Mixed Results for Gear Sales in Britain
Mixed Results for Gear Sales in Britain
Published : 02-Nov-2015 04:26
The year-on-year overall decline in sales of ski kit in the UK is continuing but trade body the Snowsport Industries of Great Britain (SIGB) hopes that some promising signs are good news for a return to growth in the market in the years to come.
Whilst overall sales dropped in 14-15 those promising signs included growth in sales of junior snowsports equipment sales and of female specific kit. There was also a growth in snowboards sales.
Ski boots continued to be the strongest selling item of hardware, reflecting the attraction of buying good-fitting boots in the UK and the acceptance that boots are the single most important purchase for participants, where ownership is a better option than renting. Sales of ski boots were down just 1%, although against that decline junior ski boot sales were up 11% and female specific ski boot sales up 10%.
"The sale of both skis and snowboards continues to be impacted by carriage charges on planes, high-end rental packages in resort and offshore internet sales. Despite this, after a big drop in sales last year, there was a reported 24% growth in sales of snowboards - the opposite of the trend in snowboard boot sales (27% decline)," and SIGB statement reads.
Ski sales did not do so well, down 6%, the only good news that can be scraped from that stat is that it's a smaller fall than in recent years.
"We can see some positive trends within the overall statistics from the SIGB Trade Survey and although we can't yet report an upward trend in overall snowsports hardware sales, we are buoyed by the fact that the decline has flattened," said Sam Noble, SIGB President.
"We hope that pushing out the messages about the benefits of buying your snowsports kit in the UK and the launch of our new Go UK Buy UK campaign will have a positive impact on sales, and hopefully reverse the decline of snowsports hardware sales in this country."
SIGB launched their Go UK Buy UK Campaign in September 2015 aimed at encouraging skiers and snowboarders to buy their kit in Britain. The campaign is spreading the word about the benefits of buying in the UK, notably: sound clear advice, after sales support, worry-free warranty, good value and supporting the industry and athletes.
www.sigb.org.uk
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