Due to the restrictions of the epidemic, "long-term confinement" has become the norm this year, and plans for long-distance travel have been put on hold. The suburbs of the city have become the only choice for "returning to nature".

Outdoor activities have also entered the lives of the general public in a more relaxed and leisurely way under diverse demands, providing people with new ways of exercise in suburban areas outside of gyms.

Skiing, camping, cycling, land racing, frisbee... In 2022, the trend of outdoor sports swept from the beginning to the end of the year. Even if you haven't personally participated, you can still occasionally see a certain sport becoming popular on social media platforms.

On November 7th, the General Administration of Sport of China, together with the Development and Reform Commission and eight other departments, jointly issued the "Outdoor Sports Industry Development Plan (2022-2025)". The report points out that the total scale of the outdoor sports industry should exceed 3 trillion yuan by 2025.

With the joint efforts of consumers, brands, capital, and policies, the trillion yuan outdoor market is waiting for the arrival of new giants.

01 Outdoor sports, contracted for 2022

Camping in spring, frisbee in summer, cycling in autumn, and skiing in winter, outdoor sports are contracted for all four seasons of 2022.

In the post pandemic era, people are more eager to get in touch with nature, and outdoor sports in suburban cities have become a trend. Unlike professional hardcore outdoor sports such as mountaineering, diving, and rock climbing, urban outdoor activities are more leisurely, with lower requirements for human functions and equipment configuration, and a broader market space for related industries.

According to their usage, outdoor sports products can be divided into clothing, shoes, backpacks, equipment, accessories, and devices. Their main function is to provide protection and decoration for the human body during outdoor sports.

Among them, clothing is the core of the outdoor products market. According to data from the Outdoor Products Branch of the China Textile and Apparel Council (COCA), the largest category in the Chinese outdoor products market in 2021 was outdoor clothing (clothing, pants, socks, etc.), accounting for 46%.

As the largest subcategory of outdoor racing, clothing is also a battleground for soldiers.

This year, Jiaoxia, who started with a small black umbrella, has made a name for herself as the "number one outdoor stock in the city." In her prospectus, Jiaoxia stated that "sun protection is just the starting point for us to explore the outdoor lifestyle in the city

Jiaoxia's product line has also extended from sunscreen to a wider range of footwear and clothing markets. From 2019 to 2021, the revenue of Jiaoxia Clothing accounted for 0.8%, 17.5%, and 29.5% respectively. By the first half of 2022, the proportion of clothing revenue had exceeded 30%, an increase of 156% year-on-year.

Compared with Jiaoxia, Camel, Decathlon, Archaeopteryx and other brands have taken root outdoors for many years, and are more mature both in brand mentality and product polishing.

Taking Archaeopteryx as an example, in the third year of its acquisition by ANTA, Archaeopteryx caught up with the outdoor trend, and its popularity even gave rise to the second-hand business of "bird vendors". Experienced "bird vendors" could even earn a monthly income of 40000 yuan. Later, there were rumors that Archaeopteryx was benchmarking Hermes and launching a distribution model.

In terms of performance, in the third quarter of 2022, the sales of "other brand products" in ANTA's brand matrix, including professional outdoor sports brands such as Archaeopteryx and Desante, increased by 40% -45% year-on-year. When FILA, as the second growth curve, slows down, outdoor brands represented by Archaeopteryx are given high expectations.

Clothing is not the only beneficiary category of outdoor trends. The explosion of exquisite camping this year has led to a significant increase in sales of camping equipment. Exquisite camping emphasizes being close to urban life, therefore requiring higher levels of equipment completeness, also known as "moving camping".

From the most basic sleeping equipment (tents, sleeping bags, moisture-proof mats), to space equipment (canopies, folding chairs), to lighting equipment (camping lights), even pre made meals have caught up with the popularity of camping.

Data shows that during the May Day holiday, sales of outdoor coffee pots on Tmall increased by 4600% year-on-year, sales of sky canopy products increased by 2100% year-on-year, sales of barbecue plates increased by 310%, sales of outdoor tables increased by 400%, and sales of camping vehicles increased by 1400%.