The American sports and fitness product industry, including footwear, apparel and equipment, grew by 3.9 percent in 2019, according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA)’s recenty released 2020 Manufacturers’ Sales by Category Report. in 2019, the industry not only outpaced the national GDP, but in a year when GDP growth slowed, the industry increased from the previous year.
Athleisure continues to drive growth, said the report. Fitness apparel is up 6.5 percent; and looking at categories appealing to the athleisure style, fleece/sweat athletic apparel and outerwear grew 8.9 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively. In footwear, running, casual/fashion and kids all increased more than 5 percent, further emphasizing the growth of athleisure overall.
As select team sports have experienced significant participation growth in recent years, staple products sales are also increasing. Baseball/Softball (3.9 percent), Basketball (4.6 percent) and Volleyball (5.6 percent) were among the strongest team sport category leaders.
Protective gear continues to be a big seller across multiple categories, even in categories where protective gear is new to the market, or sport. Sales increased in the 5 percent range for multiple team sports.
As for footwear, the two biggest categories, running shoes and kids footwear, both increased over five percent.
The SFIA Manufacturers’ Sales by Category Report measures U.S. wholesale revenues across five major categories, 34 subcategories, with nearly 150 various breakdowns.
This report is free to all SFIA members and available for purchase here
