Great Lakes’ Fishing

February 11, 2012 — The Editors

After the Caspian Sea, the Great Lakes are the largest expanse of fresh water Earth. The five lakes that lie on the border of the United States and Canada are, in order of size, Lake Superior, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

Today’s market size is the size of the sports fishing industry on the Great Lakes.

Geographic reference: United States and Canada
Year: 2010
Market size: $7 billion
Source: Eric Sharp,”Dollars and Sense,” Detroit Free Press, Sunday, February 5, 2012, page 3C.
Posted on February 11, 2012

Posted in Entertainment, Hunting & Fishing, Sporting Goods. No Comments »

Bowling Alleys

September 28, 2011 — The Editors

Today’s market size is a measure of the revenue generated by bowling alleys in the United States in 2001 and in 2009. While it is not a flashy or “extreme” sport, based on bowling alley revenues, it is holding its own in the overall arts and entertainment sector of the economy.

Geographic reference: United States
Year: 2001 and 2009
Market size: $2.88 and $3.11 billion respectively
Source: “Table 9.1. Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation Services (NAICS 71) — Estimated Revenue for Employer Firms: 2001 Through 2009,” Service Annual Survey: 2010,, the report on NAICS Sector 71 is available online .
Original source: U.S. Census Bureau
Posted on September 28, 2011

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Bike Parking Racks

September 12, 2011 — The Editors

The current Transportation Commissioner in New York City, Janette Sadik-Khan, is working on increasing the ease with which people are able to use bicyles in that city, even encouraging people to use bikes as their commuter vehicles. While New York has a long way to go to reach the level of biker welcomeness found in other large, world cities it has made progress, doubling the number of bike paths to an estimated 500 miles since 2007. As biking becomes easier in the “Big Apple” the demand for more safe places to park bikes is expected to continue to rise.

Today’s market size is the estimated number of bike parking racks in place in New York City as of the summer of 2011.

Geographic reference: New York
Year: 2011
Market size: 12,800
Source: Frank Bruni, “Bicycle Visionary,” The New York Times, September 11, 2011, page SR1.
Original source: NYC Department of Transporation and Pucher, co-author of an upcoming book titled City Cycling.
Posted on September 12, 2011

Posted in All Transport Vehicles, Bikes, Mass Transit / Public Transportation Systems, Sporting Goods. No Comments »

Golfing

August 10, 2011 — The Editors

Today’s we look at the size of the market for golfing related expenditures in Michigan, generated by the organization Executive Women’s Golf Association (EWGA). This nonprofit organization, founded in 1991, has the mission of connecting women with golf for both business advantage and fun.

Geographic reference: State of Michigan
Year: 2010
Market size: $1.1 million
Source: “Seeing Green, Golf Courses Increasingly Catering to Women and Families,” page 20, Corp!, July/August 2011
Original source: EWGA estimates

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Sporting Equipment — Chinese Exports

August 3, 2011 — The Editors

The first decade of the 21st century has been one marked by the rapid increase in globalization. As we saw in an earlier market size post, here, world trade increased some 133% between 2000 and 2010. China’s role in this rapidly growing market has increased over this same period from representing 4% of the total world exports in 2000 to 10.7% of the much larger total in 2010, producing a 533% increase in international trade for China over this decade.

Today’s market size is the estimated total value of Chinese export sales of sporting equipment based on export sales for the first six months of 2010 which totaled $2.5 billion.

Geographic reference: China
Year: 2010
Market size: $4 billion
Source: Sporting Equipment, Essential sourcing intelligence for buyers, published September 2010, one in a series of reports called China Sourcing Reports, a sample of which is available online here.
Original source: Global Source

Posted in International Trade, Sporting Goods. No Comments »

NASCAR Attendance

June 30, 2011 — The Editors

The first decade of this century has been one of great change for auto racing, the sport we call NASCAR (National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing). TV audience ratings have been falling and despite ticket price reductions, so has attendance at NASCAR races since peaking in 2006. The struggles of the auto industry in general may be part of the pall which seems to have fallen upon this sport. Some people blame changes made to increase the safety of the vehicles after the death of one of the sports’ most recognizable drivers, Dale Earnhardt Jr., during a race in 2001 for the declines in NASCAR audiences. Others suspect the recession is having a harder impact on fans of NASCAR than it is on fans of other sports. Whatever the cause, the sport is, for now, in decline.

Today’s market size is the estimated attendance at NASCAR races in the United States for the 2006 and 2010 seasons.

Geographic reference: United States
Year: 2006 and 2010
Market size: 4.6 and 3.6 million respectively
Source: Nate Ryan, “Action on track isn’t helping NASCAR attendance, ratings,” USA Today, February 18, 2011, page 2A.
Original source: NASCAR estimates

Posted in All Transport Vehicles, Entertainment, Racing, Sporting Goods. No Comments »

Recreational Boating

June 22, 2011 — The Editors

Boat Registrations in Michigan

The market size reflects the amount spent on new boats, boating accessories, engines, trailers, and services in Michigan. Despite the fact that the number of boat registrations dropped from 2010, total spending on boats shows a 10.6% increase from a year ago. Nationwide, in 2010, the number of boaters hit a record high of 75 million, or 32.4% of adults. According to the National Marine Manufacturers Association, that’s the highest percentage since 1999.

Geographic reference: Michigan
Year: 2011
Market size: $351 million
Source: Barbara Wieland, “Boating Industry Rides Recovery Wave,” Lansing State Journal, June 19, 2011, p. 1E
Original Source: National Marine Manufacturers Association.

Posted in All Transport Vehicles, Entertainment, Sporting Goods, Toys & Games. No Comments »

Sports Equipment

March 25, 2011 — The Editors

As basketball fans indulge in the offerings of March Madness, we look at sales of sporting equipment. Interestingly, when it comes to basketball, there is not much equipment needed, just a hoop and a ball. Basketball apparel, well, that’s another matter. Sporting apparel is not, however, included in today’s market size although it is included in the source table for those interested. Today’s market size covers a vast array of sporting equipment types, from fishing rods to golf clubs, tennis rackets to scuba tanks, and skis to fencing foils, to name but a few. Oh, and exercise equipment, included as well.

Geographic reference: United States
Year: 2009
Market size: $24.6 Billion
Source: “Table 1249 – Sporting Goods Sales by Product Category: 1990 to 2008, and Projection, 2009,” Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2011, page 770, available online here.
Original Source: National Sporting Goods Association

Posted in Bikes, Entertainment, Sporting Goods. 2 Comments »

Snowmobiles in the United States

March 16, 2011 — The Editors

The United States is a country that loves its motorized vehicles. In rural regions of the country where snow covers the landscape for nearly half the year, snowmobiles serve as both a sporting entertainment as well as a working vehicle. The United States is the largest national market for snowmobiles.

Geographic reference: United States
Year: 2010
Market size: 48,599 snowmobiles sold for an estimated retail value of $414 Million.
Source: “Snowmobile Statistics,” International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association, available online here.

Posted in All Transport Vehicles, Heavy Machinery, Sporting Goods. No Comments »

Snowmobiles in Canada

March 15, 2011 — The Editors

As a country with vast expanses of land, often covered by a layer of snow, it is no wonder that Canada is the second largest national market for snowmobiles. What is remarkable is that in 2010 one snowmobile was sold in Canada for ever 912 people. So, Canada is by far the leading national market for snowmobiles on a per capita basis.

Geographic reference: Canada
Year: 2010
Market size: 37,670 snowmobiles sold for an estimated retail value of $374 Million.
Source: “Snowmobile Statistics,” International Snowmobile Manufacturers Association, available online here.

Posted in All Transport Vehicles, Heavy Machinery, Sporting Goods. No Comments »
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