The sporting goods industry — like every other sector — is trying to carve a new path due to the impact of the coronavirus.
Major and minor league sports have been suspended, as have collegiate ones and other broadcast-worthy competitions. Tuesday brought word from Tokyo 2020 Olympic president Yoshiro Mori that the Summer Games, which have been postponed until 2021, would not be rescheduled a second time should that be needed. Sporting goods companies are not only dealing with the postponement of the Olympics, but also this year’s UEFA European Football Championship, a big moneymaker for Nike, Adidas and Puma.
The WFSGI leader estimated that if the $400 billion industry could finish with a 15 percent-to-20 percent decline, that would be “a pretty good job,” given the current challenges. Apparel accounts for about 39 percent of that figure. “That’s definitely not what we were hoping for. But seeing everything that is going on now, that’s not too bad,” he said.
De Kock raised some concern about the health of people in the U.S. as companies start to reopen, due partially to the rate of obesity. Hopeful signs of the economy coming back can be found in China, where Chinese consumers are buying again and nearly 90 percent are up-and-running, he said. In Germany, sporting goods stores that are under about 8,000 square feet are allowed to reopen, de Kock said. E-commerce sales in China and in Europe are bright spots, de Kock said.
In an effort to bring the industry together, the WFSGI has opened the survey to all companies, not just its members. All results will remain anonymous and none of the companies will have their data shared. Having reeled in 350 respondents for the April survey, the organization aims to reach more with its May one.
South Africa South Africa Latest News, South Africa South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »
Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »