Activewear Firms On Run to Catch Up Online

The activewear game is getting more competitive — especially online. With ath-leisure continuing to boom — NPD data show sales in the category rose 8 percent in the year ending in October to $35.1 billion, or 17 percent of the overall apparel market, even as other sectors lagged — more and more companies are entering the fray. While the industry continues to be dominated by major players such as Nike, Adidas, Under Armour and Puma, these firms are only halfheartedly competing online, leaving a huge hole for new entrants. Even those who get marketing right — Nike last year spent $3 billion on advertising overall, or what it calls “demand creation” — don’t always see those efforts translate directly into e-commerce sales, according to L2’s Digital IQ Index for Sportswear. Still, Nike’s “Risk Everything” campaign — with its “Winner Stays” and “The Last Game” videos garnering 105 million and 76 million views, respectively — as well as a Nike+ Training Club app that has more than 17 million members, helped the company become one of four “genius” brands in the index. Nike topped the L2 study, which ranked 59 athletic brands by their digital savvy and was released late last month. Adidas and

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