(image from TopVogue.net)

If there was one word in particular that stood out to me while reading this article on Nike’s success in sales, it is the slang term “athleisure”. What is athleisure? The purpose of athleisure apparel is to provide comfortable clothes while suggesting a sport-centric lifestyle. Meaning, one doesn’t have to be sporty to wear fashionable workout gear.

This trend was one of the prime reasons why Nike saw success in their sales. Athleisure clothing is a trend that isn’t something particularly new to me, as I have undoubtedly witnessed this trend during my early years of high school. From Lululemon yoga pants to Nike track pants, they were abundant in the hallways. Everyone – especially non-athletic people – wore them.

Only approximately 30% of my high school of 1400 students were involved in sports, and yet I had seen at least half of my peers wear some sort of athletic clothing everyday. From my experience at school, it’s no surprise that Nike gains most of their sales from athleisure clothing. Recognizing this trend allowed them to concentrate on a particular customer segment. By targeting people who wish to look athletic and fashionable simultaneously, Nike experiences growth in sales.

(Photo Credit: quitsmokingtoday7.com)
http://site.ebrary.com/lib/ubc/reader.action?docID=10187339&page=171

After reading the two articles linked above, I found out that exercising social responsibility and making profit tend to conflict with each other in the business world. It seems that companies only have two choices when it comes to the practice of social responsibility – they can either go for the riches (ignoring their conscience, beliefs, and morals) or they can do what’s ethically right (but miss out on what could have been millions of profit). Social Responsibility VS Making Profit: It’s difficult to do both.

“[Businessmen] are capable of being extremely farsighted and clearheaded in matters internal to business, but incredibly shortsighted and muddleheaded in matters outside of business.” (From The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase Profits)
This quote leads me to believe that a majority of businessmen focus on profit. Their company is the only thing they concentrate on, so matters occurring outside of the business are of no importance to them.

Looking at the second article, I was pleasantly surprised with CVS’ decision to stop selling tobacco. Despite the large amount of profit made from selling cigarettes, they recognized how the purchase can be detrimental to people’s health. This is an act of social responsibility that I appreciate seeing in businesses. They know they will sacrifice millions of dollars of profit because they believe the nation’s health comes first.

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