Sport Apparel Market Posts Modest Growth in ‘07

Based in part on retail point-of-sale data compiled by the company’s SportScanINFO service, The SportsOneSource Group put total U.S. sales volume for Sport Apparel at $22.2 billion for 2007, a 1.9% increase over 2006.

“Though the overall Sport Apparel market was relatively flat for 2007, Performance Apparel continued to be the hot ticket at retail,” said James Hartford, president and CEO of The SportsOneSource Group.  “Compression product jumpstarted this market in 2006, but 2007 saw Non-Compression Sport Apparel sales grow at a stronger rate as vendors reached out beyond the athlete on the field to a broader consumer base that now accepts performance apparel as a lifestyle look.” 

The year showed a promising start for Sport Apparel with dollar sales increasing in the mid-single–digits on flat growth in units sold for the first half, but a tough third quarter led to flat dollar sales growth for the second half, with units down in high-single-digits.  The weather both helped and hurt Sport Apparel sales in the back half of 2007 as warm summer weather lasted well into the third quarter, suppressing sales of cold weather compression product for the team sports market and of outerwear and winter headwear for the snow sports market, all of which were down in the double-digits for the quarter. However, winter hit hard and heavy in the fourth quarter causing the cold weather categories to sell quickly and pushing the back half back up to flat.

 

In women’s Sport Apparel, overall dollar sales increased in the mid-single-digits, though units sold were relatively flat, according to the SportScanINFO data. The women’s market saw a continued shift to performance fabrications in 2007 fueling an increase in average selling price.

 

Interestingly, though performance product accounts for just over 25% of overall Sport Apparel sales, the focus is much higher in women’s, accounting for over 80% of all dollars sold in the channels tracked by SportScanINFO. This dichotomy is rather obvious when considered with the bulk of 100% cotton T-shirts and shorts sold to the men’s side compared to the amount of product in women’s that has some stretch fabrication.

 

Nonetheless, the Performance Apparel that is typically thought of in recent discussions of the category did see large gains in the women’s side of the Sport Apparel market as vendors expanded their offerings here in the hopes of adding in easy sales. Compression Apparel, particularly grew quickly, up in the low-20s in dollars for the year, but saw a mid-single-digits decrease in average selling price.

The trend in sales of kids Sport Apparel ran in sharp contrast to the general mood in the marketplace as the growth rate increased sequentially through 2007. The first and second quarters saw kids Sport Apparel sales decrease compared to the same periods in 2006, while dollar sales in the third quarter increased in the mid-single-digits and jumped in the double-digits in the fourth quarter. Some of those sales trends that ran counter to the direction of the general economy can be attributed to weather conditions.

 

Performance Apparel sales grew in the low-teens in dollars for the year for kids, according to the SportScanINFO data, with Compression Apparel growing at a faster rate than Non-Compression. Compression accounted for approximately one-third of the overall Performance market in kids, though it was one of the fastest growing segments in kids Sport Apparel in 2007.

 

While the overall market moved toward performance fabrications in less form-fitting product, the kids market was buoyed by Compression product in both Tops and Bottoms.

>>> Look for a full wrap up of fiscal 2007 Sport Apparel trends at retail in the annual Year in Review report from The SportsOneSource Group in May…