BERN TO RUN: We‘re making a pair of sneakers Part 1 - Initial ideas

Research evidence excerpt

BERN TO RUN: We‘re making a pair of sneakers Part 1 - Initial ideas

13 July 2026

European General Retail

BERN TO RUN: We're making a pair of sneakers Part 1 - Initial

ideas

This is not a shoe. This is the limited edition BERN TO RUN sneaker… imagined, designed, William Woods

+44 20 7676 6806 produced and now marketed, entirely by us. These trainers represent the many levels at

william.woods@bernsteinsg.com which mega-brands today face unprecedented pressure. We announced the launch of our

sneakers last Friday and the number one question we’ve been asked is: can I see a picture

Richard Trainor of the sneakers? You’re going to have to bear with us as we take you along the design

+44 20 7762 1050

richard.trainor@bernsteinsg.com journey over the next few weeks. I hope the anticipation won’t be too much.

Alice Buckley The Billion Dollar Brand is dying (see Long View here). The world’s biggest brands

+44 20 7676 6739 are losing share to more nimble, niche challengers. Idiosyncratic and macro-economic

alice.buckley@bernsteinsg.com explanations by category are compelling. However, in aggregate, we argue something

broader is going on. The Achilles’ heel… the very source of the mega-brands’ growth for the

Rhea Gudiwala last four years - globalization and digitalization. Lowered costs, disrupted distribution and +44 20 7676 7293

rhea.gudiwala@bernsteinsg.com marketing channels, and accelerating product cycles now favor smaller, niche producers.

We launched BERN TO RUN to explore lower barriers to entry. You’re doing what? We’re

Specialist Sales building on a long tradition of industrial strength research at Bernstein from dismantling

Chinese cars (link here) to building Indian electric bikes (link here). We are looking to answer

Alix Turner