{"id":69708,"date":"2025-01-03T13:47:42","date_gmt":"2025-01-03T18:47:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radial.com\/?post_type=insight&p=69708"},"modified":"2025-01-12T05:03:03","modified_gmt":"2025-01-12T10:03:03","slug":"sporting-goods-the-top-trends","status":"publish","type":"insight","link":"https:\/\/www.radial.com\/eur\/insights\/sporting-goods-the-top-trends","title":{"rendered":"Sporting goods: the top trends"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Radial Research completed a consumer survey focused on e-commerce and the sporting goods industry. We interviewed Brendan Lease<\/a>, Radial\u2019s Director of Product Marketing, to unpack the latest trends for the industry. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

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Brendan, how do sporting goods differ from other e-commerce categories?\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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In the sporting goods vertical there is a real breadth of products that fall under it. Equipment like balls, racquets, and hockey sticks. Apparel like uniforms or shoes\u2014even items like large cardio equipment and weight training products. But even with that division in product types, it\u2019s probably one of the higher volume categories<\/strong>, especially for smaller items.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

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Our Radial Research<\/strong> consumer survey from Q4 2024 shows that more than 80% of consumers<\/strong> are willing to buy sporting goods online across all categories. The smaller stuff, like apparel and equipment, nears 90%. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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What buying experience do consumers expect?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n
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For smaller items or wearable items, consumers that choose not to buy the product online are usually most interested in the fit, feel, and quality<\/strong>. For larger items shoppers are mainly concerned with quality and durability, concerned about damages in shipping<\/strong>, or higher shipping costs. Those are the reasons they choose to purchase in-store.  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Similar to what we saw in our home furnishings survey<\/a>, consumers care about quality<\/strong> and want to see certain products in-person. And bigger exercise equipment is going to be put to the test and need to be durable. Plus, the bigger stuff is inherently a bit more difficult to manage via e-commerce fulfillment<\/strong> \u2014 like shipping a treadmill or bike or weight set. That means longer or more expensive shipping options. And given the size and weight of these items, there\u2019s greater potential for damage if they aren\u2019t handled correctly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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How about delivery?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n
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We saw faster expected delivery timeframes [2-3 days or faster] for smaller products like equipment, apparel, and fitness tech. That\u2019s compared to more measured expectations for large, heavy items like cardio or weight equipment [4-7 days].\u00a0\u00a0In terms of demographics<\/strong>, the younger you get by generation the higher the expectation for delivery speed, with Gen Z and Millennials expecting faster deliveries across the board. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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For smaller items, 30% to 40% of Millennials and Gen Z shoppers expect items to arrive same-day or next day.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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And returns?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n
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It\u2019s all about free returns<\/strong>. That was the top choice in our recent survey, when we asked consumers what would encourage them to buy more products. It was split by gender, though: women had a much higher propensity for returns being a purchase driver (22%) versus men (15%). Men were more interested in money-back guarantees. Though those two [returns and guarantees] kind of swim in similar lanes, so it\u2019s really about delivering a great product that is built to last.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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What will e-commerce look like for the sporting goods industry over the next 5 years?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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EMARKETER<\/a> has sporting goods and fitness<\/strong> growing at a healthy 7.3% over the next 5 years. It\u2019s expected to grow to about a $53B category by 2028. It is a highly penetrated online industry already, so there is a bit less room to grow in terms of the magnitude of purchases people make online in it.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>

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 <\/strong> When are consumers buying sporting goods?<\/strong> <\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Per Radial\u2019s recent survey, <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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