By the end of June, the German section of Sport 2000 had increased the number of affiliated retailers by 83 above the number a year ago. The group won 107 new members, lost 24 and currently has a total of 888 affiliated retail companies running 1,184 stores.
Productwise, the group benefited from a healthy development in the funwheels category,. It was fueled by strong sales of longboards, which are currently very trendy in Germany. Another driving force was running, partly also thanks to the creation of a subsidiary dedicated to specialty shops in that segment. Sport 2000 now counts more than 100 affiliated retailers specializing in running.
Meanwhile, the group is trying to create synergies between outdoor and running retailers as they are basically linked through trail running as a cross-over element. At the end of June, the new community of running specialists held its first joint order show at Sport 2000's headquarters in Mainhausen.
A major boost for the total retail turnover of the German buying group came from specialty outdoor retailers in the Outdoor-Profis subsidiary, which now comprises 141 shops compared with 119 a year ago. This came partially from the integration of another retail organization, Outdoor Insider.
For Sport 2000, the outdoor category improved sales by 4.6 percent compared with the first six months of 2014, in line with the overall development of the retailers. In the second quarter, shoes increased by 14.3 percent and hardgoods by 5.6 percent. Apparel sales were again down by 1.8 percent.
The good footwear business is reflected by the ranking of the group's most important vendors in terms of sales. Like at Intersport, the list of the strongest suppliers is led by Lowa, followed by Meindl with Vaude in the third position. According to Andreas Rudolf, managing director of Sport 2000, Vaude's sustainability approach has begun to pay off for the banner.
In footwear, Hanwag improved by climbing from #19 last year to #15. Meanwhile the larger full-range and/or garment vendors have had to fight some uphill battles: Jack Wolfskin fell from #1 to #7, Schöffel from #3 to #8, Mammut from #4 to #10. In contrast, Fjällräven improved from #13 to #5 and Salewa from #16 to #6.
The entire group aims to use its 50th anniversary next year for a large marketing campaign. Sport 2000 was founded in 1966 in France. The plan is to make direct investments in the affiliated shops - with some financial support from suppliers.
