Winter Sport's market in the Czech Republic growing

Sport is an essential leisure activity for the Czech population, per capita spending on Winter Sports activities clothing and equipment in the Czech Republic is above the average of other Central and East European countries (CEE).

Branded winter sport products tend to be in greater demand in Czech than other Central European countries such as Poland, however, competitively priced products from lesser known brands are still very popular. Czech consumers are interested in more style and design in their Winter Sports equipment and apparel, therefore, ultimately this leads to a lot more opportunities for fashionable quality driven Winter Sporting goods manufacturers.

Most Sports in the Czech republic are seeing an increase in  activity with over 50% of the population taking part in a sport at least once a week with cycling, football, tennis and winter sports the leading sports in Czech. In terms of media coverage, then football and ice hockey are the most popular. Skiing is popular in Czech but as the highest mountain in the country is only 1602 meters, then a lot of Czechs travel to neighboring Central European countries such as Austria and Slovakia. Cross Country/Nordic skiing is always popular due to the geography of the country.

In terms of demand for Winter Sports equipment and clothing the Czech Republic is about average in comparison to its Central European partner countries but below countries such as Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Growth in Winter Sport’s goods is on the increase, especially amongst the younger population with winter board sports fashion an area that is growing fast for this age group.

Germany is the lead supply nation to the Czech Republic for winter sporting goods followed by Italy and China. Retail shops are still the leading outlet for sales of sports goods but as in other CE markets online is growing rapidly, this grew by 20% in 2013 and is expected to increase by around 15% for 2014 for sports goods. The leading sports retailers are Intersport, Decathlon, Sportisimo, A3 Sport,  Hervis and Gigasports, large supermarket chains such as Tesco, Kaufland, Globus and Billa are also popular suppliers of sporting goods to the Czech population. The French sports retail giant Decathlon has 9 stores in Czech with this number expected to increase in the near future.

The Czech Republic market offers excellent opportunities for manufacturers of winter sports equipment, as in other central European countries finding the right Partner is key to success. The most popular route to market   is connecting with an experienced  distributor of winter sporting goods which has a strong dealer and retail network across the Czech Republic. Very typical is for a Czech distributor to be in a good position to cover the Slovakian market, which is mainly due to the shared history and culture  of Czech and Slovakia.