Category Landscape
The Sports & Outdoors categoryexperienced tremendous growth in 2020.Asthe pandemic forcedgymstoclose and social gatherings became smaller and less frequent, consumers invested in home gyms and outdoor recreation.Kaspien’sdata shows Amazon sales in the Sports & Outdoors category grew 80% year-over-year!
While category sales are expected to grow at humbler rates in 2021, consumer buying behavior has permanently shifted. More consumers are comfortable exercising away from the gym, at-home equipment providerslike Peloton are encouraging the shift, and outdoor enthusiasts new and old havetaken advantage of Amazon to supply their adventuregear.
This shifting landscape presents immense opportunities for brands in the Sports & Outdoors category.Historically, manyof thesebrands have treated Amazon as a secondary sales channel, and it’s under-optimized as a result.2020 made ecommerce a more important sales channel, and thosewhooptimizetheirAmazonchannel and integrate it into their overall brandstrategyfirstwill bebestpositioned toincrease theirmarket sharein the coming years.
COVID-19’s Impact
The Sports & Outdoors category on Amazonsaw significant sales growth year-on-year spurred by the global pandemic.Whenhealth clubsclosed, consumers brought the gym home. When social gatherings became limited,moreconsumers spent their leisure time(and money)onoutdoor recreation.
As demonstrated by the next three graphs,COVID-19 drove significant sales growth for multiple product types in this category, fromsportsto defense to survival gear.
Even outside of Amazon, we saw examples of at-home Sports & Fitness booming, with Peloton taking the spotlight.Peloton’searningsshowtotal revenuereach$1.8 billion in 2020, a 100% increase year-on-year, and their subscription revenue reached $121.2 million, a 99% increase year-on-year.
According to the International Health, Racquet &SportsclubAssociation (IHRSA),thefitnessindustrylost $20billionin2020.At least8national gym networks filed for bankruptcy in 2020.
The Outdoor Recreation industry fared far better, with the NPD Groupreporting strong growthin multipleoutdooractivities:
- Dollar sales of bicycles increased 63% in June 2020 versus the sametimethe previousyear.
- Dollar sales of paddle sports increased 56% in June 2020 versus the sametimethe previousyear.
- Dollar sales of golf equipment increased 51% in June 2020 versus the sametimethe previousyear.
- Dollar sales of camping equipment increased 31% in June 2020 versus the sametimethe previousyear.
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ShopperPsychographics
Three Tiers of Shoppers
Products in the Sports & Outdoorscategory vary greatly in quality and price, which results in multiple, distinct audiences.As such, it’s helpful tothink of Sports & Outdoors shoppers asthree tiers: Entrylevel,middle, andluxury.
Entrylevelshoppers are those trying out a new activity for the first time and have not yet established brand loyalty. They seek the best deal, as they need to validate their interest beforespending more dollars.
Middle levelshoppers have an established interest in the Sports & Outdoors category. They’ve found brands and products theylike, butbalance that interest with a fixed budget. They are knowledgeable about some technical details for their given product interest.
Luxury levelshoppers have a strong interest in the Sports & Outdoors category and demonstrate a mixture of brand loyalty and experimentation. They have preferred brands, but if an innovative new product is released, they may be willing to try it. These shoppers tend to be (or think they are) very knowledgeable about their area of interest and are willing to pay for premium products.
For brands selling in this space, it’s important to identify which tier your products aim to appease. These tiers are verybasicandshoppers can fluctuate between them over time and for different products.However, theycan beexpanded upon to buildmarketing personasfor your brand, making them even more actionable.
Improvement & Recreation
Whileshoppers in thiscategory vary greatly in theirproduct knowledge and budget,they do share an important commonality: an interest in competition, self-improvement, and recreation.
The products in this category, whether it’s dumbbells, basketballs, or tents,all relate to at least one of the threeinterestsand oftentimes all three.Shoppers want to get better at something and enjoy that task (or the results of it!). The brands thatspeak to all three interests in their marketing and branding will be best positioned to engage their target audience.
Loyalty Increases with Technicality
Brand loyalty in this space will differ due toa number offactors, including the shopper tiers, but one of the most telling factors is product technicality. Shoppers are more likely to patronize the same brand for products that are complex or require compatibility. Simple, more generic products like elastic bands orweights,tend to have lowerbrand loyaltyas the differentiating factors are more limited.
That said, shoppers will readily depart from a brand if an innovative new product breaks into the market or the brand has a limited product catalog.
Community Engagement
Both Sports & Fitness brands and Outdoor Recreation brands have a history of cultivating engaged communities.In someaspects, this can be traced back to category shoppers’ interest in competition, self-improvement, and recreation.
Ambitionsaround sports, fitness, hiking, climbing, etc.arereadily fueled by a sense of community, motivating each other throughcamaraderieandrivalry.Many of these activities also requirededicatedpractice and skill, which leads to specialized knowledge that is shared throughtips andtraining.
Brands in this space can and should actively contribute to community building to earn brand loyalty and support growth.
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