The major athletic footwear brands raised their sales by 12 percent in 2007 in terms of dollars, but grew less in terms of local currencies. For example, their sales in Europe were up by 17.2 percent in dollars, with strong growth in emerging markets, but this was largely due to the devaluation of the U.S. dollar against the euro and other currencies. Similarly, growth in China and the dollar situation helped to push sales in the Asia-Pacific region up by 17.9 percent. The important and mature U.S. market saw sales of branded sports shoes rise by only 4.9 percent, due in part to the crisis of the shopping malls.
SGI’s annual chart gives out public figures and estimates for the footwear turnover invoiced by the 20 major brands and groups in the sector, including sales to foreign distributors and sales by licensees, to the exclusion of other types of products. They are mostly wholesale values, but in the case of some brands such as Adidas and Puma they comprise a growing proportion of sales though their own stores, inflating their turnover and their estimated market shares.
The two major conglomerates of brands in the sector, Nike and Adidas, raised their respective shares of the market. The Nike group’s share rose to 36.4 percent from 36.0 percent in 2006, thanks in part to a continued strong rally at Converse. In spite of lower sales for Reebok, the Adidas Group saw its share go up slightly to 21.6 percent from 21.5 percent. Instead, the combined market share of the next tier of brands, comprising Puma, Skechers, New Balance and ASICS, fell to 21.1 percent from 21.8 percent.
