Page 254 - Performance Leadership

Chapter 12 Performance Networks • 243

of customization, if an entire sports club or student organization is to
be outfitted in shoes with a specific logo.
The key success factor for Athletixx moves from the quality of the
product—people testing if the shoes fit well, to brand trust. Is Athletixx
a brand one would trust to buy shoes from without having seen them
in person first? Is the brand so powerful that people buy a personalized
pair of shoes just because their peers have them too?
That leaves the question of transparency. It is clear that the new per-
formance network can only work if there is a high degree of trans-
parency between Athletixx and its business partners in manufacturing,
logistics, and the shops, to make sure there is a seamless customer
experience. It remains to be seen how high the transparency toward
the customer is. Athletixx is a brand with a certain brand value, which
means it can, and should, ask for a premium. On the other hand, dif-
ferent customers have different expectations and spending power. As
a consequence Athletixx will introduce a few price categories between
which customers can choose. The choices in product design by the
customer will be restricted to what remains profitable within that price
category.
Given the high level of uniqueness of the design, the business model
is bound to attract competition that offers “white-label footwear” to be
customized. White labels do not have the brand value Athletixx has,
and they will have to compete on price. Most likely, the competition
will choose a high-transparency business model. As with pizza toppings,
customers are charged a basic price, and during the design process the
additional cost of every step will be shown, so that the customer can
exactly balance price and level of customization.
The best way for Athletixx to respond to competition is to create a
community of intermediaries, each representing their own brand or
lifestyle. Athletixx products can be tailored and cobranded to appeal to
many different customer segments.

Alignment

All stakeholders—business partners, shareholders, governmental agen-
cies, unions, customers, and employees in the performance network—
are interdependent and need each other to be successful. The interesting