Prince Case Study

Over the years Prince has proven themselves as an industry leader in tennis racquets and equipment that has transformed the game of tennis through their innovations. They have proven themselves as innovators through their development of the first synthetic gut string and many other things that have met the levels of all tennis players. As the world of tennis changes and the number of participants increases, Prince is once again faced with a challenge to reinvent themselves to meet the demands of 21st century tennis players. The growth in tennis participation results in a change in the market environment and requires Prince to think of new ways to stay ahead of competition.

In the 21st century the presence of technology and social media are two major tools that can be used to Prince's advantage. Prince's first attempt to use technology in a new racket innovation was a failure. They released aracket with "O Port" holes that was supposed to improve racquet speed. "The idea was to differentiate itself from the marketplace, but it wasn't necessarily what the market wanted" (Rovell, 2012). Knowing the market demand when releasing a new product is one of the most important details to ensure success. Another issue they faced in the release is they put all their faith into this new development and lost focus on the other products that made them who they are today. To reverse this mistake I feel it is the right time with the tennis market growing to release a new type of racquet. This must meet the demand of the new emerging market while still paying attention to their older market to continue growth without loosing consumers. They can achieve this by directly contacting consumers and seeing what they would like or feel they are missing in a tennis racquet. Another idea to steer away from their last racquet release would be developing three new racquets that meet the need of each group. I don't think its possible to develop a racquet that caters to all strokes and