When Crying Outdoors, Laughed at Golf Wear

[Asia Economy Reporters Yujin Cho and Minyoung Cha] The fortunes of golf wear and outdoor clothing have diverged. Department stores are seeing a surge in golf wear sales, and home shopping companies are fiercely competing to attract golf wear brands for the spring season. On the other hand, outdoor companies have been hit hard due to poor sales caused by warm weather and the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which has led many people to avoid going out.

◆ Diverging fortunes of Golf vs Outdoor = According to Hyundai Department Store on the 25th, golf wear sales growth rate during winter (November 1, 2019 to January 10, 2020) recorded 19.7%. This marks a turnaround from a -1.3% decline during the same period last year. In contrast, outdoor clothing showed a decline of -3% this winter, down from 8.2% growth last year, highlighting a stark contrast.

This winter, daytime temperatures in January mostly rose above freezing, leading to a boom in golf courses nationwide, which in turn increased golf wear sales. A golf wear industry insider said, "Golf courses that used to close during the harsh winter in January continued operations this year due to the warm weather, which increased demand for golf apparel and related products."

With the full-fledged golf season in spring, the golf wear industry expects significant sales growth. Golf, which can be enjoyed outdoors without large crowds, is relatively less affected by COVID-19.

◆ Home Shopping, Competition for New Golf Wear = Lotte Home Shopping plans to introduce Peter Jensen next month, and GS Shop plans to launch a new golf wear brand within the first half of the year. CJ O Shopping operates a total of seven brands including Jang Mi Michelle Basquiat, the exclusive Snoopy Golf brand, and Sesame Golf. Hyundai Home Shopping also holds seven golf wear brands such as Applelined, EXR, and Puma. These four companies are expected to start selling golf wear as early as the end of this month.

The domestic golf wear market is steadily growing. According to the 'Korea Golf Industry White Paper 2018' by the Yuwon Golf Foundation, the size of the Korean golf market was estimated at 12.4028 trillion KRW in 2017. It grew by 1.6538 trillion KRW over the past two years, with an annual growth rate of 7%. Among this, derivative markets such as golf equipment, golf course operations, and facility management account for 7.4619 trillion KRW (60.2%).

Golf is also popular on social networking services (SNS). On Instagram, popular hashtags like #Golfstagram and #Golstagram have about 650,000 photo and video posts. As golf becomes more popular, the age group enjoying it is getting younger, attracting fashion-conscious people in their 20s and 30s.

◆ Outdoor Industry Hit Hard by COVID-19 = Outdoor companies regret the disappearance of the winter peak season due to warm weather. An outdoor industry insider evaluated, "Sales of winter main products centered on long padding jackets declined due to weak demand caused by warm weather, leading to poor sales." As the winter peak season slump drags down performance, most outdoor companies such as The North Face, K2, and Black Yak are expected to report poor results last year.

Although they are focusing on launching new spring products, the outlook is not bright due to the spread of COVID-19. There is also concern about a chronic vicious cycle where leftover inventory from a poor sales season is cleared through next season’s promotions, which in turn depresses sales of new products for that year. An industry insider said, "Due to the impact of COVID-19, sales for this spring season are also expected to slow down."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.