The British running brand achieved a whopping sales increase of more than 20 percent last year, as its investments in the fast-growing women’s running market have begun to pay off. Although it only introduced its women’s ranges 5 years ago, Ronhill is fast catching up with Nike and Adidas in the UK market for running apparel, with annual sales of more than £4 million (€5.9m-$8.2m).
The brand began to reinvent itself at the turn of the decade, when about half of its turnover was derived from sales of Trackster pants, a cross between a tracksuit and running tights, which was sold in large volumes at Blacks, the outdoor chain, as well as Halfords, the cycling specialist. With the emergence of competing products, Ronhill lost its four largest accounts for the Trackster and decided to rebuild its business through running specialists.
A huge inflow of female participants in the sport has been driving the British running market over the last years and changed the face of the business. Women’s apparel should make up about 50 percent of Ronhill’s sales this year – due to the expansion of women’s ranges in specialist stores and department stores like John Lewis, as well as the emergence of women-oriented stores like She Runs He Runs.
The brand is reaping the rewards of its tight partnership with specialist retailers, as it strives to offer more flexibility thanNike or Adidas. While some retailers are grumbling about lack of guaranteed delivery dates by these behemoths, Ronhill has been working on speedy replenishment, aided by the fact that the production is taking place in Europe.
Furthermore, the brand has been lauded for the scope of its women’s ranges, offering more sizes and fits than its competitors. The move was partly inspired by a finding that about 60 percent of internet sales of running products are generated by women, and a large proportion of these sales involved large sizes, suggesting that this demand wasn’t properly addressed. Ronhill took this one step further by offering children’s running gear with distinct ranges for boys and girls last spring.
The brand was launched in the ‘seventies by Ron Hill, a British Olympic runner. A textile chemist by education, he went on to sell running apparel based on fabrics that he developed himself. The brand currently belongs to the Bollin Group – the new name given to the former Swiss Cutlery group. The Bollin Group comprises a wholesale division called Burton McCall and the OSC group, which manages house brands such as Ronhill, Mountain Equipment and Sprayway (more about the British sporting goods market in our market research report on Northern Europe).
