Had a very interesting chat with the guy who runs the sports-shop at the Sports Complex where I go for my regular squash. I noticed that Nadal and Federer were no longer there on his wall and all one could see were Djokovic posters with his Head racquets. One would be tempted to ask whether the change in fortunes at the recent Opens triggered some change in the brands the customers bought.
And it surely was the case – Babolat is no longer being stocked and its Head all the way. I remember not so long ago, that every one at the complex was using Babolat raquets( well you couldnt blame them, Nadal was on a rampage) with their hard-to-miss two white lines on the frame. But interestingly this phenomenon transcends only to the equipment not to apparel. It seems what most of these aspiring or hobby-athletes wear are still their favourite Nikes and Addidas.
So is it that an aspiring athlete wants to give himself the very best of equipment? Does the same phenomenon work across other segments like say watches and mobiles?
Will someone want to buy the same mobile that Aamir or Priyanka endorse? By the above logic, maybe not, but am sure there are other consumer psychology attributes that we missed in our chat yday at the complex.