field training is another matter. .
Originally, Lu Ke thought Under Armor would design a series of sneakers for him, just rugby shoes, but now it seems that the plan is far beyond imagination.
Lu Ke looked at Laihe, and then noticed that Laihe raised his eyebrows slightly, obviously a little surprised by this situation.
In the past few years, Under Armor has been on a continuous upward trend, but their main market is still limited to clothing, especially professional sweat-absorbent sportswear. Now they have successfully made a breakthrough, and both Nike and Adidas have started to do so. However, in terms of technology and professional image, Under Armor is still in the leading position, and it continues to expand its lead.
But Under Armor is also clearly aware that sneakers still dominate the market share. If it wants to compete head-on with Nike and Adidas, sneakers are the threshold it must face. Now basketball shoes have become a fashionable part of the streets. , gradually broke away from the original meaning of sneakers and became fashionable, and their market importance became more and more prominent.
After signing Stephen Curry and Lu Ke successively, Under Armor has already determined its ambition to open up the sneaker market early on. It has been laying out the plan step by step since two years ago. However, they are always waiting for the opportunity, the best time to start a new era.
until now.
This season, Curry, who has returned from injuries, has gradually become the core player of the Golden State Warriors. Currently, he averages 222 points per game this season, as well as 81 assists and 214 steals. All statistics have ranked among the league. At the forefront; two months ago, on November 1, the Golden State Warriors officially announced that they had reached an agreement with Curry on a contract extension. The new contract is four years and US$44 million.
Similarly, Lu Ke also created his own glory with the San Francisco 49ers, truly becoming a top player that the entire league is looking at! It is no exaggeration to say that the rise was so rapid that it caused a lot of exclamations. People generally did not expect that the second year would be Lu Ke’s full-scale breakout season. This can be regarded as a small ……unexpected surprise?
Under Armor realized the time was right and started to launch.
Maybe it's still a bit rash now, but Nike, Adidas and Puma are all eyeing Lu Ke's sponsorship contract. It can be said that they are surrounded by wolves. Under Armor has also realized that if they continue to hesitate, they may miss the best opportunity. The opportunity was right, so he made a prompt decision and implemented the plan——
Even if it's a risk, it's an adventure worth taking.
It can still be seen in the details that Under Armor's market planning is careful enough.
Regarding the friendship between Curry and Lu Ke, there was no publicity but no deliberate concealment. Curry went to Candlestick Stadium to watch the game many times, and Lu Ke also appeared in the VIP seats at Oracle Arena many times. Relevant news reports can be seen on all major news media.
In addition to this, Curry and Lu Ke trained together at UCLA last offseason. Not many people in the industry know about this, and Under Armor is exactly one of them. It is at a low ebb due to injuries. Curry simply lived in Lu Ke's apartment during that time. It was with Lu Ke's company and help that Curry got back on track step by step.
Best friends can be certified.
Lu Ke attaches great importance to family and friendship. Nike can smell the clues keenly, and the same can be said for Under Armor. Compared with Nike, Under Armor also has a leading advantage-Curry is originally their contracted player. This also means that they can make a fuss out of it and things become much simpler.
Today, Curry not only showed up, but also customized sneakers. Under Armor did not hide its intentions.
Of course, Under Armor customized sneakers for Curry. This is an honor that Curry won with his own performance and has nothing to do with Lu Ke. However, Under Armor arranged the discussion meeting in such a way that it created a family atmosphere or a friends party. In the fierce competition for brand endorsements, they are also trying more means and methods.
From Sean just now to Curry now, Lu Ke is feeling the invisible smoke bit by bit. Even if competitors such as Nike and Adidas are not present at all, the spark of competition is still everywhere. .
"Of course, we will keep the design style of different sneakers consistent to ensure that every fan who buys the Lu Ke Generation can be satisfied! By the way, we are now discussing the name of the sneakers. Should we choose the Lu Ke Generation or the Spot Is it the Bi generation, or is it the Land generation? Or is it the Skywalker generation? But this probably requires buying the copyright like 'Star Wars,' haha."
"As you know, Lu Ke and Luke sound alike. Generally speaking, when we name our sneaker series, we mainly use the last name, because names are easy to overlap, and Luke is more of a first name than a last name. "
Although Chris didn't mention it in detail, Lu Ke knew it.
There are many differences between Eastern culture and Western culture, and the content of surnames and first names is one of them.
For Western culture, a name is a title, while a surname is a family inheritance. The more noble the family, the more so. From the earliest days, most names were derived from professional names or biblical content, and the reuse rate was very high. Therefore, suffixes such as II and III often appear; surnames are the core used to distinguish class, status, and power. Some surnames with long history are even unique. You only need to report the surname to complete the distinction. The repetition rate Relatively speaking, it is relatively low.
In Eastern culture, the situation is reversed. Surnames are derived from hundreds of family surnames. Occasionally obscure surnames also exist, but the repetition rate of surnames such as Zhao Qian, Sun Li, etc. is still extremely frequent; and the name is used to distinguish The key symbol, for those scholarly families or wealthy families, is also the surname, which is further used to define each person's identity and status, upbringing and connotation. Many surnames are almost unique.
Someone once discussed why in the Western world, the Rockefeller family, the Murdoch family, the Kennedy family, etc., all name their companies or enterprises after their surnames; but in the Eastern world, they are rarely seen Names like Li Group, Zhang Group, etc.?
That's why.
The same goes for the naming of sneakers. "Luke Generation" sounds too hazy and vague, making it difficult to effectively complete market positioning.
Lu Ke shrugged, "You can choose to use Chinese characters, 'Lu Ke's generation'; or 'Bambi's generation' or 'Lu's generation', which seems to be a good choice. I personally have no objection."
Chris thought about it carefully, "Not bad. Not bad! Chinese characters, this is a special attempt, Alexander, when Yao just entered the league, if I remember correctly, Nike designed exclusive sneakers for Yao, then What code is it? 'yao11'? Or is there a Chinese character series?"
Yao/Ming?
Only then did Lu Ke think of this senior who was the first to break into the four major sports leagues in North America. Without him, he had carved out a world with his own strength in the NBA. I am afraid that Lu Ke's situation in the NFL would have been even more difficult. , all the benefits and ease he enjoys now were achieved step by step by Yao/Ming.
Compared to Lu Ke, he is the real pioneer!
However, Lu Ke couldn't remember. Did Nike and Yao Ming cooperate? Why is the image in his mind all about Reebok? The memory seems a little inaccurate.
The point is, Chris didn't say this to Lu Ke, but turned around and started discussing with the designers.
Lu Ke and Curry suddenly became relaxed - but finally calm, "Come on, come on, I was looking through the designs just now, you come here now, let's refer to it together!" Curry hooked up with Lu Ke enthusiastically He walked towards the other side of the conference room with his shoulder, and said nonchalantly, "Some designs are really weird, but I can't tell you exactly what is weird."
Under Armor's advantages lie in technology and materials, but in terms of design, they really don't have many advantages.
"So far, the record and state are good. How about it? Are you confident of entering the playoffs this year?" Lu Ke did not rush through the design drawings, but chatted with Curry.
This season, the Golden State Warriors have finally begun to pick up, with a current record of 21 wins and 10 losses. Their performance has been significantly improved compared to the past two seasons. This is positive news. Especially since Curry has experienced a long and difficult trough in the past offseason, and now he has finally risen again, it is really not easy.
"Our season is so long, and we are only a third of the way into it. Unlike you, there are only sixteen games in a season." Curry grumbled with an expression like a primary school student, "But... we are now We are on the right path. Let me tell you, watching the game videos now, the results are indeed different. The whole feeling is different. However, we have too many game videos and I really can’t finish them. I think now, Should I go over to train with you again during the offseason?"
As he spoke, Curry bumped into Lu Ke heavily with his shoulder, with an ambiguous smile on his face, "How about it? Winning the season, doesn't it feel very special? That day, I yelled at home, I was scolded severely by Ayesha, haha!”
"Honestly, it was a mixed feeling just at the end of the game, but after that, there was no sense of reality. It always felt like a dream, and then I had to prepare for the playoffs. I can't do that now. It's an accurate description, but... I did it after all, haha!" Lu Ke also became elated for the rare occasion.
