Klarna, the global payments network and shopping assistant powered by artificial intelligence, shares that sales of women’s football shirts have increased by 17 percent on its platform in the past year, with eight in 10 fans saying they would buy more women’s sports gear if there were more options available.
Sales of women’s football shirts have grown twice as fast as sales of men’s shirts, which rose by just 8 percent, according to new research from Klarna and information company Sports Innovation Lab. However, 28 percent of fans want more clarity on where to find women’s sports gear, with a third saying they bought it from unofficial retailers due to greater availability.
The report, ‘Rep Her: Revealing the Unmet Demand for Women’s Sports Merchandise’, highlights the vast disparities in availability and quality for women compared to men’s sportswear, and argues that sportswear brands are failing to capitalize on the $4 billion (€3.6 billion) per year market opportunity that exists in today’s sports environment.
Angela Ruggiero, co-founder of Sports Innovation Lab, shared in a statement: “Consumer demand for league, team and athlete merchandise is much higher.
“There is a golden opportunity for retailers to tap into a growing market that tells us that if you create something that is authentic to the community, they will buy it.”
Sportswear brands need to focus more on gender differences in women’s sportswear
Research shows that sportswear brands need to address the gender gap in access to sports equipment, with 79 percent reporting a noticeable gap between sports equipment for men and women, citing differences in assortment (52 percent), availability (47 percent) and quality (36 percent).
Additionally, 78 percent of respondents said they would buy more sports gear for women if there were more options available. T-shirts, sweatshirts and team apparel are among the items fans would most like to have more of.
Additionally, female fans are also demanding more inventory, with 39 percent wanting greater availability of popular items, 46 percent wanting a wider range of options and 25 percent wanting more athlete-specific designs.
Female sports fans want more sports fashion options
Buying sports gear for women is a lot harder than buying sports gear for men, the report found. Buyers of women’s sports gear have 60 percent more difficulty finding a style than buyers of men’s sports gear.
Additionally, female sports fans are demanding parity in comfort, style and price. The top reason given for why sports fans have never purchased female sports merchandise before was price (35 percent), followed by lack of general interest (33 percent) and then style (16 percent).
Across all seven markets surveyed (US, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico, Spain and UK), more than 60 percent of respondents said they would purchase more women’s sports equipment if it were available.
The report identified Canada as a promising market. According to the report, they are the best at selling women’s sportswear to consumers. Germany has the greatest growth opportunity at 45 percent and Spain has to justify the quality and value of their women’s products, which are not comparable in price to their men’s products.
Jess Robertson, co-founder and Chief Content Officer at media and commerce company Togethxr, said in the report: “Consumption of sports by women is skyrocketing, including merchandise, because the female sports fan base is always on the go.
“This isn’t a ‘build it and they will come’ environment; female sports fans have always been there. We have products available and because of that, we’ve seen everyone from celebrities to athletes to parents rocking our merchandise.”
Klarna partners with global football media brand Copa90 to launch new sportswear for women
To raise awareness of the gap in official sportswear for women, Klarna has partnered with global football media brand Copa90 to launch new merchandise, including a football shirt and t-shirt designed by Sophie Hird, who previously collaborated with Mitre on a cap commemorating the forgotten women’s team from the 1971 World Cup.
The merchandise features the phrase ‘Rep Her’ to showcase the growing influence of women’s sport and is available to shop on Klarna via Foudys, the world’s first retail site dedicated solely to women’s football, founded by Helen Hardy. Proceeds from every purchase support The Laces Community Clubs, which helps to grow women’s football.
Megan Gokey, Head of Business to Consumer Marketing and Brand Partnerships at Klarna, added: “There’s a wide open target for any sportswear brand targeting women’s sport, but surprisingly not many retailers are hitting the mark. That’s why we launched this research to raise awareness of Merch Gap and encourage major brands to cater to female sports fans.
“We’re excited by the recent attention to women’s sports and are excited to launch this initiative. Ultimately, it will help make merchandise more accessible to millions of fans and create a space for women’s sports fans to shop smarter and become more ‘fans’.”
Source: fashionunited.nl
