... 1890's by Joseph William Foster in England. The original mission of the company was to enhance performance in long-distance track events by improving equipment. The business started on a very low-scale, where all shoes were hand-made. The ever increasing demand for athletic apparel and shoes has made the company grow into a highly diversified operation with its products distributed in 28 countries. 4.1. Porters "Five Forces" The threat of new entrants into the industry is low. The entrance barriers Are high in that the capital requirements are high due to up-front advertising and research and development. Economies of scale in production will be difficult to reach due to the difficulties of penetrating the market, which is dominated by the large five; Nike, Reebok, Coverse, LA Gear and Stride-Rite. It will be almost impossible to achieve product differentiation in terms of brand identification and product difference, since the "big five" set the ...

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