TopIn this Issue: May 2014
 
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ResearchNSGA Sports Participation and Purchase Reports Coming Soon!

NSGA will soon be releasing the latest editions of the Sports Participation and the Sporting Goods Market Retail Purchase Reports.  These industry leading, long-standing studies are essential tools in understanding participation and market trends, drivers of participation and purchases, and category adjacency and cross-promotional opportunities. 

 

In addition to the Sports Participation in the US Report, which tracks 51 sports and recreational activities, NSGA's participation research includes Cross Participation, Lifecycle Demographics, and Single Sport reports.  NSGA's Sporting Goods Market Report tracks 91 types of sporting goods equipment and 25 styles of athletic footwear, including demographics of these product users.

 

As part of NSGA's research offerings, an easy-to-understand quick view snapshot is provided for each sport/activity.  As an example, the Sports Participation Report includes a snapshot for each sport/activity that allows users to easily see a 10-year participation trend (when available) in addition to key demographic and geographic drivers of participation.

 

Please be on the lookout for an announcement from NSGA concerning the release of the 2014 editions or visit www.nsga.org.

 

ParticipationReasons for Kids Participating in Fewer Team Sports are Numerous

A recent survey conducted by NSGA identified that there are a variety of reasons for declining participation by kids in team sports.  The survey identified households where kids between the ages of 7 to 17 were participating in fewer team sports than they had in the past.  These households were asked the reasons for this decreased participation.  

 

Although the results showed numerous drivers of decreased participation, there were some that had a greater tendency to rise to the top.  The top response was simply "no longer liking the sport" (17% of responses).  Deeper qualitative drivers of this response potentially could include reasons such as burnout, potential issues with coaches or players, or simply preferring another sport.  Other reasons that rose to the top included "lack of time" (15%), "no desire or interest / lazy" (14%), "financial reasons" (13%), "shifted to individual-based activities" (9%), and "increased dedication to certain sports" (9%).

 

Decrease in youth participation is cause for concern given the high percentage of sporting goods purchased specifically for youths. For example, sporting goods bought for youths account for 68% of total sales for baseball, 67% for soccer, 54% for basketball, and 75% for football. The continuing challenge is to develop solutions to address these issues.  At the NSGA Management Conference and Team Dealer Summit industry leaders held a brainstorming session to begin a foundation of ideas which can be built upon.  In upcoming communications these ideas will be shared.

 

For a graphic depiction of the responses to the survey question, please click here.  For further discussion, feel free to contact Dustin Dobrin, NSGA Director of Research and Information -at [email protected] or 847-296-6742, ext. 1170.  

  

OutlookNSGA Conference Attendees Forecast Moderate Growth in 2014

One of the exciting additions to the NSGA Management Conference and Team Dealer Summit held in late April was the incorporation of attendee polling.  Among the feedback provided, attendees were asked about their outlook on the sporting goods industry for the remainder of 2014.   

 

The overall consensus suggests that the sporting goods industry will experience moderate growth for the rest of the year, with almost 3 out of every 4 respondents providing this perspective.  

  

                  

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CPIApril CPI for Sporting Goods Decreased 1.3% vs. April 2013

 

The 2014 April CPI for Sporting Goods continued to track below previous figures as it declined 1.3% vs. April 2013.  This represents the 16th consecutive month where the Sporting Goods CPI was below the year prior.  This is not consistent with the CPI for all items as the overall index has consistently been experiencing increases. 

 

For a full description of available NSGA research, go to www.nsga.org/research. NSGA research reports are available to purchase on the NSGA website or by contacting Dustin Dobrin in the NSGA Research Department, (847) 296-6742, ext. 1170 or [email protected].