NKE, UA - The Running and Fitness Event for Women
The Running & Fitness Event for Women held its second annual conference, a trade show dedicated to the active female, in Chicago June 29 through July 1. The show grew compared with last year’s inaugural event and included for the first time sponsorship by multiple brands plus a greater number of vendors, including New Balance Athletic Shoe Inc., Fila Korea Ltd. (081660 KS) and Skechers U.S.A. Inc. among others showing for the first time. The show was dominated by apparel vendors, a combination of major players like VF Corp.’s The North Face and Lucy as well as Prana. There were also some wearable tracking device companies at the show, with Tom Tom N.V. the most prominent.
Although last year's event was able to tag itself as the sole fitness trade show dedicated to the female customer, this year saw the launch in California of Swim Collective LLC’s Active Collective show, which boasted 500 activewear vendors selling to active ath-leisure, sport specialty, contemporary boutiques, luxury resorts, cruise retailers, gift stores, online stores, swim and surf specialty and department stores.
Despite expanding competition and big investments by brands like Nike Inc. and Under Armour Inc. in women’s, attendees were upbeat about the outlook for category growth. Small apparel brands at the show expected growth to come from yoga boutiques and fitness studios where the customer was seeking tops and leggings featuring bolder colors and prints. Bigger brands said larger chains entering the category for the first time would seek them out because of their established reputations and production capabilities. Attendees and vendors at the show frequently said while studio fitness activities were on the rise, another big driver for activewear was the still-growing trend of women wearing their gym looks as everyday wear.
One of the biggest trends at the event was the growth in trail footwear offerings. Multiple brands said running, walking and group activities on trails have become popular because they do not require as much time or equipment investment as a day of snowboarding or skiing. Some think the trend gives people an opportunity to escape from connectivity with computers and phones. And while trail runners have also dressed in running gear and shoes, those who are walking trails are also now seeking tops, bottoms and jackets with performance features rather than wearing the same jeans and T-shirts they wear at home.
Skechers’ booth displayed a trail shoe with engineering enabling it to efficiently drain water picked up on rain-soaked runs. North Face was offering an entirely relaunched apparel line dedicated to trail activities.
Within performance running footwear, vendors have moved from away from largely focusing on lightweight silhouettes to offering cushioning in a variety of forms with the intention of addressing as many different foot-covering needs as possible. However, while they are casting a wide net without a central driving “new” theme, the level of variety can be overwhelming.
