the sports distribution market | France

1.1 Market definition

A sports article can be defined as equipment used to practice a sport . It can be clothing (shoes, jersey, etc.), equipment (tennis rackets, football, handball, etc.) or even machines, particularly those used for weight training (rowing machines or mats for example) Talking about the market means talking about two aspects, manufacturing and distribution .

Care must be taken to distinguish between sports goods and sports equipment, the latter designating a facility or construction that allows the practice of one or more sports

Nevertheless, the sportswear ...a type of clothing whose style was thought up in the United States, can be considered as sporting goods Although this is more of a clothing trend than real items developed for sports practice. This study will therefore focus as much on sportswear for the practice of sports as on sportswear for the practice of sport sportswear .

In a market once made up of small family businesses, the last few decades have definitively changed the established order. Production is no longer the same, transformed by technological innovations and globalisation; and large companies, such as Decathlon and Intersport, have taken over the distribution of sports goods. In addition, more and more startups are trying to succeed in a high-potential market.

The Covid-19 crisis has had a double-edged impact on the sporting goods market, causing both a drop in sales but also a revival of interest in sport in France