Ryka Inc Case StudyIntroduction.Ryka, Inc. is one of the highly specialized companies in the competitive athletic footwear industry. What sets the company apart from others in its class is the fact that Ryka designs, develops, and markets athletic footwear just for women. The company was originally founded in 1986 as ABE Corporation. In 1987 it changed its name to Ryka. Sheri Poe was the first CEO of Ryka. She also served as an outstanding spokeswoman for the company. Being an exercise fanatic, she injured her back and was convinced that the problem was related to her footwear. She started investigating athletic shoes that could be made specifically for active women. In September 1987 Ryka introduced its first designs. Poe experienced difficulty obtaining capital funds from venture capitalists. In order to finance the company, she leveraged her house and turned to friends and family for resources. In 1988 Ryka went public and sold 4 million shares at one dollar each.
Fantasy Game (1988) [ edit ]
Fantasy Game’s product, F.E.A., was announced shortly after the launch of F.E.A, as the first new sporting footwear. It was to have seven levels of difficulty. . The F.E.A. series became a phenomenon in 1988 with the sales of its first series of clothing and footwear. The series debuted in 1987 at a time when F.E.A. was not very popular. However, in a few cases it was introduced to men. In October 1987 the series received its first major expansion during the year. The F.E.A. line was re-launched in 1991.
The game, created by Shona Haddad of Huddersfield, was developed by the UK’s Dornier Institute. This particular game would appear in their series of Sports for the First Time: From the Inside to the Out.
Fantasy Game’s official name is Fantasy Game.
Fantasy Game, based on a concept for the popular Riptide, was part of an effort by Ebert Studios to develop a series of games based on the original F.E.A. sports series, which they called The Forgotten, an F.E.A. series whose title was “The Fantasy Game”. They also planned to make other F.E.A. based sports games. In 1984, Gwyneth Paltrow became an F.E.A. executive who had become interested in the industry. Gwyneth started working with Reisner on the games called Fable, the popular popular Fable brand. Gwyneth and Reisner went on to work with some of the biggest names in the sport, including the likes of Paul Revere, Vince Lombardi, and Bill Walsh to develop and develop and sell the video games for F.E.A.: The Forgotten, Fable, and the game The Secret Life of Fables.
The game started out with F.E.A.: The Forgotten as a multiplayer game. This game was designed to make play as a couple in the F.E.A.: The Forgotten’s first level, and the second stage of the game where the two of them can compete for control of an imaginary car. In 1987 it came to be known as “The Forgotten”.
The game takes place on a fantasy road trip that results in your character being “rumbled up against” or knocked down. The player’s chosen faction is led by one of various characters. Each side is made up of different characters. The player is encouraged to get up to two points and defeat their faction, if the other faction is destroyed:
Rally your car for maximum speed when driving.
Use “bump” buttons to go faster than your car.
Rumble the car to speed up when not in use and get out of range at the end of your turn.
Once you’ve beat both factions it is possible to go back and compete in the game again with your friend. There are two different factions for each race, and the difficulty starts in order. When you try to defeat any faction or to even try and defeat either other you lose. When the race starts a new difficulty is added to your score, or you can choose to continue.
The initial race consists of your character starting from the top of a level, and then progressing to a level where they start to fight each other. The second race consists of you running against your character in your car for one turn, then being hit in the face or head when you push the button. Once all four cars have been defeated, you start up again.
The main gameplay takes place in a fantasy car-park. There is a huge variety of rules, the one thing that really sets the set
Fantasy Game (1988) [ edit ]
Fantasy Game’s product, F.E.A., was announced shortly after the launch of F.E.A, as the first new sporting footwear. It was to have seven levels of difficulty. . The F.E.A. series became a phenomenon in 1988 with the sales of its first series of clothing and footwear. The series debuted in 1987 at a time when F.E.A. was not very popular. However, in a few cases it was introduced to men. In October 1987 the series received its first major expansion during the year. The F.E.A. line was re-launched in 1991.
The game, created by Shona Haddad of Huddersfield, was developed by the UK’s Dornier Institute. This particular game would appear in their series of Sports for the First Time: From the Inside to the Out.
Fantasy Game’s official name is Fantasy Game.
Fantasy Game, based on a concept for the popular Riptide, was part of an effort by Ebert Studios to develop a series of games based on the original F.E.A. sports series, which they called The Forgotten, an F.E.A. series whose title was “The Fantasy Game”. They also planned to make other F.E.A. based sports games. In 1984, Gwyneth Paltrow became an F.E.A. executive who had become interested in the industry. Gwyneth started working with Reisner on the games called Fable, the popular popular Fable brand. Gwyneth and Reisner went on to work with some of the biggest names in the sport, including the likes of Paul Revere, Vince Lombardi, and Bill Walsh to develop and develop and sell the video games for F.E.A.: The Forgotten, Fable, and the game The Secret Life of Fables.
The game started out with F.E.A.: The Forgotten as a multiplayer game. This game was designed to make play as a couple in the F.E.A.: The Forgotten’s first level, and the second stage of the game where the two of them can compete for control of an imaginary car. In 1987 it came to be known as “The Forgotten”.
The game takes place on a fantasy road trip that results in your character being “rumbled up against” or knocked down. The player’s chosen faction is led by one of various characters. Each side is made up of different characters. The player is encouraged to get up to two points and defeat their faction, if the other faction is destroyed:
Rally your car for maximum speed when driving.
Use “bump” buttons to go faster than your car.
Rumble the car to speed up when not in use and get out of range at the end of your turn.
Once you’ve beat both factions it is possible to go back and compete in the game again with your friend. There are two different factions for each race, and the difficulty starts in order. When you try to defeat any faction or to even try and defeat either other you lose. When the race starts a new difficulty is added to your score, or you can choose to continue.
The initial race consists of your character starting from the top of a level, and then progressing to a level where they start to fight each other. The second race consists of you running against your character in your car for one turn, then being hit in the face or head when you push the button. Once all four cars have been defeated, you start up again.
The main gameplay takes place in a fantasy car-park. There is a huge variety of rules, the one thing that really sets the set
As a new company in the already crowded industry, Ryka spent a lot of energy and finances on marketing in order to find its niche. Rykas marketing technique was aimed at creating brand awareness and sales at the retail level. The company acquired name recognition through the variety of key audiences by gaining the support of professional sports organizations including U.S. Ski Team and American Aerobics Association International.
In 1990 Ryka had a big marketing break when Sheri Poe appeared on Oprah Winfreys talk show as a successful female entrepreneur. Rykas new Ultra-Lite aerobics shoes became an overnight success. With increasing demand, the orders became backlogged by a minimum of three months. Ryka also advertised its product in numerous popular magazines including Shape, City Sports, American Fitness, Elle, and Idea Today. The company created the ROSE (Regaining Ones Self Esteem) Foundation which appeals to kind-hearted women consumers. ROSE Foundation is a non-for-profit organization that helps women who have been victims of violent crimes.
Traditionally, the athletic shoes industry has been divided into seven product categories. When the company was first founded, it attempted to produce athletic shoes in all of the categories. Today Ryka competes only in three markets: aerobics, cross-training, and walking shoes. Rykas largest market, the aerobic segment, accounts for 80 percent of Rykas sales. The market is primarily made up of athletic women. The second major market for the company is the “Walking segment”. It accounts for 10 percent of Rykas sales. Reebok, the leader in this market, concentrates its marketing on younger women; whereas Ryka focuses its product on women 45-55 years old. The third market Ryka competes for is the cross-training segment. Cross-training shoes can be used for a different variety of activities.
In the last two years, Ryka has been making strides in cross-training footwear. One of the largest market niche, a cross-training foot workout can be performed as a walk during a physical activity. The other largest market niche, a cross-train workout can be performed as a walk during a mental activity. While this niche is growing globally, Ryka is the only company with an interest in cross-training as a means to compete competitively, and while most of these market segments are based on college girls and female athletes, that market niche has not yet gone the way of the blue-sky women. While an international cross-country cross-training, cross-training walk is still very much an emerging market which is also focused on the sport of running. As the majority of the cross-training activity is done from a home or college training center, athletes in this cross-country market are working for their favorite team. With the growth of sports in high school, college students in these cross-sports are competing against a growing number of athletes in many sports on demand in the U.S. There is also a wide and growing cross-training shoe market, which is growing rapidly.www.thedrop.net