Marketing and communication

Fleximeters put Geox patented soles through rigorous test of tens of housands of flexions. Experiments and tests are performed on materials, processes and products in disciplines ranging from chemistry to physics, to orthopedics, to foot ergonomics. Many research activities result from formal cooperation with Italian and European university departments and international research centers.
In 2003 Geox invested 7.5 million in R&D, a little less than 3% of net sales; an unusual proportion for a brown shoe manufacturer. The R&D organization is articulated, but not bureaucratic. Scientists and technicians work in teams, are fully interchangeable and systematically rotate jobs. This conspicuous research effort has resulted in a stream of patented inventions and innovations related to the original concept, as well as many relating to materials (e.g. plasma applications), products (e.g.: the breathable leather shoe), processes (e.g. glue saving assembly and sewing systems allowing improved shoe perspiration and flexibility), equipment and machinery (e.g. for shoe sole molding and injection).
This series of corollary patents developed around the original patent have also the function to make it impossible, for competitors, to simply copy the product when the original patent expires. In fact, Geox currently has some thirty patents and the original ne, which expires in 2009, will be practically unusable by competitors because of subsequent improvements.
Geox currently sells its shoes in 68 countries and offers to customers a full range of styles and models for different uses. Its strategy has re-defined the market space in the footwear industry, because its unique selling proposition (foot wellness thanks to "breathing shoes") appeals and applies to most of the market segments, as currently defined in the industry. Whereas most players serve one or few segments (e.g.: men's, women's, children's, casual, classic, fashion, sandals, boots, sport shoes, etc.), choosing the price range contingent on the target customer base, Geox leverages on the "breathing shoe" concept to serve a larger customer base, present in many of the market segments traditionally defined in the industry.
Thus, Geox competes with world leaders in comfort and casual footwear like Nike (Cole Haan), Reebok (Rockport), C&J Clark (Clarks), Timberland, Ecco, Genesco (Jarman, Johnston & Murphy) and Mephisto, as well as with segment "specialists" as Florsheim, Brown Shoe Company, Wolverine Worldwide (Hush Puppies, Coleman), Dexter, Skechers, Kenneth Cole, R. Griggs (Doc Maertens), Tod's and Birkenstock. Communication and advertising have played a fundamental role in Geox's strategy, with a budget of approximately 10% of revenues, and have contributed to building brand awareness and arousing consumer curiosity about its products. Contrary to most competitors, the Geox communication strategy neither relies on style and fashion nor simply appeals to the "Italian style" or other trendy attributes, but relies on the product's technical characteristics. It highlights the unique selling proposition, the vapor action, the patent's symbol, and the word "breathe", all of which convey the product's differentiating attributes, as well as the technology and unique benefits that Geox offers its customers.
The advantage of focusing on a single message is twofold: a) it points out the difference offered by the Geox product, namely that it resolves a problem that other shoes do not; b) it makes it possible to use the same message and image to publicize the product all over the world and in all market segments (men, women, kids, dressier shoes, leisure shoes etc.), increasing the ease of identifying the brand and therefore also its value. The communication mix used to promote this message is also very simple yet effective: advertising, sales promotions, public relations, sponsorships and one-to-one sales.