World consumption of sporting goods in 2006 totalled $256 billion, a four per cent increase on 2005, according to The NPD Group’s second survey of the global sports market.
The global sports market, as reported by NPD, includes four major segments: apparel (sport-specific and sport-inspired clothing), footwear (sport-specific and sport ‘style’ footwear), equipment and bicycles.
The largest and fastest growing segment is apparel, which accounts for 44 per cent ($113 billion) of the global sports market. Apparel sales grew six per cent this year. Fuelled by the growing trend of activewear as fashion, the US sports market led the way, posting eight per cent growth. Sales of apparel rose five per cent in Asia and three per cent in Europe.
“Apparel will continue to show the biggest growth rates in the sports market,” says Renaud Vaschalde, industry analyst for The NPD Group, Inc. “This is primarily due to changing lifestyles worldwide. The trend shows more people are willing to wear sports or sports-style clothing. They have become more accepting of casual dressing, not just because it’s fashionable, but because it’s also practical.”
Global athletic footwear sales increased three per cent. The most important markets – US (up three per cent) and Europe (up one per cent) – were the primary contributors to that growth. Says Vaschalde: “I see a trend developing in footwear that is similar to what we are seeing in sports apparel – Europeans and Asians will begin to adopt sport or sport-style shoes as part of their everyday dress and help to drive growth.”
Overall retail sales of equipment rose by four per cent, while bicycles were stable with a one per cent growth rate. Today the lion’s share of global sports sales are concentrated in a relatively small group of countries. NPD reports the top nine countries for sporting goods sales account for only 32 per cent of the global population, but 75 per cent of global sports market sales.
And while China posted an impressive 13 per cent increase in sports sales in 2006, The NPD Group says this market is still undeveloped. China accounts for $6.7 billion and has a population of 1.3 billion people. This is as average of $5 spent per capita, per year. In the US that same figure equates to $338 per person.
“We see opportunities for growth in two different market sectors,” says Vaschalde. “The first one is in outdoor. Globally we are seeing an increasing awareness of the environment that, coupled with people’s continuing love affair with nature, could pose significant opportunities for growth. The second market that could be a significant player is China. Once marketers capture the Chinese consumer, just the volume alone suggests an enormous opportunity.”
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