Outdoor apparel is in the spotlight, while sportswear brands are "taking a back seat"

    Since 2012, a series of topics and debates surrounding sportswear brands have never ceased. However, recently, the market share of sportswear brands has been gradually eroded by "fast fashion" and "affordable luxury" products, sounding yet another alarm for sportswear manufacturers. Analysts believe that "homogenization" is the soft spot of sportswear brands, while "fast fashion" and "affordable luxury" triumph with their individuality.

　　Recently, media reports stated that in a large mall in Hangzhou that was in its trial operation phase, no major sportswear brands such as Nike or Adidas were present. Moreover, from the lineup of other major brands in the mall, major sportswear labels also did not appear as flagship stores. Officials from both shopping centers indicated that the malls wanted to reserve prime locations for more profitable brands.

　　At the same time, the report also showed that the decline in popularity of major sportswear brands in malls is not limited to Hangzhou. On Beijing’s Wangfujing Street, Nike’s first flagship store in China will be vacating its space at Beijing apm Mall, potentially to be replaced by the "fast fashion" brand H&M.

　　In recent years, with the upgrading of mall positioning and the strong entry of international "fast fashion" brands, malls have also been intentionally or unintentionally shifting their original brand setups to align more with mass consumer psychology.

　　In recent years, as groups with unique labels such as the post-80s and post-90s generations have come of age, the concept of "individuality" has been mentioned more and more frequently. In an era where everyone is pursuing individuality, without it, one may easily be forgotten. "I haven’t shopped at sportswear brands for a long time. In my opinion, sportswear doesn’t really fall into the category of fashion. You don’t need to buy new styles every season; usually, you can buy one set and wear it for many years," said Ms. Wang, a local resident.

　　A person in charge of a local mall stated yesterday that, under the premise of aligning with the mall’s own positioning, factors such as being a "domestic top-tier brand," "suitable for the northern market," and having a "distinct brand identity" have become important criteria for the mall when selecting or rejecting brands.

　　Zhang Yingjian, an industry researcher at China Business Intelligence Network, said in an interview that due to the increasingly severe homogenized competition among sportswear brands and the visibly slowing development trend, "fast fashion" and "affordable luxury" brands hold relative advantages in terms of pricing and the pursuit of individuality, showing promising future prospects.

　　In Zhang Yingjian’s view, the emergence of a market situation where sportswear brands are gradually declining while fashion brands are growing strongly is, on one hand, due to the declining profits of sportswear brands, coupled with strong demand for "fast fashion," "affordable luxury," and outdoor brands—brands like ZARA and H&M have already demonstrated tremendous popularity in China, prompting some malls to switch allegiances driven by profit; on the other hand, the squeeze on the traditional channel market share of sportswear brands by e-commerce channels has led to shrinking market capacity and profit margins for mall-based channels.

　　Meanwhile, the encroachment on the sportswear market has become evident. "I remember this Nike store used to be huge, with a full range of products—why is it so small now?" "I remember the Anta store used to be over there—why did it move?" "I remember this mall used to have a Converse brand—why did it pull out..."

　　In fact, the positions of sportswear brands in major malls in Changchun have been constantly changing. Taking the Hongqi Street commercial district as an example, the floors in several large malls dedicated to sportswear have virtually become an ocean of outdoor apparel, while traditional sportswear brands that once occupied large spaces have been relegated to areas with relatively less foot traffic, putting them in an awkward position.

　　Although staff from a certain mall explained that brand renovations can lead to changes in store size, which is a normal adjustment for the mall, it is undeniable that the market share of traditional sportswear brands is indeed being intentionally or unintentionally eroded.

　　Meanwhile, some observant consumers have noticed that the once-popular "sportswear brand cities" have also started to tone down in recent years.

　　Zhang Yingjian stated that in previous years, sportswear companies pursued economies of scale, rapidly expanding their number of stores far beyond what the market could accommodate, while also increasing production capacity, which eventually led the industry into an awkward situation of high inventory and low profits. Nowadays, with the changing demand environment, the channel operating profits of sportswear brands have declined, making the growth of single-store performance increasingly important. Having more stores only increases operational costs, so the strategy of opening stores in clusters for rapid expansion is now seen as a poor move by more rational market participants.

　　A staff member at a mall on Hongqi Street explained that currently, the mall only has flagship stores for two international sportswear brands, Nike and Adidas, while some well-known domestic sportswear brands do not have dedicated counters. She also mentioned that the number of outdoor brand stores in the mall has now surpassed that of traditional sportswear brands.

　　However, Yang, manager of the Planning Department at Changchun Guoshang Department Store, said in an interview that although sportswear brands have moved past the rapid growth period brought by the 2008 Olympics and have now returned to normal, and although outdoor sportswear brands have risen rapidly in the past two years, the market response of traditional sportswear brands is not as strong as before. But this only reflects that in different periods, each category has its own major trends.

　　"The phenomenon of large shopping malls in some cities abandoning sportswear brands in favor of fast fashion is related to the malls’ own positioning. As department store-style malls, while it’s impossible to guarantee all brands are represented, it is essential to cover all product categories," she believes. Businesses should not abandon this fixed consumer group as a result. She also noted that, taking Guoshang Department Store’s Zhanqian branch as an example, out of the mall’s eight floors, one entire floor is dedicated to sportswear. Excluding outdoor brands, sportswear still occupies two-thirds of that space. "Compared to the past, apart from necessary adjustments such as new brand launches or store renovations, the overall structure hasn’t changed."