Women as Sporting Goods Consumers
Women have become a major segment of the sporting goods industry. Much of this is due to women’s increased participation in sports and fitness activities, which has resulted in women purchasing sporting goods in record amounts. In fact, the Women’s Sports Foundation reports that women have out-purchased men in athletic shoes and apparel since 1991 (Estell par. 5). Other research clearly shows that women’s sporting goods is a business that continues to grow. According to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, sales of women’s sports apparel rose 20%, to $15.9 billion, between 1997 and 2000 (Williams par. 17). However, despite the evidence showing what a huge factor women have become in the sporting goods industry, little has been done by sporting goods manufacturers to attempt to satisfy women more until recently.
These growing trends in women’s purchasing of sporting goods has made
manufacturers realize that importance of dedicating more effort to determining
how to capture as much of the female market as possible.
While in the past sporting goods companies simply manufactured lighter
and smaller versions of men’s products for women, this has changed.
Sporting goods manufacturers have realized the importance of meeting
women’s needs by developing products and merchandise designed specifically for
women (Hums and Covell 409).
In order for sporting goods manufacturers to best meet women’s needs,
they have had to conduct a great deal of research in order to determine the
significant ways in which men and women differ, both emotionally and physically,
in terms of sporting goods consumption. Sporting
goods companies have found that women’s feel differ from men’s feet, and
therefore it is important to manufacture women’s footwear instead of simply
making smaller and lighter versions of men’s shoes.
Also, sports apparel companies have realized that it is no longer
acceptable to label men’s shorts in smaller sizes as “women’s apparel”. Women have expressed the need for shorts and other apparel
designed to better fit the curves of women’s bodies (Evans par. 2).
In addition, it is important for sporting goods companies to keep in mind
that women shop and buy differently than men.
For women, fashion often plays a major role in their decisions (Williams
par. 6). The sporting goods
industry has responded to this difference by designing more fashionable apparel
that will likely appeal greatly to women.
In terms of emotional differences between women and men, sporting goods
manufacturers have found that many women do not see fitness as a separate
activity within their lives. Because
of their busy schedules, many women must intertwine physical activities with
other aspects of their lives. For
example, they may ride bikes to go meet friends.
Also, for many women, fitness is all about finding their inner drives.
Therefore, sporting goods manufacturers will likely appeal to women by
providing inspiration and motivation through their marketing campaigns (Harris
par. 7). Women seem to be quite
turned off by traditional marketing of sports apparel featuring professional
athletes. While this type of
marketing often appeals to males, “most women are disinclined to see
themselves as would-be professional athletes” (Williams, par. 18).
As a result of this research, many commercials for Nike women’s
footwear and apparel features everyday athletes rather than professional
athletes.
Several sporting goods retailers have responded to the growing women’s
market by making strong efforts to specifically target women.
For example, the Sports Authority dedicated a large segment of its
marketing campaign for the 2000 holiday season to the women’s market.
The retailer employed a variety of marketing strategies, such as sending
a direct mail piece featuring women’s apparel and equipment to 500,000
households. The Sports Authority
also unveiled its list of the top ten moments in women’s sports, which was
created to “champion and celebrate women.”
In addition, almost all Sports Authority stores reconfigured their
apparel set-ups and placed women’s apparel at the front of the stores.
Marty Hanaka, CEO of The Sports Authority, said, “We need to cultivate
the female athlete. It makes good business sense to target a marketing effort
toward them” (Cassidy par. 1-3). The
Sports Authority has clearly recognized the importance of the women’s segment
of the sporting goods industry and is making a substantial effort to appeal to
as much of this growing market as possible.
Lucy.com is an online sporting goods retailer exclusively for women’s
sport equipment and apparel. Lucy.com
was founded by Sue Levin, who formerly was the director of women’s brands for
Nike. Levin says that with Lucy.com, she hopes to challenge the
view that men’s apparel is suitable for women (Grant par. 1-4).
In addition to selling brand-name sportswear, Lucy.com has also developed
its own private label. The retailer
decided to come up with its own line of apparel after hearing from its customers
that women’s fit and fabric needs were not being met.
Lucy.com created its own apparel line to satisfy women by designing pants
of different lengths, shorts that fit women’s curves, and plus-size activewear.
Advertisements for Lucy.com appear in a variety of women’s magazines,
as well as on websites frequently visited by women (Grant par. 18).
Although profitability is probably still a few years away for Lucy.com,
the retailer seems quite confident that it will continue to expand.
A Lucy.com store has also recently opened in New York City (Evans par.
1). As a result of the growing
market for women’s sporting goods, retailers such as Lucy.com have developed
to satisfy women’s needs.
Another sporting goods retailer and manufacturer hoping to capitalize on
the growing women’s market is Nike. After
years of lagging behind competitors in terms of the women’s market, Nike has
made a big push into the market (Williams par. 5).
After working with an advertising and personal relations firm to find out
what women want, Nike developed nikegoddess.com as a response to its research.
This website features inspirational and motivational material, as well as
a link to the online women’s Nike store.
Nikegoddess.com also features surveys and opportunities for women to
contribute to the website (Harris par. 9).
Nike hopes to boost sales for women’s apparel by combining fashion,
performance, and comfort. As a
result of its growing commitment to the women’s market, Nike expects its $1.4
billion women’s business to double over the next few years. In fact, Nike’s general manager of North American retail
refers to the women’s business as “the biggest growth opportunity we have”
(Williams par. 6). Nike is just one
of many sporting goods companies who has made a significant commitment to
capturing more of the women’s market.