Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.trends From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: trends Tue, Feb 18 1992 Date: Tue, 18 Feb 92 06:36:31 EST Message-ID: DECISIONLINE: Trends & Marketing USA TODAY Update Feb. 18, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network SHOE WAR GOES GLOBAL: The athletic-shoe war is escalating, and the battleground is more global than ever. U.S. sales in 1991 dropped 1.3% to 388 million pairs. Industry forecasts are for sluggish growth. Overseas sales are just gaining a foothold but growing fast. Consumers there are starting to buy the shoes for casual wear, which is what caused the '80s U.S. explosion, says analyst Brenda Gall. KIDS LIKE CARMEN SANDIEGO: Carmen Sandiego is everywhere. The title character of a series of home computer software games for kids steals things like the Eiffel Tower, forcing kids to decipher clues from history to retrieve the goods. In the process, the kids learn about history and geography. She and her gang have made the move to public TV and actually are an educational show kids like. MORE THAN 2 MILLION SOLD: Carmen Sandiego is the brainchild of 25 Broderbund Software employees and premiered in "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?" in 1985. Overall, more than 2 million games have sold. Game players sign in with the Acme Detective Agency and follow clues from round the world and through history to track down Carmen, who steals landmarks and precious objects. SINGLE FATHERS LESS RARE: Nearly one in six single parents is male, an Iowa State University study shows, and 20% of single fathers have never been married. The study by Iowa State University professor Steven Garasky and researcher Daniel Meyer shows that the number of single fathers has grown steadily over the last 30 years. In 1959, just 1% of all families were headed by single fathers, vs. 4% in 1989. DEALERSHIPS DWINDLE: The number of new-car dealerships in the USA is dropping. After hovering between 24,825 and 26,350 for the past decade, there were an estimated 24,000 in 1991, according to the National Automobile Dealers Association. That's the biggest one-year drop in six years. MARKETERS HEAD SOUTH: Mexican consumers, fueled by years of exposure to U.S. advertising, are hot for U.S. brands. Until recently, most of the stuff was available only on the black market or by crossing the border. But Mexico's economy is stabilizing and marketers are pouring in. In recent months dozens of U.S. restaurant chains, apparel makers and retailers have opened shop in Mexico. I.D. BRACELETS HOT: Ever since World War II, Speidel has helped define generations of young Americans with ID bracelets. Speidel Textron of Rhode Island attributed steady sales of I.D. bracelets to the baby boom and were prepared for a decline in the '80s. It didn't happen. Perhaps it was the nostalgia craze, but sales of ID bracelets kept climbing. Sales have risen 280% in the past six years. DROPPING BASES A FACT OF LIFE: Three years ago when TV Guide dropped its guaranteed circulation rate base, many viewed it as a sign of weakness. But it hardly raised eyebrows when it cut its rate base last month. As the magazine industry weakens, advertisers and publishers are recognizing that rate-base cuts are becoming a fact of life. Time has dropped its base twice. It's now at 4 million. CALL TO END UPFRONT AUCTION: Three top media powers are calling for an end to the frenzied upfront auction that has long been a network TV ritual. Procter & Gamble, Young & Rubicam and J. Walter Thompson have made a bid to end the rush to secure commercial time on a 12-month, September-to-September basis. They'd rather buy network time when it suits them. Feeding the trend: Multi-year deals and multi-daypart deals. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON SHOES: NIKE, REEBOK ARE TOPS: Nike and Reebok, No. 1 and No. 2 in worldwide sporting goods revenue, are competing overseas with established global players like Germany's Adidas AG and Japan's Asics, plus new fashion-industry entries from Guess and Benetton. But Nike and Reebok were best at persuading U.S. consumers to buy athletic shoes although most are worn for casual use. The strategy is working overseas. OVERSEAS REVENUE SOARS: Nike's overseas revenue soared 58% last year, Reebok's 60%. Both expect half their revenue to come from abroad within three years, vs. 27% now for Nike and 32% for Reebok. They've already made big strides overseas, stepping on smaller, less well-heeled competitors such as Adidas. Analysts expect the former world leader to slip as Europe's top athletic-shoe maker by 1995. NIKE, REEBOK BOOST SPENDING: Says John Horan, editor of industry newsletter Sporting Goods Intelligence: "You're not going to be able to compete unless you can put up enough money for new products backed by big marketing campaigns." Both Nike and Reebok plan to boost ad spending, Reebok from $140 million last year to $220 million this year. Nike plans a 30% ad spending increase to $150 million. (End of package.) Trends & Marketing Editor: Beth Mann. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. 08:0002180000D0218 TRAV-R I Company,-not-cost,-makes-trip......... A D0218 This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM