Mizuno Activates Online and In-Store

Norcross, Ga. — Sporting goods manufacturer Mizuno USA launched a golf-themed contest in March that coincided with the deployment of a versatile new P-O-P display for its line of athletic products.The “Play Famously” contest prompted consumers (i.e., high handicappers) to try out Mizuno’s new JPX-825 golf irons and then write about the experience on a brand microsite. Twelve winners were then selected to join “Team JPX” and receive a September trip to Atlanta to play in the “Mizuno JPX Invitational,” as well as a set of the clubs, apparel and professional instruction.Separately, through a partnership with Grafton, Wis.-based Frank Mayer & Associates, Mizuno rolled out a modular display/fixture that works for the brand’s different categories of equipment: golf, running and baseball/softball.With adjustable shelving and a few implements, the display can be altered at retail to accommodate everything from athletic shoes to baseball bats to golf clubs. The graphics panels are changeable, and if floor space is not available, all elements are compatible with flat walls, says Mizuno brand support manager Dean Cole.“The retailer gets the same unified look whether it’s on the wall or floor, whether it’s golf or a baseball team shop,” Cole says. “We left it up to the retailer, based on what it wanted to highlight, to build.”The smallest version of the display has a base with a double-sided tower holding stacked shelves for one running shoe apiece. A display with a larger base features golf clubs or baseball bats in several rows on each side. The larger versions have a graphic panel on each side. The graphics consist of a flat black background with a white Mizuno logo, a change from charcoal and blue for previous merchandising. Cole says the black positions the product as more premium.Graphic Solutions Group, Kennesaw, Ga., produced the four-color lifestyle panels, while KDM P.O.P. Solutions Group, Cincinnati, produced the black divider panels used behind the golf clubs and baseball bats.Cole says that while Mizuno merchandise is sold at a variety of sporting goods retailers, its golf marketing is mostly focused on pro shops at golf courses. And while big box specialty shop Golfsmith does carry its products, the new display fixture in the golf setup is used primarily in the pro shops.

Mizuno Activates Online and In-Store

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