Sales of activewear and outdoor apparel and accessories have slowed in recent years. Let’s look at what is affecting growth in these categories, and how they compare to other faster moving parts of the industry.
Let’s start with performance in the Outdoor sector, where the pandemic has had a very long tail. A lot of equipment that campers and hikers buy simply don’t need to be replaced that often. So, when we saw huge growth in outdoor-related sales during the height of the pandemic it took these items off of consumers’ shopping lists for perhaps years.
Of course, a small segment of outdoor enthusiasts will continue to buy in these categories, but we just won’t see the growth rate we saw when pandemic-weary consumers started craving the great outside.
Sales in the Outdoor stores that we track have been flat to down by single digits so far this year. And Outdoor giant REI had a painful 2023, racking up a $311 million loss. Part of the pain, according to analysts, is their focus on higher priced and specialty equipment, unlike the more affordable everyday items sold at retailers such as Dick’s Sporting Goods and Bass Pro Shops. But, in our specialty store world, declining demand for higher priced items is an issue.
Activewear has had a similar, but not as acute problem as Outdoor stores in recent seasons. A look around the grocery store or airport may lead you to think activewear is everywhere, and it is certainly a large market. However, the nature of activewear is quite durable. This means that fabrics last longer, keep their shape, and wash well.
This also means that consumers don’t have to replace them as often. What’s more, they usually purchase core colors such as black, gray, white, or navy, and mix and match them with other pieces for style longevity.
Activewear vendors do not change their colors and fabrications as much as we see in the fashion sector. These changes prompt customers to buy more even if they don’t need to, just because it has a new look.
Activewear sales in our client stores have been down 8% year to date. Compare this to Men’s Clothing, which is up 8% YTD and Women’s RTW, which is up 5%.
So what can you do if you have a store with categories that turn at a slower rate?
-Create newness with vendor/color selections
– If you exclusively show higher-priced items, explore the mid-tier or lower-priced accessories
-Reduce your scale in slow-turn categories. Scale applies to the breadth of your assortments. If you have fewer items per color or size, the turn will increase as you sell them down. So, if you have 6 sizes in each basic color, for example, you may want to reduce them to 3 or 4.
If you need help increasing your turn rates, and improving your revenue, give us a call.
