Walking shoes, in-line skates setting the pace - Sporting Goods - Discount Industry Annual Report. Part II: Merchandising and Productivity Analysis

Discount Store News, August 5, 1991

Walking Shoes, In-Line Skates Setting the Pace

For compelling evidence that aging baby boomers are, indeed, looking for less taxing alternatives to running and jogging, look no further than the 21% jump last year in sales of walking shoes.

With sales of an estimated $1.51 billion in 1990, walking shoes should rise 12% more in 1991, projects the National Sporting Goods Association in its annual retail sales survey.

Walking shoes thus scored the largest percentage gain last year of all 57 categories of sports apparel, athletic shoes and equipment the NSGA tracks and are projected to rise 12% more this year for the largest percentage gain in '91. Next to swimwear, walkers last year produced the largest dollar volume in the 31 categories of apparel and footwear, but swimwear declined 3% in 1990 to an estimated $1.78 billion and sales are projected to remain flat this year.

Bicycling, another low-impact aerobic alternative, retained its place as the dollar volume leader in equipment, gaining 7% to $2.42 billion from $2.26 billion in 1989. The NSGA survey projects a 5% gain for '91. Emphasizing the increasing importance of bikes, Supershow/91 added a special bike show of 20,000 square feet to its roster of 16 shows within a show.

In bicycles, mountain bikes virtually have taken over the mass market from conventional 10-speed bikes. With the majority of mountain bikes being ridden on city streets, despite their name, they represent about 80% of unit sales at some chains.

Firearms and hunting, after breaking the $2 billion mark in 1989, showed a respectable 7% gain to $2.29 billion in 1990, with projected gains slowing to 3% this year. Hunting apparel and boots added $1.1 billion more in sales last year.

Muzzle loaders and black powder accessories are a new firearms line that Sports Authority, Kmart's specialty sporting goods chain, added last year. Black powder and archery are the fastest growing categories for Sports Authority.

Another indication that firearms remain a solid category: attendance at the SHOT Show in Dallas this January rose 19%, while exhibit space gained 27% from 1990.

Exercise equipment produced modest sales growth of 2.7% last year to an estimated $1.8 billion, with a projected growth of 2% this year.

But within the category, in-line roller skates have shot from nowhere over the past two years and should generate sales of at least $150 million, or double the $75 million in 1990. Some estimates of 1991 sales go as high as $300 million. Retailers expect to sell at least 1 million units in 1991 as vendors scrambled to keep their shelves stocked.

Because of the phenomenal growth of in-line skates, which Rollerblade pioneered, the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association plans to start tracking shipments as a separate category next year.

With the introduction of models that retail for as low as $38, in-line skates have burst onto the mass market scene.

Auguring well for the future of in-line skates, skaters are fairly evenly split between males, 51.5%, or 2.24 million, and females, 48.1%, or 2.07 million. And skaters are young, with only an estimated 9.4% ages 35 and older. Youngsters ages 12 through 17 provide the largest block of skaters, 31.3%.

Golf equipment, yet another low-impact alternative that's easier on knees and elbows, rose 3% to $1.2 billion in 1990, fourth in dollar volume after bikes, firearms and exercise equipment. Golf will increase by 4% in '91, the NSGA survey predicts.