Chapter 12: Supply Chain

The Billabong International Limited supply chain comprises a group of third party contractors that manufacture product for brands within the Billabong International Limited group. The contractors operate factories in approximately 25 global destinations including Asia, India, the USA, South America and Europe. As of 30 June 2009 the supply chain comprised in excess of 400 individual factories. These factories produce more than 60 million individual product units for the Billabong group in any 12 month period. While the volume of goods that are produced throughout the supply chain sounds impressive, Billabong group product generally makes up a very small percentage of the overall business of the vast majority of the individual suppliers. Moreover, the influence within the global supply chain held to certain social and environmental standards as detailed in the Group's Supplier Agreement. Among these standards is a commitment to meet all applicable laws in their country of operation. Where factories breach these obligations, the Company seeks to engage the supplier to undertake remediation works to lift standards. If the supplier fails to comply with such works within a satisfactory period, the Company may seek to terminate the working relationship. Conversely, factories that commit to responsible work practices are favoured by Billabong International Limited

Chapter 12: Marketing Channels.

Billabong’s products are sold throughout the world by its directly controlled operations in Australia, New Zealand, North America, Europe and Japan and through licensed operations and distributors in other regions. Products are distributed through Importers, Agents, Wholesalers, buyers and resellers. Furthermore, the products are found in specialized board sports retailers, company's own branded retail outlets, wholesalers, and in retail intermediaries. For instance, Macy’s provide billabongs products, and also has other surf brands like Roxy and Hurley, with the purpose of help customers find their needs in the same place without taking them too much time of their lives to shop from store to store.

Chapter 10: Products Life Cycle

NGC (New Generation Computing) announced that Billabong has selected NGC's e-PLM for Product Lifecycle Management and e-SPS for Global Sourcing and Visibility. NGC's software will be implemented worldwide as a strategic PLM and global sourcing solution for Billabong across all of the company's regions and brands.
Billabong selected NGC after a detailed and rigorous evaluation of the industry's leading PLM vendors. "We chose NGC based on the functionality and ease of use of their solutions, as well as NGC's deep understanding of the fashion and apparel industries," said Mike Savage, General Manager of Product Development, Billabong International Limited.
"Billabong is an exciting, dynamic company and one of the hottest brands in action-sports apparel," said Alan Brooks, President, NGC. "NGC is honored that we were selected by Billabong, and we look forward to a successful implementation."

Chapter 10: New Products.

Billabong employs separate design teams in Australia, North America, and Europe to create new products that will appeal to individual market places. The design team is in charge of selecting every single detail of the new products. Their final touches are to position the product as high quality and fashionable items. Also, they have to be sure that these are original and have the ''wave'' logo widely recognizable. Moreover, the design team considers ideas from other sources. For instance, Billabongs model Tori Praver worked together with the design team to create this Tori Praver design for Humanity bikini.

Chapter 16: Personal Selling‏

People that shops at Billabong are really satisfied with the treatment that they receive at the stores. Therefore, to quench customers’ needs and questions, Billabong is really careful at the moment of picking up their employees. Normally, Billabongs salespeople are surfers, skaters, and snow boarders, with the goal of have employees feeling comfortable with the store products and environment to transmit that feeling to customers. Also, they hire extreme sorties for the knowledge they already have. For instance, a surfer employee knows a lot of things about surfers’ wants and needs; therefore, he/she could easily help a customer, being natural and relax wipe working. Billabong employees are always fresh and young people, friendly and open to customers, giving them the confidence to ask for anything they need.

Chapter 16: Sales Promotions

Billabong is not a company that uses sales promotion as often as a strategic plan. For instance, they put on sale few products that weren't sold in the season they belong to. For example, in Soho New York, the store has a small wall with products on sale. There they are using a premium sale promotion, offering mans flip-flops on regular price and the second pair 50% off. They are also selling few board shorts on rebate with a 20% off. As we can see, these promotions aren't made to attract or enhance lower price searchers consumers. In fact, is not common to find Billabong's products in a Billabong store on sale.

Chapter 15: Public Relations

One of the ways billabong maintains a high public relation is getting public publicity by sponsoring or organizing championships. Some of their own championships are International Flow Championship, ASP World Junior Championship, OCCY's Grom Comp, and Billabong Pipeline Masters. Another way Billabong gets public publicity is by sponsoring pro surfers, skaters, and snowboarders from all around the world. These sportiest have a contract with the bran getting billabongs products for free with the condition of wearing and using them all the time. This sportiest are chosen by their professionalism and popularity; for example, Hawaiian surfer Granger Larsen, Brazilian surfer Maya Gabeira, skater Bucky Lasek from Maryland, skater Lacey Baker from California, snowboarders Clint Allan and Jamie Anderson, and body boarder Matt Lackey. Also, all of them are part of billabongs different teams based on the sport they play.

Chapter 15: Billabong ads

Here are some more Billabong Advertisements samples.


Feel beautiful and enjoy...Love Billabong.

Billabong Commercial.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQ2BmPnOBmQ&NR=1#watch-main-area

Chapter 15: Advertising

Billabong uses an institutional advertising strategy. As a clothing brand, billabong commonly doesn't advertise just one of its products. Their advertisements are made to build up and make more popular the image of the company. As we can see in this add, billabong is not advertising a specific product, it is just promoting the name ''Billabong''. This advertisement shows three ''friends'' in a sunny day, enjoying, laughing, and having fun in their way to the beach. We can also infer that they are feeling sure, beautiful, and comfortable wearing billabong clothe. These kinds of ads are published in teens and sport magazines, wed sides, channels, and in many kinds of outdoor media. Billabong advertisements are also always implying their slogan ''feel beautiful and enjoy...Love Billabong'' in their pictures and images.

Chapter 17 : Dividend Announcement

21 August 2009: Directors resolved to pay a final dividend of 18.0 cents per share, franked to 50%. This takes the full year dividend to 45 cents per share, representing a full year payout ratio of 63.7% of NPAT, excluding the impairment charge. The unfranked portion of the dividend is declared to be conduit foreign income. Australian dividend withholding tax is not payable by non-resident shareholders on the unfranked portion of the dividend sourced from conduit foreign income.

The record date (books closing date) for determining an entitlement to the dividend is 25 September 2009 and the dividend will be paid on 23 October 2009. Trading on an ex-dividend basis will commence on 21 September 2009 (four business days before the record date in accordance with the timetable laid out in Appendix 6A of the ASX Listing Rules).

The Dividend Reinvestment Plan (DRP) was approved by the Directors on 21 August 2008. In the financial year ended 30 June 2009, the DRP was offered to ordinary shareholders for the first time and provided the opportunity to acquire fully paid ordinary shares, without transaction costs, at the prevailing market value less 2.5%. For the final dividend to be paid on 23 October 2009, the DRP is optional and offers ordinary shareholders the opportunity to acquire fully paid ordinary shares which rank equally with all other shares issued, without transaction costs, at the prevailing market value. A shareholder can elect to participate in or terminate their involvement in the DRP in respect of the 2009 final dividend at any time prior to the record date of 25 September 2009.

Chapter 17: Billabongs Revenue.

Chapter 17: Billabong Share Price

Billabong is sweeping back into favor; with the Gold Coast surf wear giant's shares on April 29th closing above $10 for the first time since December. The Burleigh-based company has been riding a wave of renewed optimism that the US market has finally turned the corner, punctuated last weekend by rosy comments from US President Barak Obama's economic adviser Lawrence Summers. Mr Summers said the 'sense of unremitting freefall' evident in the US economy a month ago had disappeared. On Monday August 24th, Billabong's shares temporarily shot to a high of $11.05 thanks to a trading glitch, before sliding back to finish at $9.43. But April 29th, the surge began in earnest with the shares jumping 7.6 per cent to close at $10.12 -- adding almost $1 billion to Billabong's value since February's low of $6.09. Brokers were at a loss to explain the sudden favoritism.

Chapter 13: Retailing

Retailing ere All the activities directly related to the sale of goods and services to the ultimate consumer for personal, non-business use. There are different classifications of retailing which are Ownership, level of service, Product Assortment, and Price.

• Ownership: Independent, Retailers Chain Stores and Franchises
• Level of service: it can go from self services like factory outlets and Warehouse clubs, which provide low service, to full service like Exclusive stores, which provides every kind of services that consumer could need.
• Price: The amount of money the retailer makes as a percentage of sales after the cost of goods sold is subtracted.

There are also non store retailing, which are companies that offer their goods and services without having a store. For example, Automatic vendors are the machines that offer goods for sale. Another non store is Direct Retailing; this retail classification is based on the selling of products by representatives who work door-to-door, office-to-office, or at home parties. A third non store retailing is Direct Marketing, this retail use techniques to get consumer to make purchase from their home, office, or another non retail setting. The last non store retailing would be Electronic Retailing; they encourage consumers to shop online at home.

Retail promotion strategy is all about Advertising, Public Relations, Publicity, and Sales Promotion. The site choice is also a part of promotion strategy. It is important to investigate for Economic growth potential, Competition, and Geography. Also the Atmosphere is the overall impression conveyed by a store’s physical layout, décor, and surroundings. Presentation of the Retail Store is what attracts consumers to visit a store, Employee type and density, Merchandise type and density, Fixture type and density, Sound, Odors, and Visual factors are aspects that consumers look in a store as part of service.

Chapter 13: Billabongs Retail

Billabong currently has around twenty company-owned stores across Europe and Hazell says it has plans to grow as suitable opportunities arise, whilst not compromising its core business as a wholesale driven operation which sells to surf and board sports stores worldwide.
"Retail offers Billabong an opportunity to showcase our product portfolio and this helps us drive brand value and awareness," adds Hazell. "In these situations, it's critical that the IT platform is both robust and efficient, and sits comfortably within the retail environment."
"We chose VC STIMELESS because it's the only truly international retail software vendor for a retail like us, and it was fundamental to our growing needs to integrate regional and country specific retail practices, like fisility and legislation, as well as have instant support for our staff in their own language," concludes Hazell. Anticipated benefits of the new system include:

• easier to use and learn for store staff
• improve (more informed and quicker) customer service, especially at busy times
• significant reductions in surplus and discounted stock through improved forecasting
• fewer returns to the central warehouse
• cost savings and increased performance
• less shrinkage
• improved accuracy on inventories
• less paperwork, so considerable times savings
• fewer errors than with previous manual processes (e.g. supplier tracking)
• real time information and improved management reporting

Chapter 9: Product Warranties

Here is an example of a Billabong express warranty. Moreover, pressing the button "Features" people will see another picture saying "The Foil suit is a perfect combination a quality, fit, and performance. 50% of the foil suits consist of the latest Ailite Superflex neoprene, positioned in areas designed to maximize performance. The upper torso, shoulders, under areas, lower back, crotch, and knee area make for unrestricted flexibility. The Foil is a durable all-round suit at an unbeatable price".
http://www.billabongwetsuits.com/07site/

Chapter 9: Billabongs Products.

Billabong is also caracterized as a shopping product seller. It sells t-shirts, shorts, pants, jeans, wet suits, jumpers, bags, swimwear, and accessories to roughly 3,000 specialty surfing and boarding shops worldwide. It products have different styles, colors, sizes, and features. More than 2,200 product lines are sold by Billabong in Australia; more than 1,300 lines are in North America; and more than 1,200 lines are in Europe. Billabong products are sold in more than 60 countries. While licensed distributors handle the sale of Bill-abong products in some countries, Billabong has gained more control over its international distribution by increasing its number of wholly owned subsidiaries.

Chapter 8: Marketing Research Report

Our Billabong International Ltd. Company Profile is the essential source for top-level company data and information. The report examines the companies key business structure and operations, history and products, and provides summary analysis of its key revenue lines and strategy.

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*Provides all the crucial company information required for business and competitor intelligence needs.
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*Data is supplemented with details on the company’s history, key executives, business description, locations and subsidiaries as well as a list of products and services and the latest available company statement.

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*Support sales activities by understanding your customers’ businesses better.
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Chapter 7: Positioning Bases

- Price and Quality: High quality for a reasonable price at Billabong

- Use or Application: Shows that Billabong swimsuits are comfortable for people that enjoy been on the beach.

- Product User: Surf champions wear Billabong products, like Tori Praver in this picture.

- Competitor: Tori Praver use Billabong instead of Roxy, Hurley, or any other surf brand.

- Emotion: Demonstrate that Billabong is the better brand for people that have their hearts with the sea.

Chapter 7: Market Segmentation.

As and international brand, Billabong thinks in different things to different people. Therefore, Billabong started only selling board shorts and now sells every type of clothes and even surfboards. To quench customer’s wants and need, Billabong has to be a multiple-variable segmentation company. It is divided for people of different ages, genders, and culture. For example, Billabong offers it clothes and accessories to kids, teenagers, young adult, and some adults of any gender, male or female. Billabong also takes care of it customers’ cultures. Billabongs web site, billabong.com, is organized in to aspects. It has the side for women and the other one for men, on each side people can see different countries options that people can choose based on the one they are from or at least that is near to them. The web page is updated with pictures, languages, and correct products for the seasons on each country. On the other hand, Billabongs psychographic segmentation is just based in people’s lifestyle, the ones that enjoy, practice, or like extreme sports.

Chapter 6: Strategic Alliances

NGC (New Generation Computing) today announced that Billabong has selected NGC's e-PLM for Product Lifecycle Management and e-SPS for Global Sourcing and Visibility. NGC's software will be implemented worldwide as a strategic PLM and global sourcing solution for Billabong across all of the company's regions and brands. Billabong selected NGC after a detailed and rigorous evaluation of the industry's leading PLM vendors. "We chose NGC based on the functionality and ease of use of their solutions, as well as NGC's deep understanding of the fashion and apparel industries," said Mike Savage, General Manager of Product Development, Billabong International Limited. "Billabong is an exciting, dynamic company and one of the hottest brands in action-sports apparel," said Alan Brooks, President, NGC. "NGC is honored that we were selected by Billabong, and we look forward to a successful implementation."

Chapter 6: The Role of The Internet.

Like many companies, Billabong has commercial web sites. With these web sites, Billabong offers information and purchases facilities to their customers. The main web site is billabong.comwere people can chose the countries were they are. On it, people from all around the world can look at the items that Billabong has, see prices, and also make purchases. It's an easy way for customers to bay clothe when they don't have time to go to the stores. Customers can also look for news about the brand at billabongbiz.com. On this web site, people can find every kind of news, from new championships to financial information about the store. Furthermore, people can see the history of billabong, apply for a job, and people can ask them questions too.

Chapter 5: identify factors that affect consumers buying decisions.

Even though they have some clothes for kids, Billabong clothes and accessories are specially made for people between the ages of 15 to 22. How all we know, Billabong is a surfer brand, which has identify the factors that affect and influence their customers buying decisions. Those influences are basically famous and world champion surfers; for this reason, Billabong customers try to get dressed and look like them. Therefore, Billabong sponsor some of these surfers and world championships with the purpose of lure more surfers customers and people that want to me one. Some times Billabong also has free publicity. There are some young celebrities that like wearing billabongs clothe, probably because it goes with their style. From this side, Billabong gets more consumers that may not be surfers but they bay billabong's clothe because they want to be like their favorite celebrities.

Chapter 5: consumer decision making process.

When people recognize that they need or want new clothes or accessories, some of them may go directly to Billabong, in other cases they may evaluate the alternative and make a choice. At this point, Billabong has some competitive brands that are at the same level. Some of these brands are Roxy, Quicksilver, Volcom, O’Neill, and Hurley. Their prices and products are extremely alike; therefore, consumers' decisions are based on sales and original products that each brand have. In this case, Billabong doesn't really low their prices, their strategy is to have more publicity and make the brand more famous, for example, last winter Billabong organized a snowboard championship for none recognized snowboarders in New York City. Billabong also offers different styles, like this summer their collection was based on a hippie surfer style. They are always changing colors and styles, giving something new to their customers.

Chapter 4: Anatomy of a Multinational Company.- Billabong

- Billabong has 300 stores around the world tourists and locals. in more than 100 countries, with its major regions being North America, Australasia and Europe. These regions include Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong, the United States, Canada, Brazil, Peru, Chile, Spain, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, Austria, Belgium and Holland. Outside of the key regions, Billabong also has extensive business in areas including South Africa.

- The company has approximately 1750 full time staff worldwide.

- Group sales revenue of $1.67 billion represented a 23.9% increase on the prior year.- The Company's brands are marketed and promoted internationally through association with high profile professional athletes, junior athletes and events.

-Billabong logo means a stagnant pool of water in the bed of a stream that flows intermittently.

- Costumes Experience at billabong highly interactive, engaging, and relax.

Chapter 4: External Environment

SWOT Analysis, is a strategic planning tool used to evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved in a project or in a business venture. The aim of any SWOT analysis is to identify the key internal and external factors that are important to achieving the objective. SWOT analysis groups key pieces of information into two main categories: Internal factors - The strengths and weaknesses internal to the organization. External factors, the opportunities and threats presented by the external environment. The external factors may include macroeconomic matters, technological change, legislation, and socio-cultural changes, as well as changes in the marketplace or competitive position. The results are often presented in the form of a matrix.

Chapter 3: Ethical Behavior in Business

All decisions and actions undertaken by Billabong International Limited are aligned to a simple vision and values statement:
Respect the past but represent the future- Within this philosophy, the Company is committed to recognizing and building on its strengths, challenging established boundaries and rewarding innovation. The Company recognizes the value of teamwork, the need to think globally but act locally, the benefits of fostering a culture of growth and opportunity, the need to act responsibly and ethically and the need to maintain the flexibility to adapt to change.

Chapter 3: Environmental Management

Be The Change You Want In The World is a philosophical challenge for people to live their life by example. In effect, it encourages individuals to proactively lead the change to a more responsible world.
Billabong has adopted Be The Change You Want In The World as the statement under which the brand's environmental and social strategies are grouped. It effectively serves as an information portal through which visitors to the Company's website can learn more about environmental and social initiatives and better understand the groups and charities supported by the brand.

11/12/09

Billabongs Supplier Policy

Billabong International has a direct workforce of in excess of 1500 people based around the surfing hubs. Staff are offered a challenging and dynamic work environment across a range of disciplines including graphic design, sales, marketing, warehousing and distribution, quality control, manufacturing, retailing, finance and administration. Billabong also understands its workforce extends beyond its direct employees and into the factories of third-party contractors within the Group's global supply chain. The work practices and employment conditions of these contract workplaces are under review by Billabong International to ensure compliance with internationally-accepted standards. These compliance among all external factory contractors which are International Labour Organisation conventions, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The audits are undertaken with the specific goal of identifying and eliminating any under-age working violations, addressing remuneration and overtime issues. Billabong International believes the move towards such a standard is the only suitable way to demonstrate their continued adherence to appropriate labour standards.

09/12/09

Some Advertisement Strategies

Wallace, vice-president, is a busy man. Months ago VAS, the company contracted to sell Billabong content around the world, was at a MIPCOM TV sales conference in Cannes marketing a 13-part series to potential buyers. “It’s centred around our athletes. It is less about the sport and more about the lifestyle of the athletes,” says Wallace. The surf label produces up to 35 hours of high-definition video a year, drawing on events around the world and its small army of athletes as the subject. A 25-strong audio visual team went to the Billabong Pro Tahiti in May to film the event, which was sells around the world. During the tournament Billabong streamed live feeds to its website, which attracted 1 million unique visitors during the event. Now it is giving Sony Handycams to its athletes, who include surfers Joel Parkinson, Andy Irons, Taj Burrow and Tiago Pires, to film every aspect of their lives. Apparently there is demand to watch them eating breakfast, or at least the edited highlights, says Wallace. For Sony’s marketing director, Toby Barbour, it is a way of getting his products before a younger audience. “We want to get them early so that we can follow them through the life stages with products such as Sony Ericsson mobile phones, Handycams and Bravia.” But to what end does all of this serve Billabong? Wallace says it is hard to measure the return on investment of producing all this content, the cost of which he will not reveal. “I guess the return on investment is about raising the profile of the sport, our athletes and, yes, ultimately our brand.”

09/04/09

Billabongs economic status

Surfwear group Billabong International Ltd has posted a 13.3 per cent fall in annual profit and reduced its final dividend. Net profit for the year ended June 30 was $152.84 million, down from $176.38 million in the previous year. Billabong chief executive officer Derek O'Neill said the result reflected the swift and unprecedented economic slowdown that impacted global economies. Billabong has cut its forecast, Mr O'Neill also said the group was approaching 2009/10 with conservative expectations, it was difficult to build a potential recovery in retailer demand and consumer spending into its forecasts. In response to current conditions, the Company continues to scrutinise and reduce costs, manage receivables and inventory levels across all regions and closely monitor and review both small and large accounts.

09/03/09
Billabong brand surf and extreme sports was funded by Gordon and Rena Merchant in 1973.It started at the kitchen table in the Merchant’s apartment in Australia, they also created the original logo that is still used today. The husband and wife began to sell board shorts to surfing shops for a $4.50 per pairs, selling a $5.000 in merchandise the first year in business. Their first facture was a 1,000 square-foot space in 1975. By 1977 sales reached a $100.000 allowing the company to re located to a bigger factory. After 1984 Billabong began to sponsor the Word Final Surfing contest, the event provided international exposure just as the company started to expand into international markers, starting in New Zeeland, Japan, and USA. Today Billabong sells its products all over the world in over 100 countries including Australia, London, and South Africa; the company also sponsors surfers, skaters and pro surfing tournaments around the world.