Health-and-Fitness online information.

Although the fitness category sees its share of trendy products which at times can cause sales to be erratic, the category overall is an anchor to the hardlines side of the sporting goods business and one that grows more firmly established every year.

That looks to be the case again this year with sales in the category projected to grow at the 4% rate seen in 2004 or perhaps slightly faster, according to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association. Manufacturer sales of equipment were estimated to be $4 billion last year.

The growth is being driven by a variety of factors, but in general more Americans are working out more often and they stand ready to purchase fitness and related products that allow them to pursue an active lifestyle. While this would appear to stand in contrast to reports about rising obesity rates and the sedentary lifestyle of the nation's youth, information from SGMA's annual study of sports participation indicates that participation in virtually all fitness activities increased last year. The lone exception among the top 10 activities was stair climbing and the industry has seen that shift coming for several years as the overall trend in the category is toward lower-impact forms of exercise.

The other good news for the category is that the number of health clubs--and membership in them--continues to increase. In fact, last year the health club industry set a record for expansion as the number of units increased 14% to 26,830 facilities, according to the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association. The group also tracks membership and those figures have more than doubled since 1990 and last year surged past 40 million.

Logic might suggest those trends would be bad for the home fitness market, yet products for home use accounted for 80% of the approximately $4 billion worth of equipment manufacturers sold last year. That's due largely to the fact that the more people work out in clubs, the more likely they are to purchase equipment for home use. For example consumers were turned on to elliptical trainers at health clubs more than five years ago and have since made them a fixture in their homes.

While the overall market grew last year and is projected to do so again this year, there have been some shifts. Market leader Icon Health & Fitness has noticed slower sales of informercial-driven items.

"Our commercial business is running a 32% sales increase and that is comparable to what you would find with our competitors. It is our normal channels of distribution that we had a soft year with," said Icon Health & Fitness chairman and ceo Scott Watterson.

Icon's results suffered in part due to a strategic shift at the The Sports Authority that saw the company attempt to replace Icon's well-known brands with direct imports. The strategy did not work well and Scott indicated Icon was meeting monthly with the chain to restore the flow of its brands onto the sales floor of The Sports Authority's roughly 350 locations.

"We are very encouraged by the progress we are making with The Sports Authority," Scott said.

Another interesting development that will influence the fitness category this year and next is the recent merger of Sears and Kmart. Sears is already the nation's largest seller of big-ticket fitness products such as treadmills and ellipticals, whereas Kmart had become a non-factor in the category, selling declining volume of low-end goods. However, with 400 Kmart locations slated for conversion to a Sears format this year and next that will include an improved presentation and assortment of fitness products, there is certain to be an impact to full-line sporting good chains, discounters and warehouse clubs.

# posted by Medical Information : 2:26 AM