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Styled Athletics | What AI Can Teach Us About Sportswear Challenger Brand Strategies

PLUS, Drake's Nocta Collaborates with Venezia FC for 2025-26 Soccer Jerseys

Author

Zihan Lyu
July 23, 2025

Welcome to Styled Athletics, your essential newsletter for marketers and eCommerce professionals in the athleisure industry.

Attribution Angle 🎯

The Biggest Mistake This Agency Sees 😬 | Jamie Bolton

Dan Sava from Neon Growth breaks down why so many brands are trapped in a cycle of over-investing in bottom-of-funnel (BOF) tactics.

The root cause? Overreliance on Last Click attribution — a model that ignores how awareness and consideration channels influence the final conversion. When only the last interaction gets credit, BOF looks like the hero. But it’s a distorted view that leads to skewed budgets and missed growth opportunities.

To truly grow, marketers need clarity across the full customer journey. That means measuring impact at every stage — from brand discovery to final conversion — and understanding how channels work together, not in isolation.

👉 Ready to measure the full funnel and grow?

Sector Spotlight 🎥

CHALLENGER BRAND INSIGHTS

BoF Insights reveals that challenger sportswear brands like On disrupt traditional players such as Nike by focusing 37% on everyday versatility, compared to 38% celebrity influence with incumbents. Industry leaders at the BoF event emphasized how AI-powered social listening informs marketing strategies, allowing these upstarts to increase market share through innovative collaborations and community-centric engagements.

MARKETING CAMPAIGN

J.C. Penney's "Back-to-It" campaign broadens back-to-school marketing by targeting all fashion-conscious consumers, not just children, through diverse media engagements. This approach builds on the "Yes, J.C. Penney" theme, enhancing brand metrics and consumer visits by emphasizing affordability and style reinvention, crucial for brands seeking expanded reach and consumer engagement.

BRAND COLLABORATIONS

Skims partners with League One Volleyball, becoming its official loungewear and intimates partner. This collaboration highlights Skims' strategic move to engage with the growing women's sports market, as volleyball gains popularity in the U.S. The partnership aims to elevate the visibility of female athletes and leverage the increasing viewership of events like the Women's NCAA Volleyball Tournament.

BRAND COLLABORATION

Nocta's partnership with Venezia FC marks a strategic extension of Drakes influence into the sportswear industry, leveraging his brand's prestige to enhance the soccer team's global appeal.

The collaboration underscores the alignment between Venezia's tradition and innovative spirit, as reflected in their new home jerseys that feature Nocta's logo, bringing a fresh dimension to the club's identity.

Performance Pulse 📈

RETAIL ANALYTICS

Leveraging AI and first-party data revolutionizes in-store retail media measurement, enabling precise targeting and actionable insights. Marketers now have the tools to analyze shopper engagement with campaigns, directly connecting them to sales and refining strategies in real time. With the integration of advanced analytics, marketers can optimize the full customer journey, making in-store media more strategic and effective.

ECOMMERCE MARKETING

The weekly Google Ads audit checklist offers eCommerce marketers a structured, detailed approach to optimizing ad accounts, monitoring core performance metrics, and addressing disapproved products. By focusing on various performance levels and time frames, marketers can identify and address trends, ensuring efficient budget allocation and better campaign results.

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