zai

building a brand

Benedikt Germanier, CEO – zai AG

krakow, june 2014

The zai anchor

In the beginningwas the mountain

Summits and steepnesspinnacles and peaksstony, rocky ranges

zai finds the linereading the mountain

plays in the snowlike jackdaws in the sky

zai, the tougher ski

A titangoing his own way

not willing to compromisenot willing to die

objectives - chronology

- at the beginning was the product

- establishing a company around the product

- positioning the company in a distinct niche

- distribution key

- building on customer value

- leveraging the brand value

2014 collection

entering a volume business – creating a new industry

the home of zai

Am Anfang war der Berg

Geröll und MassivZacken und Klüfte

Stein und Fels

zai findet die Liniedie den Berg verstehtEr spielt im Schnee

wie die Dohle am Himmel

zai, der zähere Ski

ein Titander weiss was er will

unbestechlichunverwüstlich

a bold idea

Ist actually a bold idea:

- exceptional strong product

- playing niche – CH market potential = 2000 ski sales/year

- differentiation - it is not only about skiing

- Rising demand for luxury goods

- quality, technology, longevity, innovation

- engineered & produced in Switzerland a „must“

...this is why it will work:

- renting vs. buying (increasing buying power)

- relative low barriers to entry, high exit barriers, increasing competition among existing players in a declining industry returns

- framing: „a ski as expensive as a car?“

- luxury markets are vulnerable to income shocks

- production in asia a „must“

the team

reshaping the business playground

- the aim is to create a brand value balance sheet vs P&L approach

- profitability is a means but not the initial objective - long-term, strong vision needed, short-term opportunism

dismissed

- focus on mitigating risks vs. maximising short-term returns

uniqueness

focusing on customer value

- virtual monopoly: product cannot be substituted

- long-term growth provided by limitation and customer focus, no mass expansion

- management to secure effectiveness (vs efficiency) – quality of the product steers resource requirements

- creating customer value becomes key (event management, after sales service, customer relationships, CRM tools, new media exposure)

(also see: Ricca Manfredi, Robins Rebecca, Meta-luxury – Brands and the Culture of Excellence, New York, 2012)

questions – positioning the brand

- how would you define zais‘ Unique Value Proposition (UVP)?

(A value proposition is a promise of value to be delivered and a belief from the customer that value will be

experienced. A value proposition can apply to an entire organization, or parts thereof, or customer

accounts, or products or services, Source: Wikipedia)

- moving ahead: how would you position the brand? key criterias?

- what would your distribution concept look like?

lessons learned

- time to market longer than anticipated

- positioning the brand and building global distribution takes time and requires (enormous) resources

- brand value does not create immediate cash flow

- business is dependent on macrocycles & weather

- diversification: enlarging the product line while maintaining core values

- innovation & technological leadership capital intense

- insourcing vs. outsourcing = controling quality & innovation processes key

zai facts

2003 – establishment of zai ski AG

2004 – zai classic, the first model / entering the retail market

2005 – zai spada: stone core ski – a key innovation with exclusive rights for zai from patented technology Tecno Carbon, Munich

2008 – zai for Hublot

2009 – zai for Bentley / EU torsion patent P5285EP00

2010 – zai nezza / EU pending patent P5879EP00 2011 – DT double tip geometry patent P7417CH00 / zai feffa / zai cassacca/ various design protections / zai is chosen as official ski of the Fis World Alpine Ski Championships 2011 in Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

2012 – establishment of zai golf AG and zai tec AG / 12 employees /70 dealers in 18 countries / 25 shareholders with 5 making up 70% of the company/product: the sabi

2013 – strategic shift in focus from product to Distribution & Marketing

2014 – cooperation with carl f bucherer / releasing the golf putter family senda

moving ahead

- zai‘s 10th anniversary - an ideal time to build on achievements

- strategic shift in focus from product to Distribution & Marketing

- expanded and enhanced zai events programme

- new Client Relationship Management tool

- less new R&D, more focus on production quality and sales

- clearly defined staff structure and project management: decision,

delegation, implementation, control

pissiun