French sporting equipment and apparel company Decathlon plans to open a fifth outlet in SA by July.
It said there was potential in a market where there was increasing demand for sportswear and technical gear.
Explaining the rationale for Decathlon's entry to SA in 2016, the company's events and traffic leader, Zama Mthethwa, said: "Sports are such a huge part of South Africa and for many people there has been a barrier at times for consumption because of availability and affordability.
"Decathlon's entry into South Africa was aimed at giving sports to the many at an affordable price, and we do everything from apparel to sporting equipment."
The group, which sells equipment and clothing for 60 different sports disciplines, said its new megastore in Bryanston, Johannesburg, which opens in July, would offer a "one-of-a-kind retail experience, something that has never been done before, towards giving access to sports to the many".
"I can't reveal much to you at the moment, but it's definitely one of a kind," she said.
Mthethwa said the group, which has megastores in Alberton, Boksburg, Roodepoort and Centurion, was looking to possible expansions in Cape Town and Durban.
Globally, sportswear is a fast-growing market, while the equipment segment experienced a setback last year with restrictions on sporting events, and school and team activities.
According to data from Safe Betting Sites, the sportswear market was "forecasted to cross the $200bn [R2.9-trillion] mark in 2022 and reach almost $250bn by 2026".
In "Sporting Goods 2021 - The Next Normal for an Industry in Flux", a report published in January by McKinsey & Company, opportunities were noted in the women's clothing sector "amid increased focus on activities such as home workouts, running, yoga, and Pilates".
Since lockdown started in SA in March last year, Decathlon has "definitely seen an increase in people buying sporting and athleisure wear apparel", Mthethwa said.
"People are looking for comfortable fits while they are at home, so they can still turn up at a Zoom meeting and look presentable and then go exercise later."
Mthethwa said there was a drop in the sale of cricket bats, rugby balls and other equipment for school team sports because of the hard lockdown restrictions that halted most activity. She said it was "starting to
pick up again" with children going back to school from tomorrow.
She said the athleisure market, which was already growing in SA, had been cemented by lockdown even more with items such as leggings, running shoes and shirts selling strongly.
One of the group's best-selling items has been backpacks for people wanting to go hiking, or for children to use as school bags.
"If we had to highlight our top three sporting disciplines that are doing well, they would be running, hiking and fitness," she said.
Mthethwa said health was also "much more front of mind" for South Africans and that lockdown had taught people that exercise and fitness were great coping mechanisms.
Decathlon has also reported a dramatic rise in online sales since the first lockdown. This has led to a 104% increase over the period.
Anthony Thunstrom, CEO of JSE-listed TFG, which owns sportswear brands Totalsports and Sportscene, said Covid had resulted in a "huge interest in health, wellbeing and fitness", leading to "strong demand" at Totalsports, as it is focused on technical sportswear and fitness gear.
Thunstrom said Sportscene, which is "built around street culture and fashion and recently won the Sunday Times Coolest Clothing Store award", had also benefited from the continuing "growth in street culture as well as the growth in popularity of Redbat", its in-house brand.
He said online demand for these brands had "accelerated dramatically" since the start of the pandemic, saying that there had been a 150% increase in digital sales.
Matt Warriner, group head of corporate communication at Mr Price Group, said while Covid-19 caused "disruptions to the market", Mr Price Sport had capitalised on the trend of people working out at home.
"As people have stayed away from gyms, school sport, clubs and exercising in public spaces, Mr Price Sport has made it possible for customers to set up workout spaces in the convenience of their homes. The division has experienced high growth in home gym equipment since the level 5 lockdown ended in April 2020 and this momentum is continuing," he said.
Warriner said school closures did have an adverse effect on speciality equipment related to cricket, hockey and rugby as sporting activities were curtailed, but the "business has performed strongly in fitness apparel, athleisure and footwear".
He said Mr Price Sport had also benefited from the online sales trend, with growth of more than 100% "in this channel" since lockdown.
Warriner said that with consumers under financial pressure, they were "showing increased appetite and demand for Mr Price Sport's private-label merchandise, confirming the move away from traditional brands".
"Value retailing is the place to be in this environment and history tells us that shoppers who shift to value merchandise are generally retained even after the economy rebounds," he said.
Long4Life, which owns the Sportsmans Warehouse brand, said in October in its interim results presentation for the period ended August 31, that it had experienced an "increased demand for exercise, running, cycling and fitness merchandise".
Long4Life declined to comment this week.
