Sporting and Athletic Goods Manufacturers
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 1,600 sporting and athletic goods manufacturers in the US design, engineer, and manufacture a wide range of sporting, athletic and fitness related goods and equipment. Products include sports equipment (excluding sports apparel and footwear) used to play team sports, like baseball, basketball, football, and hockey; individual sports, including golf, tennis, bowling, and swimming; fitness equipment; and products used in outdoor recreational activities, such as fishing, camping, hiking and rock climbing.
International Sourcing And Sales Risks
An increasing percentage of finished sporting and athletic goods and raw materials are being sourced from foreign countries, particularly China and other developing countries in Asia.
Protecting Brands And Distribution Rights
The marketing success of many sports and athletic goods manufacturers often depends on maintaining strong brand names, trademarks, and proprietary technologies or product designs.
Industry size & Structure
The average sporting goods manufacturer employs 24 workers and generates $7-8 million in annual revenue.
- The US sporting and athletic goods manufacturing industry consists of about 1,600 companies that employ 38,700 workers and generate $12.4 billion in annual revenue.
- The industry is dominated by a small number of large manufacturers having several different products and brands, but is also characterized by a large number of very small manufacturers who market specialized products in niche markets.
- The 50 largest manufacturers generate 70% of the industry's revenue, yet 51% of manufacturers have less than 5 employees.
- In 2022, participation rates were 67% of the population for fitness sports, followed by 55% for outdoor sports, 41% for individual sports, 23% for team sports, 16% for racquet sports, 14% for water sports, and 8% for winter sports, according to the Physical Activity Council.
- Millions of Americans participate in team and individual sports including basketball (27.1 million), baseball (15.5 million), soccer (12.6 million), football (7 million), court volleyball (6.3 million), ice hockey (2.3 million), softball (2.3 million), lacrosse (1.8 million), and rugby (1.2 million).
Industry Forecast
Sporting and Athletic Goods Manufacturers Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Jul 16, 2024 - Prices Stable, Employment Down
- Producer prices for sporting and athletic goods manufacturers stayed mostly unchanged for the first five months of 2024, according to data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Employment by the sporting and athletic goods manufacturers industry fell in the first five months of 2024. Average wages at miscellaneous durable goods manufacturers, which includes sporting goods manufacturers, have remained fairly stable year to date, according to the BLS. Wages for nonsupervisory employees reached $23.93 per hour in May 2024 year over year.
- Sports participation levels increased for 35 of the 56 sports and activities tracked in 2023 compared to the previous year in a National Sporting Goods Association report. The “2024 Sports Participation in the US” showed that pickleball participation continued its strong growth in 2023, up 54% over 2022. Team sports with the highest participation growth in 2023 were cheerleading (15%), soccer (12%), and flag football (10%). The personal contact segment, which includes boxing, wrestling, and martial arts, saw participation increases of 14% over the prior year. The wheel sports segment decreased 1.2% due to a fall in bike riding participation. According to Nick Rigitano, Director of Insights and Analysis at NSGA, “Overall it is great to see participation levels up across the majority of sports and recreational activities we track. It tells us the opportunities are there for retailers, team dealers and manufacturers in the sporting goods industry to grow their business.”
- Despite new supply chain challenges, inbound cargo volume at major container ports in the US is projected to exceed 2 million units in May 2024 for the first time since October 2023, according to the Global Port Tracker report from the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates. The May projection is up 5.5% from a year ago, and June’s forecast of 2 million TEU is expected to be 8.9% higher year over year. Shipping routes have been strained by difficulties requiring rerouting around the Red Sea and Suez Canal and by March’s shutdown of the Port of Baltimore after an accident at the Francis Scott Key Bridge. According to Jonathan Gold, the NRF VP for Supply Chain and Customs Policy, “US imports are continuing to increase despite another disruption impacting US ports.” Gold added that the logistics challenges show the ongoing need for flexibility and resilience in a company’s supply chain.
- US manufacturing activity contracted in June 2024 for the third consecutive month after a brief expansion in March, according to the Institute for Supply Management’s Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The Manufacturing PMI registered 48.5% in June, down 0.2 percentage points from the 48.7% recorded in May. A reading above 50% indicates manufacturing expansion. Prior to the uptick in March, US manufacturing activity had fallen below the baseline for growth for 16 consecutive months. June’s New Orders Index was in the contraction zone at 49.3%. The June Production Index was 48.5%, a decrease from May’s 50.2%. Eight manufacturing industries tracked by the ISM reported growth in June: Printing & Related Support Activities; Petroleum & Coal Products; Primary Metals; Furniture & Related Products; Paper Products; Chemical Products; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; and Nonmetallic Mineral Products. The industries reporting contraction in June were Textile Mills; Machinery; Fabricated Metal Products; Wood Products; Transportation Equipment; Plastics & Rubber Products; Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; and Computer & Electronic Products.
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