{"id":12724,"date":"2017-01-09T04:00:44","date_gmt":"2017-01-09T10:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rocksdigital.com\/?p=12724"},"modified":"2025-06-17T10:29:31","modified_gmt":"2025-06-17T15:29:31","slug":"market-niching","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rocksdigital.com\/market-niching\/","title":{"rendered":"Market Niching: Check Your Underwear Drawer"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Market<\/a>
Image Credit \u2013 Zarya Maxim Alexandrovich\/shutterstock.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Are you looking for creative and expansive ways to define your \u2018blue ocean\u2019 and distinguish your business from the competition<\/a>? Well, look no further than your underwear drawer for some market niching answers.<\/p>\n

What Does Your Underwear Drawer Have to Do with Market Niching?<\/h2>\n

Seriously. One of the major challenges faced by most small business owners in today\u2019s ever-increasing global marketplace is how to rise above the noise and distinguish their businesses from the hundreds, if not thousands of like competitors. That is where market niching comes into play.<\/p>\n

\u201cCompetition should not occupy the center of strategic thinking.\u201d \u2013 Blue Ocean Strategy<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cToo many companies let competition drive their strategies. This focus on the competition all too often keeps companies anchored in the red ocean. As a result, their time and attention get focused on benchmarking rivals and responding to competitors\u2019 strategic moves, rather than on understanding how to deliver a leap in value to buyers.\u201d \u2013 Excerpt from Blue Ocean Strategy<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Market Niching as Growth Strategy<\/h3>\n

Delivering a leap in value is where market niching becomes important to small businesses as a growth strategy. As a strategy, market niching is aimed at enabling your company to become a big fish in a small pond, rather than a small fish in a big pond with everyone else (red ocean). These niche opportunities are created by identifying buyer needs and requirements that are not being addressed, or not being addressed well, by rival companies today.<\/p>\n

About that Underwear \u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s get back to the underwear drawer to explore this topic in more detail. When you check out a man\u2019s underwear drawer, you will find several recognized big brands represented there such as Hanes, Fruit of the Loom, Calvin Klein, Jockey, Nike, Under Armour and others. (I\u2019m assuming that the same applies to a lady\u2019s underwear drawer too, but I\u2019m not going there.) However, not all of those brand name competitors entered the market at the same time, or with the same product offers.<\/p>\n

Fun Facts: <\/strong>During the Middle Ages men wore linen shorts called braies but women didn\u2019t wear undies until the 19th century. Their only underwear was a long linen garment called a shift, which was worn under their dress. From the 16th century women wore corsets made with whalebone.<\/p>\n

Market Niching Style Explosion!<\/span><\/p>\n

Since the Middle Ages, many big brands and niche competitors<\/a> have entered the underwear market with the latest and greatest product offers in varying colors, fabrics, styles, etc. In the 20th century, the market was primarily segmented between \u201cBoxers or Briefs.\u201d However, a lot has changed in the past 100+ years.<\/p>\n

Today, many more market niches have emerged as companies have found creative ways to address buyer needs that were not being served, or not well served in the past. Boxers and briefs still prevail, but men\u2019s underwear choices have grown to include numerous style options such as:<\/p>\n