Gifts / Sports & Toys

Recently, the State Sports Administration, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and other eight departments jointly issued the Outdoor Sports Industry Development Plan (2022-2025). The plan proposes that by 2025, the total scale of the national outdoor sports industry will exceed 3 trillion yuan and the long-term goal of becoming a sports power by 2035.

According to the data of Statista, a global market and consumer data research organization, the global bicycle and sports equipment market will exceed 230 billion dollars in 2024. The outdoor sports category has become a popular search category for cross-border e-commerce platforms. The market demand in economically developed regions such as North America and Europe is particularly strong.

Zheng Changqing, the global vice president of eBay and the general manager of eBay International Cross border Trade Business Unit in China, said in an interview with this magazine that China is a big country in the manufacture and export of outdoor sports products, and the outdoor sports manufacturing industry is facing huge opportunities in the international trade market.

The overseas appeal of Chinese brands is growing day by day

Yiwu Outdoor Products Industry Association has gathered more than 100 high-quality outdoor products manufacturers nationwide. According to the statistics of the Association, the orders of enterprises in the Association have almost doubled, and many enterprises that used to rely on downstream suppliers have also started to build their own factories to better meet the needs of the market.

Statistics show that in the "Double 11" e-commerce carnival, the sales of mountaineering and camping products have increased by more than 100% year on year. For many outdoor sports and camping equipment brands, the turnover in the first hour on November 1 exceeded that of the whole day on November 1 last year. According to statistics, in the first half of 2022, the sales of camping curtains, portable tables, chairs and beds, and ski equipment in China increased by 331.8%, 123.1% and 72.7% respectively.

Not only for domestic sales, but also for export sales. According to the person in charge of the outdoor products manufacturer who has been interviewed and has been mainly engaged in outdoor products for nearly 20 years and focused on the international trade market, the products of the enterprise are exported to Japan, South Korea, Europe, America and other markets, and the supply of products often exceeds the demand in recent years.

According to the industry report issued by the China Industrial Textiles Industry Association, from January to July 2022, the operating income and total profit of enterprises above the scale of tarpaulin and canvas in China increased by 10.5% and 36% year on year respectively, showing a good growth momentum. At the same time, the industrial coated fabric of tarpaulin and sunshade cloth in China has become the largest export product in the industrial textile industry, with an international trade export volume of 3.02 billion US dollars, up 30.4% year on year.

Strong demand for two sports categories

On July 26, eBay released the eBay Outdoor Sports Category Sailing Guide (hereinafter referred to as the "Guide") at the 2022 Shenzhen International Outdoor Sports Expo. The Guide shows that with the housing economy fading, China's outdoor sports categories are selling well overseas. The sales potential of international trade in such subdivided categories as bicycle, electric scooter and other two wheel sports, indoor fitness, camping hiking, fishing, golf and water sports is huge. The full range of outdoor sports products in China has great manufacturing cost advantages, and the supply side is strong. The appeal of Chinese brands is also growing.

From the whole vehicle to parts, the demand for two wheel sports category is strong. Statista predicts that the global market for bicycles, electric bicycles and electric scooters will exceed 100 billion dollars in five years. China is the world's major bicycle producer, with its output value ranking first in the world for many consecutive years. In 2021, the sales of bicycle parts sold by Chinese sellers on eBay platform will increase by 60% compared with the same period in 2019, and the sales of electric bicycles will increase by 67%. From complete vehicles to parts, there is a huge demand in overseas markets. Bicycles, electric bicycles and their brakes, chains, flywheels, wheel sets, etc. are all the popular development categories of platform merchants recommended in the Guide in 2022.

In addition, four indoor fitness categories have attracted much attention: according to Statista's prediction, the global indoor fitness market will exceed 14 billion dollars in 2025. In 2021, the sales of strength training equipment and aerobic training equipment of Chinese sellers on the eBay platform will increase by 230% and 135% respectively compared with 2019. Strength training products, aerobic training equipment, yoga products and intelligent wear products have attracted much attention, and popular development categories include treadmills, dumbbells, barbell tablets and exercise bracelets.

Camping related categories usher in a sales boom

EBay pointed out that camping has become a new leisure way, and related categories have ushered in a sales boom. Not only at home, but also abroad, outdoor camping is also flourishing. EBay platform sells 1 camping lamp every 13 seconds and 1 camping cooker every 20 seconds; In 2021, the number of camping tables and chairs sold by Chinese sellers on eBay increased by 85% compared with 2019. In view of the fact that consumers will also engage in fishing and other sports while camping, eBay suggests that sellers combine scenarios with data to develop products, which is expected to bring more sales opportunities. Popular development categories include tents, thermal insulation refrigerators, sleeping bags, camping stoves, etc.

In addition, eBay found that there is a huge demand for fishing equipment in the international trade market: China is a major fishing gear manufacturing and exporting country in the world, nearly 80% of the global fishing supplies are "made in China", and mature industrial chains and supply chains are all over the country, which is expected to enjoy huge industrial dividends from cross-border e-commerce exports. Popular development categories include fishing rod, bait, fishing box, etc.

At the same time, eBay found that overseas golf sales continued to soar: golf was widely popular in European and American countries, and more and more middle-class and female consumers participated in the sport. Allied Market Research predicted that the golf market would exceed 10 billion dollars in 2030. The eBay platform sells one golf kit every 9 seconds. In 2021, the sales of golf training equipment of Chinese sellers in eBay will increase by 70% compared with 2019.

According to eBay's analysis, after the epidemic, people expanded outdoor activities, and water sports emerged as a new force. The innovation of water sports brought new sales opportunities. Water sports are seasonal and diversified, including coasts, lakes and swimming pools; Popular development categories include surfboards, canoes, goggles, life jackets, etc.

Four strategies help sellers to dig a hundred billion dollar market

"Because outdoor sports have the dual attributes of sports atmosphere and social atmosphere, it has gradually become a media lifestyle for contemporary young people. In the post epidemic era, the popularity of the outdoor sports market will continue and enter a period of rapid development." Wang Xueli, director of the Sports Industry Research Center of Tsinghua University, said in an interview with reporters.

The Development Plan of Outdoor Sports Industry (2022-2025) also defines the future goals. By 2025, the high-quality development of the outdoor sports industry will have achieved remarkable results, basically forming a development pattern of effective connection between supply and demand, coordinated development of industry and ecology, highlighting product and service brands, and continuous innovation of business types and models. The number of outdoor sports venues and facilities has continued to increase, the popularity has increased significantly, and the number of participants has continued to grow. The total scale of the outdoor sports industry has exceeded 3 trillion yuan.

According to the data of Tianyan Survey, so far, there are 204000 outdoor sports related enterprises nationwide, an increase of more than 20% compared with last year. From January to October this year alone, more than 30000 newly registered enterprises have consumed nearly 1 trillion yuan, and more than 4.4 million people have been employed. Among them, many products produced by enterprises are sold to overseas markets.

Speaking of how to speed up the sailing of Chinese sports outdoor products and brands with manufacturing advantages, Zheng Changqing said that enterprises should base on products and deeply develop scenarios: through in-depth insight into the consumption habits of the destination market, develop products around consumption scenarios and related scenarios, occupy the minds of consumers, improve customer experience and drive sales. In addition, enterprises should operate in compliance: product compliance certification is the first step to establish a good trust relationship between the buyer and the seller, and also the basis for the seller to establish a long-term reputation in the destination market. When expanding their business, sellers need to comply with the product compliance requirements of the local government regulations where eBay sites are located.

Zheng Changqing suggested that enterprises should actively arrange overseas warehouses. He believes that overseas warehouses can help sellers better adapt to the strong seasonal characteristics of outdoor sports categories, make timely delivery and improve the buyer's experience. In view of the problem that the brand premium of outdoor sports products produced in China still needs to be strengthened, Zheng Changqing said that sellers can use the international influence of eBay platform to build their enterprise brand into a brand with real international influence, so as to gain long-term competitiveness and higher user loyalty, and thus strengthen brand building.