Outdoor Product Sales Growth Waits for Winter

On a slow rebound from stagnant August numbers, outdoor product retail sales growth increased at 2.3 percent in September to $820.6 million compared to $802.3 million for the comparable five-week period last year. This study, based on point-of-sale data compiled for OIA VantagePoint, shows sales through outdoor specialty channels down slightly, while sales through internet/catalog and department store channels showed signs of increase. The year-to-date growth averages 4.2 percent.

The hesitant growth has been attributed to this year’s warm Fall weather, lingering weakness in the economy and continued lack of consumer confidence. A Cold snap across much of the country during the first week of October led to a nearly 44 percent increase in Outdoor Apparel sales compared to the last week of fiscal September, suggesting that sales growth may be waiting for colder, wetter weather.

OIA members can access the OIA VantagePoint monthly trend report for September by logging in to www.outdoorindustry.org/vantagepoint.