The chief executive of Brooks running decided a few months ago to move much of Brooks running shoe production from China to Vietnam. This decision came after President Trump threatened to boost tariffs on shoes. This boost would go from a 20% tariff to a 40% tariff. Moving shoes production to Vietnam was heavily decided upon because most Brooks running shoes cost anywhere from $100-$160 on average. Brooks can’t raise shoe prices any higher before customers start to turn away. Brooks shoes are sold in 56 countries and the move from China to Vietnam will bring over 8,000 jobs to Vietnam.
One way I could leverage this information and present a positive campaign message out of this brand would be to focus on Brooks’ commitment to customers first. Brooks could have kept production in China rather than having to deal with all the logistics of moving to Vietnam. Brooks knows that they carry high end running performance shoes and if they were to raise prices customers may not be able to afford their shoes or have to turn to another product. Customer loyalty and caring about the shoe and the person it’s on is something Brooks sticks to. Brooks also is able to adapt and keep up with politics and government to make impactful choices that help revenue continue to rise in their company and make tough but smart choices about their production.
Rachel Valentine 
Great post. That definitely shows their loyalty to customers. They know that if prices go up customers go down. If the cost to produce and ship the shoes went up and they didn’t change prices then they will lose profit and their quality might go down by cutting operational costs.
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Promoting that your shoe company is moving to keep prices low is tricky. Unless you’re creating a good deal with the host community to positively impact the workers and their families, improve the neighborhood schools or park, maybe even plan for workforce growth if sales grow – the most people may think you are just looking for cheaper workers. The key is for Brooks is build with the government of Vietnam, a positive PR campaign that shows their compassion. The Fuyao Glass Company used a shuttered GM facility to plant a flag in the US to access the market and tap the labor force, but the low wages and adverse work conditions became an issue. It was profiled in the Oscar winning documentary “America Factory”.
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It goes to show that they don’t always care about saving money or making the most profit, they want the assurance that their customers are satisfied, because that must be what they rely on most for their brand.
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