Britain’s Sporting Goods Market on the Move, Driven by Sport Chain Retailers

By Jez Fraser-Hook, NPD Sports Tracking Europe

The hotly contested market for sportswear and sports shoes in Britain is still growing strongly, and is now worth more than £4.2 billion a year. Sales of sports apparel and footwear in Britain grew by eight percent in 2004, surpassing growth in all other key European markets. Sport retailers and mail order accounted for more than half of those sport footwear and apparel sales in Britain – and the three leading sport specialist chains, JJB Sports, Sports World and JD Sports, represented over a quarter of overall Sport consumption in Britain.

Britain’s Sport Retailing Landscape Shifting
Underlying the segment’s strong performance is considerable jockeying for position among retailers. Many independent shops are closing or seeking support from large buying groups, and some smaller chains have been absorbed into larger ones. Retailers from outside the U.K. are adding to the mix: Foot Locker from the United States and the French sports giant Decathlon have targeted Britain for their own expansion.

What was once a sedate market of small “high-street” specialty shops along main roads in towns and cities has become a battleground that includes malls, out-of-town retail parks, mail order and online retailers – all vying for consumers’ sports apparel and footwear purchases.

What Matters Most to Britain’s Sport Consumer
To shed light on how recent retail growth will affect the British sporting goods industry as a whole, NPD Sports Tracking Europe conducted a study among 16- to 35-year-old British consumers – the target market for many sporting goods marketers.

The study found that while consumers are relatively satisfied and they would recommend the stores they shopped to their friends, there is space for sport chains to improve their rankings among consumers. It also revealed consumers’ most important criteria when they shop sport chains:

1. Price
2. Quality of products
3. Availability of products on the shelves

The chart below highlights what matters most to consumers who shop for sports apparel and footwear and sporting goods:

Contact Us
For more information about NPD Sports Tracking Europe or to order a report of study results, contact Jez Fraser-Hook at +44 1932 355580 or e-mail
jez_fraser-hook@npd.com.