Casting about for a greater customer base, GPS mapping and sonar brand Lowrance caught traction with the recreational fishing market of Australia. Decades later the brand is still afloat and thriving.
June 18, 2006 (Press Release) --
Casting about for a greater customer base, GPS mapping and sonar brand Lowrance caught traction with the recreational fishing market of Australia. Decades later the brand is still afloat and thriving.
Fishing is Australia’s most popular recreational sport. With around 30 percent of the country’s inhabitants trying their hand at it and combining to spend approximately AUD 2 billion (US$ 1.5 billion) annually, many of fishing’s big name brands have steered their vessels down under to compete for a slice of the action.
Headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Lowrance recognized the potential associated with the Antipodes back in the late 1980s and subsequently set up shop in Sydney. Today, the company is located in the picturesque town of Tweed Heads and is seen as one of Australia’s leading sports fishing equipment brands, holding pole position within the recreational boat market while facing competition from the likes of Navman, Garmin and Hummingbird.
Lowrance’s general manager for Asia Pacific, Todd Moore, speaks passionately about the Australian market and attributes the company’s success in the region to its fundamentals. “Lowrance makes excellent products, which are then backed up by a first-rate team of people,” says Moore. "That proposition enables us to provide top-class sales and service across a range of distribution channels, whilst underpinning the entire concept with a well managed supply-chain.”
Moore cites two major reasons for why Lowrance’s brand has evolved in Australia. “Having the best available products has definitely been a major advantage. Our range of Fish Finders is second to none, and there are hundreds of examples of people having caught more fish by using our equipment over that of the competition. That’s also had a knock-on effect on product lifecycles, because let’s face it, if you sell something to a customer that won’t do the job, then [the product’s] not likely to last more than 12-months now, is it?”
The second reason Moore gives for Lowrance’s strength in Australia is the business’ status as a wholly-owned subsidiary of its Tulsa-based counterpart. “The fact that we are owned by our parent company gives us a substantial advantage over the competition,” he explains. “Most of our competitors operate through independent or licensed distributors and the consequence of that is a dilution of brand value. The fact that we can be selective with regard to our distribution channels, some of which are exclusive, means that we can really push hard on what the Lowrance brand means to its Australian customer base. [T]his is something that our competitors find very difficult to emulate.”
Moore continues, noting that the “same principles apply when it comes to sponsorship and advertising, which means that we can take a very direct approach to these [media], whereas our competitors cannot. The end result is that we invariably secure a prime position during major marketing opportunities, whilst [the competition] are still looking for promotional support from their suppliers.”
Source: http://search.msn.com
Posted by Ian Cocoran
Fishing is Australia’s most popular recreational sport. With around 30 percent of the country’s inhabitants trying their hand at it and combining to spend approximately AUD 2 billion (US$ 1.5 billion) annually, many of fishing’s big name brands have steered their vessels down under to compete for a slice of the action.
Headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Lowrance recognized the potential associated with the Antipodes back in the late 1980s and subsequently set up shop in Sydney. Today, the company is located in the picturesque town of Tweed Heads and is seen as one of Australia’s leading sports fishing equipment brands, holding pole position within the recreational boat market while facing competition from the likes of Navman, Garmin and Hummingbird.
Lowrance’s general manager for Asia Pacific, Todd Moore, speaks passionately about the Australian market and attributes the company’s success in the region to its fundamentals. “Lowrance makes excellent products, which are then backed up by a first-rate team of people,” says Moore. "That proposition enables us to provide top-class sales and service across a range of distribution channels, whilst underpinning the entire concept with a well managed supply-chain.”
Moore cites two major reasons for why Lowrance’s brand has evolved in Australia. “Having the best available products has definitely been a major advantage. Our range of Fish Finders is second to none, and there are hundreds of examples of people having caught more fish by using our equipment over that of the competition. That’s also had a knock-on effect on product lifecycles, because let’s face it, if you sell something to a customer that won’t do the job, then [the product’s] not likely to last more than 12-months now, is it?”
The second reason Moore gives for Lowrance’s strength in Australia is the business’ status as a wholly-owned subsidiary of its Tulsa-based counterpart. “The fact that we are owned by our parent company gives us a substantial advantage over the competition,” he explains. “Most of our competitors operate through independent or licensed distributors and the consequence of that is a dilution of brand value. The fact that we can be selective with regard to our distribution channels, some of which are exclusive, means that we can really push hard on what the Lowrance brand means to its Australian customer base. [T]his is something that our competitors find very difficult to emulate.”
Moore continues, noting that the “same principles apply when it comes to sponsorship and advertising, which means that we can take a very direct approach to these [media], whereas our competitors cannot. The end result is that we invariably secure a prime position during major marketing opportunities, whilst [the competition] are still looking for promotional support from their suppliers.”
Source: http://search.msn.com
Posted by Ian Cocoran
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