Latham Group, Inc. (SWIM): Marketing Mix Analysis [Dec-2025 Updated]

You're trying to figure out how a major player in the pool industry is expanding margins while the broader market presents headwinds, and frankly, their Four P's strategy is the clearest roadmap to their recent success. We see a deliberate shift, pushing their fiberglass pools-which make up about 75% of pool sales-and using digital tools to drive dealer conversion, all while managing tariff costs through smart pricing moves. This focus on a richer product mix is what helped them expand their Q3 Gross Margin to 35.4%, supporting a $540 million to $550 million net sales guidance for 2025. Keep reading to see the precise Product, Place, Promotion, and Price levers they are pulling to generate this margin leverage.

Latham Group, Inc. (SWIM) - Marketing Mix: Product

You're looking at the core offerings of Latham Group, Inc. (SWIM) as of late 2025. The product element is where the rubber meets the road, defining what Latham actually sells to the market, from the physical pool shell to the digital controls that manage it.

Core Pool Structures and Primary Revenue Drivers

Fiberglass in-ground pools are the bedrock of Latham Group's pool sales volume. These prefabricated units are engineered for durability and fast installation, which is a major advantage in a tight labor market. Fiberglass in-ground pools represent approximately 75% of pool sales for the full year 2025, according to management commentary. This focus on fiberglass is strategic, as the segment has significant runway for growth in the United States compared to international markets.

The company's third quarter 2025 results showed net sales of $161.9 million, up 7.6% year-on-year, driven by volume increases across the portfolio.

Ancillary and Diversified Product Lines

Beyond the main pool structure, Latham Group drives value and growth through complementary products. Automatic safety covers (autocovers) and pool liners are key accessories that enhance safety, maintenance, and aesthetics. For the third quarter of 2025, autocovers and pool liners showed sales growth of 15% and 13%, respectively, reflecting increased adoption rates and the success of tools like the Measure by Latham for liners.

Packaged/vinyl-liner pools form a smaller, yet important, part of the offering. Latham Group holds the leading position as the largest manufacturer of custom vinyl pools in the North American residential in-ground market. These vinyl options offer unlimited customization in terms of size and shape, which concrete and fiberglass pools may not match.

The product focus for 2025 also heavily emphasizes modern design trends. You'll see a new focus on:

• Compact plunge pools, which offer lower water usage and reduced heating costs.
• Integrated pool/spa designs, providing dual functionality in a single installation.
• The Calypso series of vinyl liner plunge pools, recognized for fast installation.

Digital Automation Integration

To bring the industry into the digital age, Latham Group launched The Attendant smart pool monitor in July 2024. This cloud-based system is designed specifically for Latham fiberglass pools, though it can connect to any manufacturer's equipment.

The Attendant provides homeowners with control over their pool's temperature and water chemistry via a smartphone app. It uses historical data and weather conditions to optimize energy use for heating and chilling systems. A key feature is that The Attendant is the only system that automatically doses the correct chemical combinations.

Additional features that enhance the backyard lifestyle include:

• Automatic chemical dosing, removing guesswork for consumers.
• Spotify playlist syncing and lighting color/intensity controls.
• Special modes to control pool access for rental owners or families.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Latham Group, Inc. (SWIM) - Marketing Mix: Place

You're looking at how Latham Group, Inc. gets its pool products from the factory floor to the homeowner's backyard. Place, or distribution, is about making sure the right product is available at the right time through the right partners. For Latham Group, Inc., this means a massive, coordinated effort across continents and through a dedicated network of builders.

Latham Group, Inc. maintains the largest market presence for in-ground residential swimming pools across North America, Australia, and New Zealand. To support this footprint, the company operates a coast-to-coast manufacturing and operations platform. As of mid-2025 reports, this platform consists of approximately 30 locations. This extensive physical network is key to serving a geographically diverse customer base efficiently.

Distribution relies heavily on a large network of independent dealers and contractors. This business-to-business channel is integral to their success, with long-tenured relationships averaging over 14 years with some partners. The reliance on this channel means that a few key relationships drive a significant portion of revenue.

Here's a quick look at how sales concentration breaks down across their top distribution partners:

The data shows that the top ten relationships accounted for 42.8% of net sales in 2024. The single largest distributor represented 21.0% of net sales in 2024. This structure highlights the importance of maintaining strong, value-added partnerships with these core builders.

A major strategic focus for distribution is the planned expansion into high-growth Sand States, specifically naming Florida, Texas, Arizona, and California. These areas accounted for two-thirds of U.S. new in-ground pool starts in 2024, representing a substantial runway for Latham Group, Inc. To fuel this, capital expenditures for 2025 are guided to be approximately $30 million at the midpoint, which is an increase of $10 million over 2024 levels, directly supporting initiatives like driving fiberglass adoption in the Sand States.

The physical distribution is now being augmented by digital integration to feed the dealer network. The company is using digital lead generation tools to connect consumers directly to builders. As of the second quarter of 2025, investments in marketing programs were yielding concrete results: Year-to-date, Latham Group, Inc. delivered an 18% increase in leads to its dealers, and consumer sessions on its website increased by 34%. Also, liner sales growth was driven by 'Measure by Latham,' their proprietary AI-powered measuring tool, which has a meaningful number of devices in the market.

• Geographic Reach: North America, Australia, and New Zealand.
• Operations Footprint: Approximately 30 locations across the platform.
• Sand States CapEx (2025 Midpoint): $30 million planned.
• Digital Lead Growth (YTD Q2 2025): 34% increase in consumer website sessions.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Latham Group, Inc. (SWIM) - Marketing Mix: Promotion

Promotion activities for Latham Group, Inc. in late 2025 centered on aggressive investment to drive awareness for its core product lines, particularly fiberglass pools and automatic safety covers, utilizing digital enablement tools to support dealer conversion efforts.

Increased Investment in Sales and Marketing Initiatives

Latham Group, Inc. demonstrated a clear financial commitment to promotion and sales expansion throughout 2025. Selling, General, and Administrative (SG&A) expenses reflected this increased outlay.

• SG&A expenses in the second quarter of 2025 reached $31.9 million, an increase of $5.3 million year-over-year.
• For the first quarter of 2025, SG&A expenses were $31 million, which was up by $4.4 million from $26 million in the first quarter of 2024.
• This increase was largely attributed to strategic investments in marketing and new personnel aimed at accelerating fiberglass adoption and supporting the Sand State growth strategy.

Core Strategy: Driving Consumer Awareness

The central promotional goal involved heightening consumer and builder awareness regarding the benefits of fiberglass pools and autocovers. The results of these targeted marketing programs were quantifiable in lead generation and digital engagement.

Management expressed a significant opportunity to increase automatic safety cover attachment rates from the current low 20s percentage towards 80%+ in certain successful markets.

Digital Tools for Augmented Reality Design

Latham Group, Inc. deployed digital platforms to enhance the consumer experience and accelerate the sales cycle, with the Latham Pool Visualizer being a key component.

• The Latham Pool Visualizer uses augmented reality to allow consumers to visualize a pool in their backyard.
• This tool was designed to enable the pool buying decision and generate a lead directly to the dealer to help close the sale.

Proprietary Measure by Latham Tool Efficiency

The Measure by Latham tool, leveraging artificial intelligence, HD cameras, and LiDAR laser technology, was updated to significantly increase the efficiency of liner and cover sales processes.

The technology provides precise specifications for swimming pool covers and vinyl liners, streamlining the process and shortening overall lead times.

Focused Efforts on Dealer Conversion

A primary promotional and strategic focus, particularly in the Sand States, was educating consumers and dealer partners to drive conversion from concrete pools to fiberglass pools.

• Fiberglass pools offer an average 25% to 30% lower upfront cost versus concrete pools.
• The total overall lower cost of ownership over time for fiberglass is estimated at 35% to 40% compared to concrete.
• Installation time for fiberglass pools is as little as two to three days, contrasted with three months or more for comparable concrete pools.

The company is executing its Sand State strategy, reporting that Florida sales increased at a high single-digit rate year-to-date as of Q3 2025.

Latham Group, Inc. (SWIM) - Marketing Mix: Price

Full-year 2025 Net Sales guidance is narrowed to $540 million to $550 million. Adjusted EBITDA guidance for 2025 is set at $92 million to $98 million, reflecting margin leverage. The third quarter saw net sales of $161.9 million, an increase of 7.6% year-over-year.

The pricing element strategy is reflected in the following financial outcomes and targets:

Gross Margin expanded to 35.4% in Q3 2025, up 300 basis points year-on-year. Margin expansion is driven by a product mix shift to higher-margin fiberglass pools. Fiberglass pools are tracking to represent approximately 75% of fiscal year 2025 in-ground pool sales.

Targeted price increases implemented to offset an estimated $20 million tariff headwind. The Q3 net sales increase reflected a tariff-related price increase. Management confirmed that current tariffs were fully mitigated as of Q3 2025.

Specific product line pricing realization is evident in sales growth:

• Covers sales up 15% year-on-year in the quarter.
• Liners sales up 13% year-on-year in the quarter.