Market Research for Sneakers Industry

Market Briefing

Content Page
 

1. The UK Sneaker/Sports Trainer market ………………………………………………………….2

2. The key players in the UK Sneaker/Sports Trainer market……………………………………3

3. What drives the Sneaker/Sports Trainer market in the UK? …………………………………4

4. What does the future hold? ……………………………………………………………………………..4

5. References ………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 6

6. Appendix A ……………………………………………………………………………………………………8

7. Appendix B …………………………………………………………………………………………………..9

8. Appendix C ………………………………………………………………………………………………….10
 

9. Appendix D ………………………………………………………………………………………………….11

1. The UK Sneaker/Sports Trainer market
 

Over the last few years sneakers have capture the UK footwear market by offering wide range of products that are appropriate for busy daily lifestyle or nights out. People welcome the new trend and according to Mintel 33% of footwear consumers have bought trainers in the last years. The stable growth and the development of the sneakers market recorded an increase by 3.19% from 2016 to 2017 (Statista).

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This market is aiming to target males and females between the age of 15 and 35. However, Mintel research shows that men strongly prefer buying more casual shoes and sneakers so that men drive trainers sales with 46% compared with 33% of women.
Young people are interested into the new trends and the new models of shoes because on their age is more likely to be image seekers.

The sport footwear market can be divided into segments according to the design of the sneakers and the purpose. The professional athletes enjoy high quality sports footwear so they are looking for well designed specialized trainers which will ensure their comfort during the exercises. This segment also include a few subdivisions such as sport lovers and gym regular users.
As another segment of the sneaker market includes sports casual models of trainers. It is more likely for people to be attracted by the fashionable look of the products and the comfort during the rushed lifestyle in UK. However, this users also enjoy high quality sneakers and can be classified as image seekers, fashion freaks and non-sport users.

The market provides products on affordable prices for buyers with middle to high income also products for professional sportsmen with high quality and high price.

Every brand that can provide products adapted to customers’ preferences can also achieve strong relationship with them which definitely impact the demand and the reputation of the brand.
 

2. The key players in the UK Sneaker/Sports Trainer market
 

As soon as sneakers have become a fashion trend and the demand has greatly increased, the UK retail leaders are motivated to improve their products and services.

Sports Direct is one of the UK leaders in the sportswear market. Telegraph analysis of the sports retail company point that the responsiveness attitude in the fast developing and high competitive sportswear market cause serious loss of market shares by 0.4%. Poor in store facilities, disappointing products and weak brand image also contributed for the poor performance. So Sports Direct underperformed the 4.9% growth in the market in 2016. Furthermore, the company failed to cope with currency change after the EU referendum which reduces the operating profit of the sports retailer by 28%. At the end of 2017 Sports Directs’ market share is forecast as 22.9% followed by its biggest reveal JD sports with 19.4%.

Despite of the economical issues that fail Sports Direct, JD sport succeed to increase the revenue after the EU referendum and to shrugged off worries like pound’s weakness. The latest performance of JD shows that the company is on the verge of confirming its status as the new king of Britain’s sporting goods market. JDs’ great focus on sports fashion is expected to increase the revenues by 17% (to £1.73bn)

The established brands such as Nike and Adidas are competing on products differentiation and innovation aiming to gain more customers so no only to win the customers but to build trust and loyalty to the brand. It is clear that Nike and Adidas crush the competition when it comes to sports branding (Appendix A). By organizing different campaigns the biggest Sports retailers in UK – Nike and Adidas aim to get customers’ attention and to strengthen their position among the competitors. For example Adidas by Stella McCartney is 2017 Adidas campaign which aims to reach women as a target group (Appendix B). In response to that, Nike came to the foreground by setting up campaign for Equality with popularities like LeBron James and Serena Williams.

3. What drives the Sneaker/Sports Trainer market in the UK

Demand of sport trainers is influenced by many factors. One of them is the income and the spending of the customers. The higher income increase the demand and the spending in high quality products. In this case people are more likely rise the demand of products from original luxury brands stores of Nike, Adidas, Puma. Professional athletes are ready to spend a lot on high quality products that will have the specifications for the particular activity. However, customers with lower income prefer to buy sneakers with lower quality and lower price for example from Sports Direct. They are still follow the trends but is more likely to look for cheaper products.
Fashion is also a factor that drives the demand of products in the UK sneakers market.
The innovative and uniqueness look of the sneakers in the UK market attract the customers and they follow this trend strictly. The brands offer wide range of fashionable and comfortable models that are suitable for the busy daily life as well for nights out and events. Trainers appear on catwalks of famous designers like Karl Lagerfeld, actors, singers, well known successful sportsmen represent the new fashion evolution. The popularity mixing trainers with high fashion which helped to drive the trend.
The supply chain improvements are also part of the “drivers” of the sport trainers market. A stable and effective supply chain provides products with higher quality and uniqueness outlook which definitely increase the satisfaction of the customers as well the reputation of the sport retail brand.
The modern technologies help sport retailers to reduce the operating cost and to enhance the productivity by spending more time on considering how to meet customers’ needs. The technology developments within the supply chain minimize the risk of error during the production process as well give more visibility and control over the inventory.

4. What does the future hold?

The biggest threat for the sports footwear market is Brexit and the sharp decrease in the pound sterling value. However, because of the development of the sneakers market in the end of 2016 the overall footwear market have grown by 1% (Euromonitor International research).

As soon as the obesity became a visible problem for the community, the prioritization of the idea of healthy lifestyle contribute the increase of activity level among the UK population. Therefore, this have positively impact on the demand for sports shoes. (Appendix C)

The growing social acceptance of sports footwear will impact in the demand. In UK more and more people wear formal clothing with sneakers because they feel comfortable and the number of this people will continue to increase in future.

According to Passport, the CAGR from 2015 to 2021 will be 7.5% which means that the UK sneakers market will record strong increase in the recent years. (Appendix D)

References

1. Academic.mintel.com.ezproxy.westminster.ac.uk. (2017). Cite a Website – Cite This For Me. [online] Available at: http://academic.mintel.com.ezproxy.westminster.ac.uk/search/?submit_srch=1&q=market+shares+in+uk+sneakers+market&country=224&time=&content_type=2 [Accessed 2 Oct. 2017].
2. Academic.mintel.com.ezproxy.westminster.ac.uk. (2017). Cite a Website – Cite This For Me. [online] Available at: http://academic.mintel.com.ezproxy.westminster.ac.uk/display/778962/ [Accessed 2 Nov. 2017].
3. Academic.mintel.com.ezproxy.westminster.ac.uk. (2017). Cite a Website – Cite This For Me. [online] Available at: http://academic.mintel.com.ezproxy.westminster.ac.uk/display/792621/ [Accessed 3 Nov. 2017].
4. Academic.mintel.com.ezproxy.westminster.ac.uk. (2017). Cite a Website – Cite This For Me. [online] Available at: http://academic.mintel.com.ezproxy.westminster.ac.uk/display/792699/ [Accessed 2 Nov. 2017].
5. Armstrong, A. (2017). JD Sports leaves Sports Direct in the shade. [online] The Telegraph. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2017/04/11/jd-sports-leaves-sports-direct-shade/ [Accessed 3 Nov. 2017].
6. Armstrong, A. (2017). The rise of athleisure: how the high street is cashing in on office-to-gym wear. [online] The Telegraph. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/09/17/the-rise-of-athleisure-how-the-high-street-is-cashing-in-on-offi/ [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017].
7. Ashley Armstrong (2017). JD Sports to have last laugh over Sports Direct. [online] The Telegraph. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/04/09/jd-sports-to-have-last-laugh-over-sports-direct/ [Accessed 3 Nov. 2017].
8. Cin7. (2017). How Technology Drives Supply Chain Evolution/ Cin 7 Blog. [online] Available at: https://www.cin7.com/how-technology-drives-supply-chain-evolution/ [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017].
9. Econport.org. (2017). Cite a Website – Cite This For Me. [online] Available at: http://www.econport.org/content/handbook/Demand/Factors.html [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017].
10. En.wikipedia.org. (2017). Shoe size. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoe_size [Accessed 6 Nov. 2017].
11. Flash Global. (2017). Uses of Technology to Improve Supply Chain Management. [online] Available at: http://flashglobal.com/blog/supply-chain-management/ [Accessed 30 Oct. 2017].
12. InStyle.co.uk. (2017). The Trainers You Really CAN Wear With Everything. [online] Available at: http://www.instyle.co.uk/fashion/editors-picks/best-trainers [Accessed 1 Nov. 2017].
13. InStyle.co.uk. (2017). The Trainers You Really CAN Wear With Everything. [online] Available at: http://www.instyle.co.uk/fashion/editors-picks/best-trainers
    [Accessed 2 Nov. 2017].
14. Mintel (July 2015) Sports good retailing [online] [Accessed 30 Oct 2017]
15. Passport (2017) Footwear in the United Kingdom [online] [Accessed 4 Nov 2017]
16. Passport (2017) Sportswear in the United Kingdom [online] [Accessed 3 Nov. 2017]
17. Statista. (2017). Athletic Footwear- United Kingdom/ Statista Market Forecast. [online] Available at: https://www.statista.com/outlook/11020000/156/athletic-footwear/united-kingdom# [Accessed 5 Nov 2017]
18. Store.mintel.com. (2017). UK Footwear Retailing Industry Report (Updated 2017) | Mintel.com. [online] Available at: http://store.mintel.com/uk-footwear-retailing-market-report [Accessed 6 Nov. 2017].
19. Sutherland, E., Brown, H., Geoghegan, J., Man, P., Geoghegan, J. and Spybey, K. (2017). Why trainers have overtaken heels in the UK footwear market. [online] Drapers. Available at: https://www.drapersonline.com/retail/why-trainers-have-overtaken-heels-in-the-uk-footwear-market/7013025.article [Accessed 30 Oct. 2017].

Appendixes

Appendix A
 

As it shown on the chard Nike provide good performance over its main competitor Adidas. The competition between this two emblematic brands is based on innovation, quality and uniqueness of the products. By the marketing campaigns both aim to attract customers and to generate more profits. In the pie chard Nike is ahead of its competitor in 2015 (with 5,4%) and 2016 (with 5,7%).

Appendix B

In 2017 Adidas set up a campaign collaborating with Stella McCartney performing their new products for Spring/Summer season.

The new line products – Adidas by Stella McCartney aim to point out the rule-breaking and trail-blazing attitude of the modern female athlete. The project aims to encourage today’s woman to test themselves, to show this incredible energy born through their movement and creativity. Stella wants to prove that everything is achievable if you put your mind in it. This includes Octavious giving Karlie tips on how to improve her speed training and showcasing the optimal post run warm down, Karlie braving springboard heights and underwater dives and Chelsey showing how to master the handstand in a few, simple steps.

Adidas expects that if the campaign is successful the ability to reach women as a target group will increase, the level of sales will go up and they will gain stronger position among the competitors at the UK sports trainers market.

Appendix C

Taking into account this result the UK Sport trainers market is more likely to continue its growth in future. Different sports events that will take place around the UK will attract many people which will have positive impact on the UK sneakers market. Events like World Tour Tennis Finals located London in the middle of November will promote the sport products and many audience will be inspired to visit the spot stores.

Appendix D

According to Passport, the sneakers market in UK will continue to grow. The main aim of healthy lifestyle is to increase the activity among the UK population, no matter gender, age and location which will impact the demand of sportswear. As a long-term project prioritizing health and exercises, the support of the leaders in the sports footwear market gives opportunity for the market to grow. The buyers will always look for discounted or on-sale products. The sport shoes are part of peoples’ daily life and in near feature very few people will look for formal or high heel shoes. The overall footwear market will continue to grow as soon as the sneakers market is developing.