Photo/Shetuwang

Mar. 25 (NBD) -- A marathon or cross-country racing boom is continuing apace in China. 

A Shanghai-based white-collar worker who loves outdoor exercises told the 21st Century Business Herald last Thursday he/she started cross-country running in June 2018, and has participated in 9 cross-country races and two half marathons as of the end of last year. In the half-year period, he/she spent around 20,000 yuan (2,980.7 U.S. dollars) on running gear, the person added. 

Buoyed by rising demand for running equipment amid the growing exercise fever, Chinese sportswear manufacturers are gearing up for expansion in the outdoor products market. 

A consortium led by homegrown sporting products company Anta Sports Products Limited ("Anta Sports") was about to complete the purchase of Helsinki, Finland-based sporting goods manufacturer Amer Sports in a 4.6-billion-euro (5.2-billion-U.S. dollar) deal that also includes high-profile backing from Temasek Holdings-backed private equity fund FountainVest Partners, Canadian Anamered Investments and China's Tencent, according to an announcement made by Anta Sports in mid-March. 

The consideration will be paid to shareholders of the Finnish firm prior to March 29, the Chinese sportswear maker said in the announcement. 

Also in March, another sportswear brand Xtep Holdings Limited ("Xtep") entered into a joint venture agreement with Gemini Operations B.V., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wolverine World Wide, Inc. to carry out the development, marketing and distribution of footwear, apparel and accessories under the Merrell and Saucony brands in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau.

With the rise of revenue, Chinese people's needs for sports equipments become more diversified. Simply speaking, people in the past probably had only one pair of sneakers for sports, work and travel needs, but now they want sport footwear with different functions for different occasions, Ke Chen, senior partner of Roland Berger Greater China, said to the 21st Century Business Herald. 

"China's outdoor products market is expected to hit 40-50 billion yuan (6.0-7.5 billion U.S. dollars) by 2025, with double-digit growth to be seen over the next few years," Chen remarked. 

The growth in the casual sports apparel segment, has gradually dipped to below five percent in recent years, according to Hao Zhou, partner based in Bain & Company's Hong Kong office and an expert in M&A practices, but the professional sports apparel and shoes segment logged growth of more than 20 percent, with the growth projected to gather pace continually in the future. 

Behind the rapid development of professional sports products lies a growing fitness trend. 

China held a total of 1,581 marathons and relevant sport events (road races of over 800 participants and cross-country races of over 300 participants) in 2018, creating a new record high, with 5.83 million people in attendance, according to a report released by the Chinese Athletic Association. 

The total consumption boosted by all running events hit 28.8 billion yuan (4.3 billion U.S. dollars), and the annual output value of the sport events industry amounted to 74.6 billion yuan (11.1 billion U.S. dollars), the report said.

Benefited from the increasing revenue and fitness lifestyle of Chinese people, sales of China's sports apparels reached 265 billion yuan (39.5 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018. Anta Sports, with a market share of roughly 10 percent, followed Adidas and Nike, but ranked top among homegrown sportswear companies. 

Through the acquisition of Amer Sports, which owns top brands such as Salomon and Arc'teryx, Anta Sports could gain a wider access to the global market and better capitalize on the Chinese market, Chen noted. 

Xtep is also aiming higher as it seeks to expand its portfolio from running shoes to products for outdoor exercises, aquatic sports, and ice sports.  

At a conference on March 12, executives with Xtep said its joint venture with Wolverine World Wide will set up dedicated teams for product research and development and distribution network construction. 

Pursuant to the new entity's development plan, it will open flagship stores for Merrell and Saucony brands in first- and second-tier cities on the mainland as well as in Hong Kong and Macao, with each brand to have 30-50 new outlets in the next three years.

Email: lansuying@nbd.com.cn