Diadora has long been committed to preserving the uniqueness of specialty run retail. Now, Diadora USA president and CEO Bryan Poerner is ready to open up about how the brand has served, and will continue to serve, this influential and critically important channel.
After seven years of practice, tweaking and implementation, Diadora is being intentional about telling the story of its “Respect the Fit” initiative, an approach to footwear distribution the footwear company has labeled a game-changer in specialty run retail. Diadora stated this effort is its response to a market dominated by discounting and brand focus on direct-to-consumer (DTC).
“We’ve had the pieces in place for years, we’ve just never talked about it outside of our account meetings. We’re naming it now and are calling attention to it. We’re branding the actual business model that we have. This is a rededication of what we stand for,” Poerner told FN.
What defines “Respect the Fit,” Diadora believes, is its holistic approach. For instance, Poerner — who joined Diadora in 2016 after spending 14 years at Puma — stated all Diadora tier one running product in the U.S. is sold solely via run specialty retail and will remain that way, and as for the brand’s DTC business, the products are intentionally never discounted.
“Now more than ever, I’m watching product everywhere, distribution everywhere. Our competition is becoming more broadly distributed so the product that is in specialty is less special,” Poerner said. “DTC is a competitor for retailers — I feel like it’s their biggest competitor.”
He continued, “The market is becoming becoming more non-specialized when it comes to product. For the best retailers to retain customers, to keep growing, to have something interesting talk about, it comes down to product. You need something special. You need the consumer to leave the retail environment with the best product, with the best story, something that you can’t find everywhere else.”
Also, Diadora stated it has allocated a portion of the total net revenue from its DTC running business, and at the end of the year the brand shares those set aside profits with its top-performing specialty run retail partners. Providing an example of how its sharing program works, Diadora stated if a specialty run retail account contributes 3 percent to Diadora’s overall business, that retail account is entitled to receive 3 percent of the profits that it specifically sets aside for this program.
These accounts, according to the brand, receive regular stock of key models, and they commit to a short list of criteria that includes bi-weekly social media posts and more to boost Diadora’s success in their stores.
The conversation Diadora is ready to start around “Respect the Fit” comes at a good time for its running business. Poerner said during his time with the company, Diadora’s running business has experienced consecutive 50-60 percent growth annually.
Aside from “Respect the Fit,” Poerner revealed several products he expects to be a hit for Diadora in 2024. For instance, Poerner is confident the tech-loaded Gara Carbon will be well received when it arrives in Q1, as well as updates to its Cellula and Frequenza franchises in Q2. Also, the update to the Nucleo in Q4, the exec said, should attract consumers, and in the back half of the year Diadora will introduce high-level track-and-field product into the market.
