Running for top spot, Japan's ASICS eyes Nike and Adidas' turf in India

It has carved out a product and pricing strategy for every city based on its market potential

It has charted an ambitious target. Japanese premium sports goods giant ASICS — which sells 75 per cent of its shoes in the country at over ₹12,000 a pair — wants to be the No. 1 running shoe player in the $90-a-pair organised market in India, currently dominated by Nike, Adidas and Puma. To do so, it is making an aggressive push into Tier-II and Tier-III cities, where customers are ready to lap them up — as well as setting up company-owned stores in four to five locations across key metros.

 

Says Rajat Khurana, managing director of ASICS India: “We