As the Qingming Festival approaches, many citizens are planning trips and outdoor activities, which has also heated up the outdoor gear market. Yesterday, reporters visited some outdoor gear stores in the city and found that hiking shoes, tents, and backpacks have become best-selling items. Some merchants noted that sales of outdoor gear have recently increased by 20–30% compared to normal times, while prices have also risen by about 20% year-on-year.
Outdoor gear sales up by 30%
The period around the Qingming Festival is not only a great time for spring outings but also a prime time for outdoor gear shops to stock up in preparation. Yesterday, reporters found that business at outdoor gear stores has been gradually booming. “The weather has been nice lately, and I drive to the suburbs for trips almost every week. It’s better to have well-prepared gear,” said Ms. Dai, who was shopping for a backpack at Century New City in Guanyinqiao yesterday. She has recently bought a tent, a windbreaker, and hiking shoes, and plans to go camping in Wulong during the Qingming Festival.
“Since mid-March, regular gear such as hiking shoes, windbreakers, hiking backpacks, tents, and sleeping bags has been selling well. On good days, we can get around 20 orders a day, about 30% more business than usual,” said a staff member at Pioneer Outdoor Tourism Supplies. Due to the earlier arrival of warmer weather this year and the approaching Qingming Festival, the number of self-driving tourists has increased, leading to an early sales boom for outdoor gear.
In addition, sales staff from outdoor brands such as “Meihu”, “Tutu”, and “La Sportiva” said that recent customers purchasing outdoor gear have increased by about 20% compared to normal times, with windbreakers being the most popular. “Sun-protective clothing is selling the best — we sold over 10 pieces last weekend,” said a staff member at the “KAILAS (Kaileshi)” counter of outdoor brand in Maoye Department Store.
The outdoor market pie is getting bigger
Reporters observed that to compete for peak-season customers, major outdoor brands have also taken the opportunity to launch various promotions and discount campaigns. At the “Kaileshi” counter in Maoye Department Store, a tent originally priced at 1,250 yuan is now available for just 750 yuan. Some clothing and backpacks are even discounted by up to 50%. Brands like “Meihu” and “Tutu” have also put up promotional signs offering discounts of 40–80%. However, reporters found that despite the attractive discounts, the prices of outdoor gear this year are still somewhat higher compared to last year. Regular backpacks are mostly priced between 400 and 500 yuan, with very few products under 300 yuan. Spring windbreakers are mostly priced between 1,000 and 1,200 yuan.
Yang Lin, an outdoor enthusiast from Jiangbei District in Chongqing, told reporters that outdoor gear prices have gone up by 10–20% this year. Taking trekking poles as an example, ordinary aluminum trekking poles were around 25 yuan last year, but now many stores sell them for about 30 yuan. Last year, many windbreakers were priced around 800 yuan, but this year most are priced at over 1,000 yuan.
“The prices of outdoor sports brands increase to some extent every year,” said a salesperson at an outdoor gear store. This is because of upgrades in materials — for example, the fabrics used in windbreakers and sun-protective clothing used to be relatively stiff, but this year many soft-material products with better breathability have been introduced, which naturally come with a higher price. A relevant person in charge at Chongqing Yuanshan Outdoor Products Company stated that rising labor and raw material costs have driven up retail prices. In addition, as more and more people enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking and self-driving tours, the outdoor market has maintained a growth rate of about 30% in the past two years, also providing some room for outdoor gear price increases.