Retailing in India: Setting a Quicker Pace

The last decade has seen the Indian population getting younger, with a median age of 28 years according to Worldometer, and more fitness conscious.  According to Euromonitor research, the sportswear market in India has grown from US$ 3.60 Billion in 2014 to US$ 5.56 Billion in 2016 growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 11.3 percent for the 2016-2021 period. This has propelled the demand in sportswear to run alongside the leaders in the apparel segment in India.

Fast paced lifestyle and the need for work life balance has added health and wellness as an essential part of the young Indian consumer’s daily routines. This is seen in the rising popularity of trends like recreational road trips, hiking, mountaineering, marathon running. Indian sport and fitness associated Bollywood icons have helped drive this trend further into the young Indian masses. This coupled with rising disposable incomes and the increased awareness of lifestyle diseases has been the key growth drivers for this segment.

Most of the big global iconic sports brands entered India in the 1990s and today have been successful in establishing availability and benchmarks for quality sportwear through franchising and ecommerce. Today, India has over 2200 exclusive stores and over 10000 sales points set up by international and Indian brands, such as Nike, Adidas, Reebok, Puma, Skechers, Decathlon, GoSport, Xtep, Asics, FILA, Lotto, Columbia, Kappa, Proline, Vector X and Kappa. E-commerce has significantly added to the demand and supply by enabling reach into the remotest corners of India.  The modern Indian consumer has evolved over time and is well informed of the importance of the right type of gear for performance and athleisure lifestyle. Their preference for international brands, owing to their trust in the product development and innovation capabilities, has ensured they feature on top of their shopping list. Being well informed and travelled they now expect superior experiences than before when shopping for this category. Though the past has not seen sportwear brands give special focus on retail design and visual merchandising, today they are investing in creating experiential environments enabled with omni-channel possibilities and technology to deliver superior personalized experiences for their consumers.

Here are some who have raced ahead to lead this transformation in this segment.

Setting the Pace
American lifestyle and performance footwear company, Skechers has set a blistering pace of growth in India, the quickest, not just in the country among its peers but also in international markets for the brand. Double digit growth powered with a sale of 2.7 million pairs has justified its surge in expansion which has seen the network growing to over 250 stores expected to reach 300 by the end of this year. Skecher new flagship concept at Fort Mumbai features its latest N1 version. The store, spread over 3600 square feet, offers cool features like an interactive digital window, augmented reality treadmill simulating popular running tracks in Mumbai, omni-channel station, digital screens and green building initiatives integrated into a modern mid-century design concept reimagined for the new-age Indian consumer.

Leading the Pack
Global brand Puma, associated with sports, racing and fashion, is one of the leading sportswear brands in India with over 365 exclusive stores across the country. According to a recent Times of India report, Puma has become the top sportswear brand in India, the only country to do so, in terms of sales surpassing all its global rivals notching an impressive US$ 163 Million last year. To consolidate its leadership position, Puma recently unveiled its second digitally enabled store in the world in Bangalore, the first being at NYC’s Firth Avenue. This next gen store, spread over 7500 square feet, is loaded with customer facing interactive screens, omnichannel integration and F1 simulators to promote the motorsport collection. A product personalization bar allows for printing or embroidering personalized imagery in just 20 minutes. The futuristic store architecture and design have helped create a landmark in the popular high street and also trend highly on social media.

Running in Line
Proline, India’s own sportwear brand, has been around for over three decades specializing in sports leisurewear retailed from over 350 retail points curating quality affordable products for the mass, lifestyle and premium segment. The brand has built its popularity by creating specialized products suited to the active lifestyle of the Indian consumers. After focusing on selling from department stores, the brand has recently invested in a new exclusive brand outlet concept designed around their consumer’s active athleisure lifestyle moments. A sport inspired store design, visual merchandising and a consultative digital assistant help highlight the technical innovations in product design to the discerning consumer in their shopping journey in-store. The brand is in the process of opening more stores across India to stay to continue to successfully run in the race.

Conclusion
The pressure on performance and competition on the tracks has all the big brands working hard to consolidate their online and offline strategies by relooking at their evolving consumer’s needs, the offerings and the sales channel mix to make their businesses sustainable. An added impetus to this is the Indian government’s commitment of US$262 million to nurture sports and attract foreign investment in this segment. The impact of this for the Indian consumer is experiential retail environments, innovative products, better service and tech enabled personalization. This is sure to create impact not just in the commerce but also in the conversion of India into a healthier and happier nation.