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UK Boardsports Market Insight February 2021
What is there to say? If you are a skate retailer then things continue as close to ‘normal’ for this time of year and as the change of season comes along then, alongside watersports retailers (lockdown allowing), you can find some form of optimism. If you are a winter sports retailer there really is no good news at all apart from the vaccine roll-out which appears to be gathering momentum – but all too late for this winter. By Gordon Way
At the time of writing this [Jan 25] the UK is in lockdown. Travel corridors are closed and there appears to be no chance of any real winter sports business this year. The retailers and distributors are feeling it right now and the hurt is real, very real … in the till.
Reports of 2% sell-through and sales reductions of over 90% are common and whereas, during last year’s lockdowns, eCommerce could take up the slack this time there really is close to zero demand from the consumer.
Looking forward to the sell-in, all brands need to be aware that a lot of retailers have almost all the stock they need to get them through next year.
“I’ll not be buying any outerwear at all….”
“We’ve got enough gloves to get through next year”
“I simply don’t need any more boards”.
These are the sort of comments coming through thick and fast.
Some retailers will not be here to see next year. Board Basement have gone. It was simply too much – they’ve closed their doors. The staff have been made redundant, the stock returned to suppliers, the website ‘Closed for Maintenance’ and Google advises ‘Temporarily Closed’. Will it be temporary? Will they find a buyer? In these times that may be a big ask. Full respect to the owner, Stu, who made sure that suppliers got their stock returned – he did the best he could to support those who have supported him over the years.
So where can I find some hope? I turned to Jeremy from TSA/Ellis Brigham and I asked him to give me some good news. “We’re not dead and it’s not raining”. From the tone I could tell that the good news was over. I did ask him if he had seen the weather forecast for today as record rainfall was on the way. “…yet” he added – referring to the rain of course.
“Vaccine” said Jeremy “that’s really probably the only good news that you can find. That and the fact that some of our snowboarders have now missed a complete season, maybe even two seasons, so they are going to be frothing to get out on the snow next year.”
Is anything selling? “Yeah, some stuff – but nothing like the quantities we need – nowhere near – and there are no signs of this changing any time soon.”
Jez also had some concerns for the way that brands are perceiving what is happening in the UK: “They’ve got a big reality check coming. When the order deadlines come round only then will they fully appreciate the impact. I have tried to tell them but it’s like they don’t hear me – the reality of the situation is that we need very, very little for next year. And I mean very little. So much will depend on March – but don’t hold your breath.”
You have to look into the future to find any kind of optimism. In The Snow magazine recently quoted Crystal ski holidays – “Current booking patterns suggest that customers are more confident about next season with sales for winter 21/22 up significantly. This is not just customers transferring their holidays, but also new bookings being made”.
I checked in with Olly Lambourne from ‘Mountain Mavericks Holidays’. “Yes. Not only has everyone who had a booking for this year simply shifted it to next year but the overall appetite to book is very good. Especially considering how far in advance of the next season we are. It appears that everyone has accepted the fact that they will not be getting to the mountains this season but they also want something to look forward to and so are committing to next season. This is a great sign.”
So there’s hope!
There’s one guy in this business that you can always rely on to be upbeat – Ben from Big Dreams. Now, I have said this before, but Ben is a pretty rare breed in this day and age – he is a good, old fashioned shop (I mean a real bricks and mortar shop) and whilst he has a website he does not have eComm. If you want something via mail order from Big Dreams then you can phone or email him … but …. no online … is he mad? Apparently not.
“I cannot be arsed with all that stuff. We’re a dedicated, enthusiastic, passionate good old fashioned shop and my customers love coming here and getting their snowboarding fix.” But how can that possibly work through lockdowns? “It doesn’t – we’re shut. But tell you what – when we opened on December 3rd our loyal customers could not wait to get back in here. I cannot say we’re having a great time but I am amazed at how loyal and supportive our customers are. They want us to survive… I really got quite emotional about how passionate they were for our little shop – for our ‘brand’. And they’re not just local – first day open we had a customer from Brighton and another from Plymouth.”
And now? [Jan 25] “Nothing doing – I’m keeping myself busy but there’s no business. But … when we reopen, and when the 2 local dryslopes open – I know we’ll be busy. And the dryslopes will be busy. There’ll be a massive kickoff – the snowboard smackheads will need their fix – slopes will be busy and so will we.”
Has he had to discount the stuff to get it out the door? “No – that’s the amazing thing – this year’s stuff is all going out at full whack.”
Ben has been in business since 2003 and with his approach to it all, keeping it small, niche and with 100% enthusiasm, 100% dedication to the local scene and zero desire to grow and grow I think Big Dreams will be around for some time to come. I sincerely hope so.
Postscript: The Vaccine rollout in the UK continues apace and today (6th Feb) there is growing optimism and talk about the ‘post-Covid boom’. There’s no escaping the negative impact and the loss of jobs that is ensuing but there’s also no escaping the pent-up demand and the ‘forced’ savings that some households have experienced. Additional savings (to November 20) are estimated to be equivalent to £4k per household. Given staycation, increased outdoor activity coupled with this increased disposable income we may soon be complaining about a lack of stock. Let’s hope that the ‘experts’ are right.
