WFSGI Magazine 2014 - Sporting Goods: The future of manufacturing?

Page 1

Magazine

OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE WORLD FEDERATION OF THE SPORTING GOODS INDUSTRY

Sporting Goods:

Physical Activity: Time for a 足 ction

The Future of 足manufacturing? Retail and Market: Focus Brazil

2014


BOOST YOUR RUN a running revolution BOOST™ provides a higher energy return than any other foam cushioning material in the running industry. It combines soft comfort with responsive energy for the ultimate running experience. Go all in at adidas.com/boost

#boost

Š 2013 adidas AG. adidas, the 3-Bars logo and the 3-Stripes mark are registered trademarks of the adidas Group.


Table of contents Editorial: Message President and Secretary General

3–5

Sporting goods: The future of manufacturing? •  The future of manufacturing or why I’m still waiting for my jetpack •  From design to manufacturing and from manufacturing to design •  China: Increase in wages is here to stay •  A unique sport R&T centre based in Singapore

6–7 8–9 10–11 12–15

Corporate responsibility & sustainability spectrum •  How to lead disruptive innovation towards a more sustainable garment industry •  CSR encounter: Retail check •  The United Nations office on Sport for Development and Peace

16–17 18 20–21

Physical activity: Time for action •  Why – and how – governments should invest in sport •  Making physical activity a priority through multisectoral partnerships •  Partnership for a Healthier America •  The social and economic impacts of physical inactivity

22–23 24–25 26–27 29–30

Bicycle matters •  Why we need a World Cycling Alliance •  Cycling trends and urban cycling – future potential for manufacturers, brands and innovators •  Commuting, leisure, sport: Cycling towards a healthy society •  Counterfeits and TM abuses over the Internet: The bicycle industry is ready to counter-attack •  The tectonic plates of media and communications are shifting

32–33 34–35 37–38 39 40–41

Global trade developments •  Free trade marathons – approaching the “Wall” •  A hotchpotch trade canvass: Overview trade restrictive measures

42–43 45–47

Retail and market: Focus Brazil •  The Games approach: Laying the foundation for performance in Brazil •  Brazil: A big but challenging market •  Topper prepares for global expansion •  Netshoes case study: From the back of a parking lot to a half-billion-dollar e-commerce •  Penalty: The Brazilian footsports brand for export •  Behind Centauro’s footprint – the champion of sporting goods retail •  We are taking the healthy path •  Selective distribution systems with a special focus on online trading

48–49 50–51 52–53 54–55 56 58 60–61 62–63

The World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry •  Become a WFSGI Member •  ISPO offers innovate services all year long •  Board of Directors •  Committees and activity reports 2013 •  Members Directory

65 67 68–69 70–83 84–88

IMPRESSUM • Published by: WFSGI, Obere Zollgasse 75, P.O. Box 1664, 3072 Ostermundigen (Bern, SWITZERLAND), phone: +41 31 939 60 61, fax: +41 31 939 60 69, www.wfsgi.org – info@wfsgi.org • Layout: Republica AG, 360° Kommunikation, CH 3000 Bern 13 / Ast & Fischer AG, 3084 Wabern • Printing: Print United (Germany) COPYRIGHTS • © IOC/John Huet  © Nike, Inc.  © iStockphoto

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

3


20 YEARS OF PERSONAL BESTS AND COUNTING THE NEW GEL-KAYANO 20 The shoe that’s been helping runners improve for twenty years just keeps getting better. Its new lightweight FluidRide midsole offers enhanced bounce-back and cushioning, getting you closer to a new personal best with every step.

#BETTERYOURBEST

ASICS.COM


WFSGI MAGAZINE Editorial

Message president Dear WFSGI Members, Dear Readers, As the President of the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI), I would like to take this opportun­ ity to express my sincere gratitude to all members of the WFSGI, including members of the Board of Directors, various committees, and staff, as well as all other related parties, for the generous support and cooperation you have all rendered over the past several years. To date, the WFSGI has been addressing various problems confronting the sporting goods industry, including international trade issues, problems related to the tie-up with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), environmental and sustainability problems, under the leadership of the Committee on International Sports Organizations (CISO), the Trade Committee, and the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Committee. The Manufacturers Committee has been active to be certainly a bridge between brands and manufacturers. Each committee fulfilled the crucial role, and we, from the WFSGI progressed from one goal to the next. Last but not least, we have advanced further in our activities to promote healthy lifestyles and created a Physical ­Activity Committee at the WFSGI Annual Meetings in Munich 2013. We have strengthened our relationships with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other UN entities and will continue to do so. Based on strong partnerships with such individuals and organizations, I hope to contribute to health promotion and improvement of the quality of life for the people all over the world through sports. At the WFSGI meetings held in Tokyo in September 2013, we organized among others a WFSGI Round Table on the promotion of physical activity, where we discussed the prevention of noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs), which are responsible for over 60 per cent of deaths worldwide, and new business opportunities for the sporting goods industry. I feel that the exchange of opinions we had in Tokyo would help the industry go to the next phase. Once again, thank you very much for participating in the meeting.

This would be my last message as the President of the WFSGI, as in January 2014 a new President is elected at the General Assembly in Munich, and I am convinced that I have made it this far because of all of your faithful and genuine support. I believe the WFSGI has gained strength and has set new milestones in the past three years. Apart from a continuous growth and newly launched projects, the Federation is on a good and healthy way for the future and we are ready to take it to the next stage. I congratulate the new WFSGI President on his election and wish him a successful legislation period. I believe the WFSGI will continue to establish even closer relationships between pres­ ent members of the WFSGI, their stakeholders, other companies and organizations related to sports, sports federations, including the IOC and the FIFA, and international organizations such as the WHO. I am convinced the WFSGI will take new initiatives towards the next summer Olympic Games, to be held in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. We will share and challenge problems confronting us with IOC and all the related members. I strongly believe that sports can bring the people from all over the world together. Let’s share truly impressive moments. I would like to offer my sincere prayers for the continued good health of all members of the WFSGI, and for a prosperous New Year.

With best personal regards,

Motoi Oyama WFSGI President

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

5


SUSTAINING MEMBERS

The sustaining membership is a complimentary membership. Companies that choose to be a sustaining member demonstrate a strong identification with the WFSGI and its objectives.

GOLD minimum spacing guide line

SILVER

BRONZE $3$&+( The WFSGI thanks all its sustaining members for their confidence and support!


WFSGI MAGAZINE Editorial

Message secretary general Dear WFSGI Members, Dear Readers, It is my honor to address you with some opening words about our exciting and interesting 2014 WFSGI Magazine. We again had a successful year and grew our federation for the fifth consecutive year. As in recent years, we have invested for growth for the benefit of our members in staff and new services. This resulted in new collaboration with several organizations that offer substantial financial advantages for WFSGI members. In 2013 we have also worked hard to improve our services to our manufacturer supplier members and brands. Today’s rebalancing process in emerging markets will have big consequences with respect to minimum and nominal wages. What does this mean with view to the current and future labor force and how do fundamental shifts in the manufacturing sector affect production efficiency, productivity, low-cost strategies and innovation? But also, what is the impact of the emerging trading blocs, changing government policies, decentralization, the need for local adaptations to emerging middle class and consequently the need to be closer to main markets? What do such changes imply our members? There is a need for a new wave of thinking emerging around sustainable design and manufacturing. Significant changes are being considered in regard to how sports products are designed and manufactured, involving higher level of automation, higher level of utilization of digital manufacturing technologies coupled with customization, and a higher level of integration across the key processes and the supply chain. This will have significant implications on operations in certain regions, when a range of sustainability indicators is considered, including social, economic and environmental indicators. Hence, our industry is facing a range of systems-based challenges rather than just manufacturing or sourcing issues. It is therefore obvious that businesses that lack infrastructure and capability for advanced and sustainable process engineering will ultimately lose their ability to innovate

effectively or meet the various sustainability targets across the entire supply chain. To address the above issues, WFSGI organized a very successful, well attended event and workshop in December in Taiwan around the “Future of Manufacturing�. It was the first of a series of events and workshops that WFSGI will organize for our manufacturers and brands to help them stay on top of trends and processes vital to their businesses. I wish to finish by expressing my gratitude to every person who contributed to this Magazine and especially the WFSGI board, the committee chairpersons and all our members who are continuously driving the federation and the industry forward. I wish you reading pleasure, good health and prosperity for 2014 and look forward to seeing you at one of our WFSGI meetings. With best personal regards,

Robbert de Kock WFSGI Secretary General

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

7


Sporting goods: The future of ­manufacturing? Why I’m still waiting for my jetpack

The Future of Manufacturing Or why I’m still waiting for my jetpack By Prof. Stephen Evans, Director of Research in Industrial Sustainability, Institute for Manufacturing, Cambridge University Engineering Department

“The West Wing: The Warfare of Genghis Khan (#5.13)” (2004): Leo McGarry: My generation never got the future it was promised … We landed on the moon. Thirty-five years later, cars, air travel is exactly the same. We don’t even have the Concorde anymore. Technology stopped. Josh Lyman: The personal computer … Leo McGarry: A more efficient delivery system for gossip and pornography? Where’s my jetpack, my colonies on the Moon? How we think about the future: the challenges, the opportunities, how to prepare. The future is notoriously difficult to predict. In 1977 who could have looked forward and predicted the emergence of the World Wide Web and the impact it would have on the world? We intuitively know that we are part of a complex system whose behaviour cannot be predicted or defined by observation alone. Long-term future gazing breaks down as time and chain-of-event logic (which many extrapolative predictions are based on) ceases to be useful. Events we cannot predict will shape our world for better and worse – and these events are unknowable. Despite this difficulty, every institution from governments to individual firms seeks to gain insight that helps them prepare for and make the most of future events. This is exactly the task the UK government regularly asks its Foresight ­department to undertake, with one recent exercise seeking to explore the future of manufacturing in 2050. Whilst the focus was on the UK the ideas generated can inform a ­wider manufacturing agenda. This article seeks to highlight some of the ideas emerging from this process.

8

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Humankind has never known more about the condition of the world it inhabits. We can measure and explore the nat­ ural world like never before and with the data, generate knowledge about the effect we have on the world. We now know that we are changing the planet in various different ways. Since the first seeds of the industrial revolution, human activities have increasingly impinged on the natural world, drawing from its deep resources, using its stores and affecting its operations. The signal we receive from those who study our global systems has been growing louder and more insistent. Human activity is changing the way certain planetary systems behave – potentially to the detriment of billions. At the same time, global economic development is bringing the benefits of the industrial revolution to new parts of the world. Increasing awareness of the activities of the global supply chain at a consumer and NGO level demands ever higher standards of social and environmental protection. The headline data suggests that we will need to deliver more than four times the value we currently do to a global population of at least 9 billion and a vastly expanded middle class, doing so with less than 80 per cent of our current climate change impacts and half the resources we currently use to serve the world. Industry is often cast as the villain of the piece, yet our experiences suggest that there is ample opportunity to provide not only economic development but social benefits and environmental restoration. By 2050 this will have to be the norm and not the exception for those of us who make the products that shape human existence.

Stephen Evans works with organisations to develop solutions that move us towards a sustainable future. His research seeks a deep understanding of how industry brings environmental and social sustainability concerns into its design and manufacturing practices, with a dual emphasis on urgent & practical change now and system level change that offers hope for a sustainable future. He is the Director of the national EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Industrial Sustainability, with over 50 staff.


Sporting goods: The future of ­manufacturing? Why I’m still waiting for my jetpack

Manufacturing and those involved in the activity have a cap­ ability in managing people, technology, money and ­materials.

Doing more with less is a key ­competence for firms to develop, ­yielding benefits in terms of financial and economic factors, yet we believe that this will not be enough to deliver sustainable futures for ourselves. New models for value, and new configurations to deliver it will be required. We also believe that manufacturing capabilities are not yet fully exploited and that manufacturers can expand the constituency it serves. We can create additional social value by leveraging the same capabilities that underpin success as a firm to help enrich and support the local community. Imagine a factory that uses its expertise in water treatment to provide drinking water to the local community – bringing new value as part of the license to operate. This is already starting to happen in some areas, with those unwilling to contribute failing to acquire the local support needed to operate. •  Do we have teasible technologies •  Can we develop them or do we need others?

The impact of automation on manual operations offers the opportunity to leverage flexibility on a whole new level. Combined with hitherto untold quantities of data on customer behaviours and preferences there are substantial opportunities to offer increased value to the customer for less extracted resource. In the longer term we may find that materials are grown rather than fabricated – changing the dynamic of production fundamentally, encouraging changes in the way we think about and organize the whole system of manufacturing. The precise shape of the future cannot be predicted – emerging trends and technologies may change the way we think – with 3-D printing and additive manufacture just one example of technology that could explode with earth changing power or remain a useful niche technology. We can, however, identify the characteristics and capabilities needed to cope with the uncertainty and challenges ahead, building resilient firms and communities. By considering the configurations that might deliver these different futures we can begin to prepare ourselves for opportunities, to experiment with our own system more frequently and with greater accuracy. We may not have the jetpacks that were promised but we can choose to shape our own future through individual and collective actions and so bring about more resilient systems of industrial production and consumption, to enrich our local environments and communities.

•  What if energy was 5× more expensive? •  What if growth is no longer the goal?

Technical assessment

What if scenarios

Possible future configurations

Outcomes & impacts •  Who are the winners and losers?

Insight

Manufacturer role Role of others Relationships Technology Systemic barriers Policy implications

Business Modeling •  Value creation and delivery? •  Can we take our customers with us?

Identify goals and principles

Describe possible future configurations

Insight

Action

Explore possible future configurations

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

9


Sporting goods: The future of ­manufacturing? From Design to Manufacturing

FROM DESIGN TO MANUFACTURING AND FROM MANUFACTURING TO DESIGN By Prof. Aleksandar Subic, Dean of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia

Sporting goods manufacturing is very labour intensive. For this reason, the cost of manufacturing of sporting goods is highly sensitive to production volume and labour costs. As sporting goods brands typically subcontract majority of their manufacturing, they are continuously looking for cost savings by shifting their operations to lower cost countries. For example, most of the manufacturing of sports apparel and sports shoes has shifted from Europe or US to China, then as salaries increased in China, they shifted further to Indonesia, Bangladesh, Cambodia or Vietnam, in pursuit of lower salaries. The relationships between the sporting goods brands and their supply chains are complex, and investment in the development of the supplier capabilities is limited. The sporting goods brands and their suppliers appear to have different priorities. While leading brands claim to be committed to product quality and corporate social responsibility, their suppliers appear to be driven by the bottom line as they

Additive manufacturing equipment © Subic_RMIT University

10

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

carry most of the risks associated with their manufacturing operations. Hence, they often do only what is required to satisfy the minimum brand requirements. In these circumstances, it is not clear how sporting goods brands will meet increased expectations for product stewardship and for achieving consistent sustainable manufacturing perform­ ance across their supply chains without a more substantive investment in manufacturing. The disconnect between design and manufacturing typically leads to lack of innovation in process engineering. Furthermore, lack of innovation in process engineering leads also to lack of innovation in product engineering. To illustrate this, I will provide a brief comparison between sporting goods manufacturing and automative manufacturing. To make a pair of sports shoes the saying is that it takes 200 pairs of hands. The process of making sports shoes involves very little automation (if any), and the way sports shoes are currently designed is not conducive of


Sporting goods: The future of ­manufacturing? From Design to Manufacturing

automation. The situation in the automotive industry is completely different. At the top end of this industry in terms of design platforms and manufacturing automation is Volkswagen (VW). For example, VW produces around 760,000 VW Golfs per year from their Wolfsburg plant. The plant covers 6 km2 and employs 46,000 people. VW claim that it is the lowest labour cost plant in the world, despite the high labour costs in Germany, which are 2 to 4 times higher than in their plant in Tennessee, US. To achieve this they have invested heavily in automation. Effective manufacturing automation is enabled by intelligent platform design strategies. VW are leading the automotive industry in design modularisation, which is the utilisation of common systems or platforms across a wide range of models (across VW, Audi, Skoda, and other brands). This allows them to rationalise and standardize their designs, increase production volumes of components that are shared by all models, outsource standard assembly operations to their suppliers, and implement common and hence more efficient assembly operations in their plant. They claim that their Modularity Strategy (MQB) has resulted in around 40 per cent reduction in assembly time. The sporting goods industry can learn from this experience. The future of manufacturing will involve even higher level of automation based on a seamless interface between digit­ al design and digital manufacturing without the need for

RMIT student with FDM-manufactured component © Subic_RMIT University

tooling in the critical path. The current and emerging technological innovations in laser-assisted additive (direct) manu­facturing will play a critical role in enabling this industry transformation. Ultimately, the 3-D printing on demand of high value-added sports products will reduce the dependency on current factory-based labour-intensive manufacturing across vast supply chains, bringing back this type of manufacturing closer to the design centres.

Subtractive manufacturing equipment © Subic_RMIT University

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

11


Sporting goods: The future of ­manufacturing? China: Increase in wages is here to stay

China: increase in wages is here to stay By Prof. Dr. Haico Ebbers, Nyenrode Business University, The Netherlands

China’s economic growth target as indicated by its political leaders is set at 7.5 % for 2013; a remarkably low target compared to before. The Western media interpreted this low target rate as a bad signal. In the eyes of the Western media it shows that China is heading towards a deepening of its economic recession. But this is a wrong interpretation. It shows the commitment of the Chinese leaders to continue with the necessary rebalancing process in China. During the past three decades the Chinese economy relied strongly on an unlimited supply of cheap labour, moving from the rural sector to the urban centres and on high levels of investments in the manufacturing sector. This growth model was financed through cheap money by the banks. Low wages were essential which depressed consumption, while it helped to boost low value-added exports and investments. Among the major Asian economies, the most dramatic shift in the share of private consumption was recorded by China. Its share in GDP fell from almost 50 % in 2000 to only 38 % in 2012. The essence of today’s rebalancing process is based on increasing domestic consumption, and the policy to increase wages will be at the centre of this policy in the next 10 years. The middle-income trap In the post-war era, many countries rapidly developed into middle-income status, but only a few have grown into the high-income country status. They have become stuck in the so-called middle-income trap. According to the World Bank: “Growing up is hard to do.” The advantages that created high growth in these countries during their rapid development phases such as low-cost labour and easy technology adoption disappeared when they reached middle-income levels. Low-income countries can compete in international markets by producing labour-intensive low-cost products using technologies developed abroad. Large productivity gains occur through a reallocation of labour and capital from low-productivity agriculture to high-productivity manufacturing. As countries reach middle-income levels, the underemployed rural labour force diminishes and wages rise, eroding competitiveness. To grow further, these countries have

12

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

to find new sources of growth. This can be achieved by increased productivity, increased innovation, and a shift to high-value services. This is the only way to escape the middle-income trap. There is empirical evidence for the concept of a middle-­ income trap. Many economies reached middle-income status as early as the 1960s and 1970s but have remained there ever since. In the World Bank research of 101 middle-­income economies in 1960 only 13 became high income by 2008, including countries such as Ireland, Japan, Portugal, the ­Republic of Korea, and Singapore. To escape the middleincome trap, these countries had to find new sources of growth when wages increased substantially. This is an important lesson for China: if essential structural reforms are not being implemented, not robust enough, not in the correct sequence and not on time, this will result in a structural growth slowdown. It is essential to pinpoint the moment that wages are rising so much that competitiveness on ­global markets deteriorates. The Lewis-turning point Wages do not rise in the manufacturing sector because of this continued flow of surplus labour from rural sectors. But this will change as soon the surplus labour in the rural sector becomes exhausted. This is known as the “Lewis point”. According to Arthur Lewis, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, developing countries’ industrial wages begin to rise strongly at the point when the supply of surplus labour from the countryside tapers off. It looks as though China is nearing (or has even passed) this Lewis turning point and may well enter a phase of rapid wage increase. This is a critical milestone for China. Factories have to start raising wages faster than the rate of inflation to attract rural workers. This increase in real wages for unskilled workers will stay; the wage increase we witnessed in the previous years is only the start of a long running trend of rising real wages. The Lewis point signals the moment where industrial upgrading is necessary. Investments are needed in education and technology to avoid the risk of falling into the middle-income trap in which China cannot compete anymore in labour-intensive products on global markets.


Sporting goods: The future of ­manufacturing? China: Increase in wages is here to stay

The number of people aged between 15 and 59 years fell by 3.5 million in 2012, the first absolute decrease in the labour force since the late 1970s. As can be seen in the figure below the growth of average labour costs in China is around 15 % between 2007 and 2012; much higher than economic growth and inflation. In 2013, it is to be expected that the wage increase lies around 12 %. Precise figures for migrant workers are difficult to find, but also this cohort witness an annual double-digit growth between 2007 and 2012, driven by the minimum wage that increased 22 % on average in 2011.

Urban household income as percentage of GDP, 2000–2012

Source: Economist Intelligence Unit (2012)

Average labour growth rate, China

Source: Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security

The rise of wages is not only driven by shortages on the labour market. The increase is also the result of specific government policy. The key element in the rebalancing process is the rise of domestic demand, and clearly the rise of nominal wages is a necessary condition to achieve this. Examples of specific government policy are the minimum wage

increases in previous years and stricter enforcement of social insurance contributions. This stricter enforcement will drive wages further up in the near future. Of the 250 million migrant workers in 2012, only 15 % received retirement bene­ fits and 8 % unemployment insurance. Conclusion Clearly, we are reaching the Lewis turning point in China. Structural reforms are needed to fight the middle-income trap. To solve the unbalanced growth model, creating a domestic consumption-driven economy and securing ­ ­medium-term economic development, higher wages are ­essential. But higher wages may also have adverse shortterm implications. Companies, in particular in regions such as Pearl River Delta, have three options: move their factories inland where labour is (still) cheaper, shift plants overseas (to destinations such as Cambodia, Bangladesh and Vietnam), or to set up automation to save on labour costs. The last option will boost productivity growth and in that case wage growth is backed up by productivity. The debate in China over the middle-income trap and the discussion on the Lewis point will have its impact on future wage development. Despite short-term adverse effects China needs a structural transformation with high and rising wages as a key variable. For foreign manufacturers this means higher real wages and a government policy targeted on productivity. Higher wages are to stay and there is an important role for manufactures to counteract the continuation of increasing wages through productivity gains.

Haico Ebbers is professor of International Economics at Nyenrode Business University in The Netherlands. He is chairman of the Europe China Institute at Nyenrode. In his capacity as chairman he is responsible for the three pillars of the Europe China Institute: education, research and network events. The Institute is recognised as one of the leading institutes in the field of EU China economic relations. Besides his work at Nyenrode, he is guest professor at various national and international universities, including some top universities in China. He teaches Globalization at the London Academy of Diplomacy. Furthermore, he is visiting professor for International Economics at China Europe International Business School in Shanghai and guest lecturer at Renmin University in Beijing. In his latest publications the focus is on China’s integration in the World economy, in particular its relationship with the EU; through trade, investments and short-term capital flows.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

13


Sporting goods: The future of ­manufacturing? Institute for sports research

A unique sport R&T centre based in Singapore An interview with Pascal Joubert des Ouches, Executive Director, Institute for Sports Research (ISR), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Exploring the future of manufacturing through interdisciplinary science and engineering research. Product manufacturing has entered a new growth path, as nano- and macro-composites are increasingly influencing the future of manufacturing. Carbon fibres automated placement in aerospace, thermoplastic composites together with additive manufacturing techniques in automotive industry are shaping a new future for sports product manufacturing. At the ISR, we are investing in up-stream research in material science, mechanical engineering and sports ­sciences, to explore new technologies which can be applied to sports products. Why has ISR been established in Singapore? Recognised as the leading regional sports hub in Asia-­Pacific today due to its conducive business environment, combined with world-class infrastructure and strong sporting culture, Singapore is a prime location for major sports products and sports services companies looking to extend their reach in this part of the world. Key players like Nike, Converse, adidas, Shimano, Sportmaster and the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) have set up operations here to access and manage the regional market. This has unlocked new opportunities in areas like supply chain management, marketing and research & development (R&D). Singapore is embarking on a new sports master plan called Vision 2030, where sport is used as a strategy to help everyone “Live Better Through Sports”. The strategy cuts across different areas. The promotion of sports excellence and high-performance sports will remain vital. Efforts will be in place to encourage greater participation in sports, to ­broaden the base of involvement in sports, so that sport becomes a national language and a way of life. An eco­ system of sports will be built, such that volunteers, enthusiasts and corporate partners come together to support and be involved in sports in Singapore. Essentially, Vision 2030 will see the continuation of efforts to have the power of sport manifested in the lives of people. Keeping pace with technological advancements will become critical as we advance initiatives under Vision 2030.

14

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

For instance, innovative technologies in materials and equipment will continue to influence performance. The ISR will look into this area, in collaboration with agencies such as the Singapore Sports Institute (SSI). ISR aims to become the leading sports R&T centre in AsiaPacific that constantly delivers impactful innovations through cutting-edge research and strong collaboration with stakeholders. Our mission is to partner with the sports industry companies to imagine new possibilities offered by science and technology to create innovative sports solutions and inspire the sports market through collaborative and interdisciplinary research support. ISR was founded in July 2011 by NTU (Nanyang Technological University) and EDB (Economic Development Board) in collaboration with Loughborough University (UK). ISR is hosted by NTU inside the School of Mechanical Aerospace and Engineering (MAE) and the School of Ma­ter­ial Sciences and Engineering (MSE), thus we benefit from massive and unique scientific and technological resources. How have you been appointed Executive Director? I am a sport addict and former basketball semi-pro player and world cup event windsurfer. With 22 years in the sports industry, these last 10 years I was managing my own sports product Innovation Agency in France. I have been head hunted by “Sports Recruitment International” and chosen by NTU and EDB for my long and broad experience of sports product developments and innovation management in different positions in the sports industry (BIC Sport, Axson Technologies, Oxylane, Rossignol Snowboards) with over 10 patented inventions. I therefore understand the industry and the quick pace imposed by a highly competitive market. My background of Material and Mechanical Engineer from “Arts et Metiers Paris Tech” and a Master’s degree in Marketing Management at ESSEC, Paris, help 4 key drivers: me to bridge the gap bet­   Interdisciplinary ween science and business,   applied R&D between academic and in  disruptive innovation dustrial constraints. When   open innovation hub

* * * *



THIS IS RUNNOVATION™.


Sporting goods: The future of ­manufacturing? Institute for sports research

the job was offered to me I considered the challenge and the resources associated, I have not hesitated and I moved to Singapore with my family where living is really nice, safe and vibrant. This is important to attract other talents and sports companies here in Singapore. What is the unique R&T selling proposal which ISR is offering to sports companies? Big market growth is now in the Asia-Pacific Region, the morphologic specificities of Asian consumers, their culture and sports practise require a dedicated R&D approach for brands willing to succeed into these markets. ISR is a platform to implement R&D projects and benefit from the unique interdisciplinary environment which is essential to generate disruptive product innovation. The uniqueness of ISR comes from the massive amount of scientific resources we have access to within NTU campus and LU in UK. This allows us to have a fully integrated interdisciplinary approach crossing sport sciences (biomeca, physio, psycho, …) with material sciences (composites and polymers) and mechanical & electronic engineering (cfd, robotics, mechanical design, software, wireless electronics …). I don’t think there is such an equivalent today with a so strong focus on sports products. We also benefit from cross fertilization of other Research Institutes at NTU such

as ERI@N pioneering new battery technologies applied to electrical bikes and thermo regulated apparels. Can you highlight some strong expertise of ISR? Yes, of course, we have a strong expertise in polymer science with synthesis and nanoparticles functionalization for polymer nano-composites. We are currently launching a Joint Industry Research Program in the domain of latest generation of high-performance carbon composite structures and process (including additive manufacturing technics) applied to Sports Products with key players of the industry willing to mutualize their R&T effort. We also have a huge expertise in helmet innovative design and similar crash structures as well as in the domain of compression garment and textile moisture management in tropi­cal climate. We invest in embedded electronics for smart products from footwear to apparels and rackets. Any interesting references which you can reveal to WFSGI? Yes, this is no secret that we already work for Babolat, Rossignol, Taylormade, Sportmaster, ITTF, Arkema, Chomarat … The whole team here is extremely excited about new directions we are able to explore, and we know it will find a place inside the technology portfolio of our sports company partners soon.

5 R&D programs matching the industry organization

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

17


Corporate Responsibility & ­Sustainability Spectrum Towards a more sustainable garment industry

How to lead disruptive innovation towards a more sustainable garment industry By Christian Hagemann, Advisor, Programme Social and Environmental Standards, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ)

The collapse of the Rana Plaza complex in Bangladesh’s capital of Dhaka marked a tipping point for the global ready-made garment industry. Burying more than 1,100 workers under its debris and leaving more than 2,500 people injured, Rana Plaza constitutes the deadliest building collapse since the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. It is also the most severe industrial disaster since Fukushima. Comparisons of such catastrophes can never do justice to the individual tragedies suffered by the victims and their families. However, they highlight the need for urgent and structural changes to prevent similar events from happening again. Moreover, previous factory fires killing almost 500 workers had suggested that the causes are rooted in the way garment supply chains are organised. Therefore, Rana Plaza demands a systemic solution rather than a quick fix.

18

supply chain risks to increased consumer confidence to reduced costs by building strategic purchasing alliances. At the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ), we have a proven track record in driving social and environmental change in the Asian readymade garment (RMG) sector. We have derived four key strategies from our work, which are indispensable for achieving a breakthrough in the industry.

Transforming an entire sector towards more sustainable practices may resemble a Sisyphean challenge. However, if successful, it will not only improve workers’ health, safety and welfare. Such a tidal turnaround can even bring about disruptive innovation, creating new business opportunities for the companies leading the change: from mitigated

The first strategy focuses on strengthening the dialogue between the factory management and its workers. An integrated dialogue approach empowers both employers and employees to jointly identify and solve social and environmental flaws at factory level. However, this will require paradigm shifts regarding the right of collective bargaining, equitable decision-making or gender equality, to name only a few aspects. Commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), we developed the dialogue approach in a strategic alliance with one of the biggest German retailers. By providing comprehensive trainings of trainers, we have qualified the management and

Garment workers displaying their “lesson of the day” at a women’s café, AWAJ Foundation, Mirpur, Dhaka © Shumon Ahmed

Knowledge sharing during a weekend training session for factory super­ visors at a GIZ-supported centre, CFTM, Uttora, Dhaka © Shumon Ahmed

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014


Corporate Responsibility & ­Sustainability Spectrum Towards a more sustainable ­garment industry

workers of 40 Asian suppliers on national and international labour standards, dialogue tools and cooperation at the workplace. Building a trainer platform has enabled the retailer to successfully institutionalise and scale up the approach beyond the project phase. In Bangladesh, we have integrated the dialogue approach into the GIZ programme for the promotion of social and environmental standards in the RMG sector. In close co­ oper­ation with local NGOs, we have set up 18 women’s ­cafés where we bring together textile workers for a cup of tea and provide them with legal advice or training on social dialogue with their factory management. The second strategy will require reassessment of purchasing practices and also realignment of supplier relationships. Currently, supplier networks are predominantly driven by a myopic focus on the costs of material and operation. The division of purchasing and CSR departments merely epitomises this cost-driven attitude. Hence, profit targets do not sufficiently factor in the costs that supply chain risks incur. Neither do they account for opportunity revenues leveraged by safer working conditions and healthier workforces, which in turn usually result in higher productivity. Therefore, retailers and brands should incite organisational change to effectively enable more sustainable and profitable purchasing decisions. These decisions will entail strategic partnerships with fewer long-term suppliers. More robust alliances will increase supply chain control while still allowing for a certain degree of flexibility. In the aforementioned alliance, we supported the German retailer not only in achieving improvements regarding the social conditions in the supplier factories. In fact, social measures drove economic performance, as productivity increased and quality improved.

Sewing operators receiving training at a GIZ-supported centre, JIRANI Foundation, Gazipur, Dhaka © Shumon Ahmed

Thirdly, retailers, brands, the civil society and governments should join forces to raise consumer awareness of the RMG sector’s challenges. Experience from other sectors such as coffee, timber or fisheries suggests that credible standards systems play an important role in building consumer confidence. A range of initiatives such as the Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI) or Social Accountability International (SAI) provide solutions for retailers and brands to prove their compliance with social and environmental principles. However, many initiatives still focus on tackling specific social problems such as child labour or forced labour. While overcoming these issues remains non-negotiable, the Rana Plaza collapse and the numerous factory fires have proven such approaches to be too narrow and removed from reality. It will therefore be crucial to adapt existing sustainability initiatives to evolving framework conditions. Aligning them through benchmarking will additionally improve their impact. Developing more robust assurance mechanisms will be a key challenge in accounting for the complexity of issues at hand. However, this is not a call for more audits. Quite the contrary, our experiences in Asian textile factories prove that an integrated social and environmental management system implemented in dialogue between management and workforce provides the most robust level of assurance. Finally, the challenges ahead are too great to be tackled by individual companies. Therefore, the fourth strategy entails a sector-wide approach convening a critical mass of industry players. Moreover, it will be crucial to build such an initiative on a multistakeholder platform accounting for the views and needs of industry, national governments and the civil society. After the disastrous fire at the Tazreen Fashion factory in November 2012, a group of international retailers and brands approached us to develop a comprehensive fire and building safety programme. Only five days after Rana Plaza collapsed, we hosted more than 30 corporate as well as civil society representatives. This historic meeting at GIZ headquarters in Eschborn paved the way for the Accord on Fire and Building Safety, which more than 80 companies have committed to so far. If the four strategies outlined above can be meaningfully aligned, they will bring about real and permanent change. And once the vision of a sustainable RMG sector has become reality, the industry will be a role model for other sectors to follow.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

19


Corporate Responsibility & ­Sustainability Spectrum Retail check

CSR encounter: Retail check WFSGI talked to Swiss sport retailer Heinz Egger from Mondo Sport in Murten, Switzerland

What importance do corporate responsibility and sustainable products have for customers? For my shop and for my customers it is important to know the origin of the product and the supply chain. The customers raise many questions around sustainability: What does this label stand for? Do they use recycled materials? Where do the raw materials come from? How do they harvest the cotton? How can I recycle the product? Although we receive many questions, I can say that 4 out of 5 customers do not base their decision to buy a product on that information. At the moment the customer is not willing to pay a higher retail price. In my opinion, “green” sporting goods products have not been accepted as “green” vegetables and fruits. What influence does it have on the daily retail business? Sustainability plays a big role in the interaction with our customers – every day. It is a huge topic and nearly every sporting goods company works on sustainability and has its programmes. Unfortunately we have to sum up that everybody wants it, but nobody buys it. This is a development I also see in the shops of my partner colleagues. Many customers want to know if the product is made in Europe. For example, in the outdoor shoe product range we sell shoes made in Europe with a repair service. We also offer a repair service for Gore-texTM jackets. Again, although the customer wants a product made in Europe and has the possibility to get the product repaired, he is not willing to invest more. Another example is ski recycling. When the customer buys the product he wants to know if he can recycle it. Although we offer the recycle service very few customers make use of it in the end. Our experience shows that we need to launch campaigns to activate the customer to recycle and bring back the products to the shop.

Mondo Sport, Murten, Switzerland

20

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

How big is the % of con­ sumers asking for sus­ tain­ able products in a shop? And who is the target group? 2–3 % of our customers ask for it, but it has to be described in detail how and where sustainability comes into play. This is

sometimes a challenge as we also do not know all the exact details. Mainly 40 plus customers ask for sustainable products. They are more open to listen to arguments and willing to make a compromise. For example: the origin of the merino wool could be a sales argument. For the youngsters fashion and lifestyle seems to dominate. Especially in the snowboard sales we observe a stark fashion influence. Whereas men (especially 23 plus year-old) may still be convinced by technical features, women from 15– 24 year-old pay attention to look. Technical features can be top, but if the look is not right, the product is out. The same is true for indoor shoes. Sometimes young women come to the shop with their smartphones and show pictures of their wardrobe to assure that the new product matches their dress. Sustainability has no effect on their buying decision. This is the retail reality in our shop and we have the feeling this trend has been getting stronger in the last 10 years. What is in your view the most important aspect for a customer when buying in your shop? Our main asset is consulting and service. The relation and proximity to our customers is the key to success. As a small retailer in a rural region we also have to compete with the offers in the cities, and it is important to offer a broad, deep product range and to have the right shop surface. Are there any projects in your shop to enlarge the importance around sustainable products? Pretty much every company has stand-up displays. We put them up in our shop, because the customer wants to see that we are active and that we offer sustainable products. Although we feature those products and offer additional information we could not live off those products alone. What are your concerns? The sporting goods brands are certified and have to comply with standards and regulations, but what does it look like in the discounters? Where do these products come from that they sell for a fracture of a price? I think that the Swiss ­media is not covering that aspect. We as a specialist retailer can only make offers, but we cannot infantilize the customer.



Corporate Responsibility & ­Sustainability Spectrum Sport for Development and Peace

The United Nations Office on Sport for Development and Peace By Wilfried Lemke, Special Adviser to the UN Secretary-General on Sport for Development and Peace

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (right) meets with Wilfried Lemke, his Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace © UN Photo / Jean-Marc Ferré

Sports is indisputably one of the world’s most popular leisure activities and it describes a fascinating phenomenon: people from all over the world play, attend, watch, listen to, talk about, experience and even feel sport at all levels of per­ form­ance. Sport is often described as a language which everyone in the world can understand and speak, and which is able to emotionally combine and unite groups. On an individual level, sport has the capacity to develop people’s strengths and faculties.

That is why the UN family, governments, NGOs, development agencies, sports federations and social entrepreneurs have increasingly been harnessing the power of sport as a low-cost and high-impact tool in their humanitarian, development and peace-building efforts. The deliberate use of sport, physical activity and play as delivery mechanisms in social and humanitarian work has experienced a significant increase in scope and recognition over the past decade or so. In September 2000, the UN Millennium Summit brought together the largest gathering of world leaders in history. In the summit’s final declaration, signed by 189 countries, the international community committed to eight objectives, known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In 2003, the UN Inter-Agency Task Force on Sport for Development and Peace published their report entitled “Sport for Development and Peace: Towards Achieving the Millennium Development Goals”. The report explicitly stated that

22

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

“well-designed sport-based initiatives are practical and cost-effective tools to achieve objectives in development and peace” and that

“sport is a powerful vehicle that should be increasingly considered by the United Nations as complementary to existing activities”. Today, sport can no longer be considered a luxury within any society but rather it is an important investment in the present and the future, particularly in developing countries. Sport and play are fundamental rights that must be respected and promoted worldwide. Since my appointment as the UN Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace, I have dedicated my time to focus on five priorities, Youth Role Models, Gender Equality, the Middle East, Africa, and sport for those with disabilities. Through my role, I have focused my resources on raising awareness of projects that focus on one of my priorities, or that use sport to promote positive social change and development.

Participants of the Gwangju Youth Leadership Camp take part in the sport for those with disabilities session © Right to Play Thailand


Corporate Responsibility & ­Sustainability Spectrum XXX

Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace, Wilfried Lemke, with residents at a housing development built by the city in the Mangueira community © Sérgio Huoliver

This year will be another extraordinary year of sport, with the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. We should also remember the United Nations International Day on Sport for Development and Peace, this day will be used to promote healthy lifestyles and emphasizes the focus on giving as many people as possible access to sport. It is a day when some of the world’s leading sportspeople work together with communities to bring sporting opportunities to enrich lives, particularly children.

2014 will also see the Youth Leadership Programme progress into its third year. This flagship initiative organised by the UNOSDP under the auspices of Mr. Lemke, will invite over 200 young role models to four, two-week-long courses. Having successfully brought together participants from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea to the 2013 Youth Leadership Camp in Gwangju, Republic of Korea, the camps of 2014 can only aim to build on this great achievement. To conclude,

it is the responsibility of all international sport organisations, businesses, feder­ ations and associations to take assertive action in the realisation of using sport as a development tool.

Participants of the Swedish Youth Leadership Camp in their gender ­equality themed session with Boxgirls International © UNOSDP

Through open dialogue and continued perseverance, Mr. Lemke looks to build a network of organisations that focus their strength and knowledge on projects that enhance the lives of youth all around the world.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

23


Physical Activity: Time for action Why governments should invest in sport

Why – and how – Governments should Invest in Sport By Dr. Colin Higgs, Prof. Emeritus, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada, and Canadian Sport for Life Leadership Team

There are really only two questions that governments around the world need to consider – Why should they invest in sport? And, how can they get maximum return on their investment? Why governments should invest in sport The “why” question has both simple and complex answers. Governments invest in high-performance sport to increase their country’s profile on the international scene, and in mass participation sport to improve population health – usually targeting obesity, hypertension (high blood pressure), heart disease and strokes. They may also invest in sport as a costeffective approach to positive youth development. From a business perspective, however, governments should invest in sport because it provides a better return on investment than just about ANY other government program. Area of Sport ­Investment  * Health (physical) Health (mental) Personal development Community economic development Community regeneration Community safety Social Inclusion

Strength of ­Evidence Strong Strong Strong

Savings per $ 1.00 invested in sport $ 1.75 to $ 3.75 $ 1.75 to $ 3.75 $ 2.90 to $ 6.20

Moderately strong

Not well quantified

Emerging evidence

$ 3.00 plus

Moderate Moderate to good

$ 3.00 to $ 41.00 ** Not well quantified

* Taken from, “A Sport Plan for New Brunswick, 2008”. ** If incarceration costs are included

Maximizing return on investment The investment that governments make are frequently squandered because different components of the system (ministries of education, sport, recreation and health) fail to work together; with each teaching different variations of the same activities, and making conflicting demands on participants. For example coaches from schools, clubs and national teams may all make demands on players, often without considering the cumulative impact.

24

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Different systems pull participants in different directions Education System Physical Education

School Sport

Recreation System Formal

Informal

Sport System Sport Clubs

Representative Teams

Health System Preventative

Rehabilitation

What is needed is a “game plan” for the whole system. Canada has been developing such a game plan over the past 6 years, and the process is called Long-Term Athlete Development (LTAD). Long-Term Athlete Development Long-Term Athlete Development is the answer to the question, “What do you need to do at each stage of human development to give individuals the best chance of success in sport or physical activity as an adult?” Success in sport is defined as reaching the highest sport potential of which the athlete is capable, and success in physical activity as engaging in health promoting physical activity throughout life. All too often coaches want immediate results – they put the tall kid under the hoop in basketball, and all she ever learns is how to catch, turn and put the ball in the net. Now while this might help an under-12 team win an impressive number of games, it does nothing for the long-term development of the tall player, who might not be the tallest 18-year-old when she reaches that age. Because of the restrictive way she was coached earlier, she might not have been taught or learned the whole range of skills necessary to play successfully as an adult. In building Long-Term Athlete Development coaches, scientists and educators identified 7 stages of athlete development. These stages, their names, and the approximate ages at which children and youth pass through them, are shown in the figure on the right.


Approximate Age

Stages of Human Development

Stages of Long-Term Athlete/Participant Development

Active for Life

Seniors

Seniors

Older Adults

Adult

20s 19 -23 18 - 21

Early Adult

16 -19 15 - 18

Post-Adolescence

12 -16 11 - 15

Adolescence

Excellence/High Performance

Adult

Train to Win

Competitive for Life

Fit for Life

Adults

The developers of Canadian Sport for Life: Long-Term Athlete Development, were: Richard Way, Istvan Balyi, Charles Cardinal, Steve Norris and Colin Higgs. Much free information on LTAD for athletes, coaches, parents and educators is available at: www.canadiansportforlife.ca

Older Teens

Train to Compete Teens

It’s a roadmap Building a single system is not easy. The starting point was to develop a generic 9 -12 Learn to Train Late Childhood 8 - 11 model of what needed to be done at 6-9 Middle Childhood FUNdamentals 6-8 each stage of development, and this 0-6 Early Childhood Active Start infor­mation was compiled into our flagship document, “Canadian Sport for Life.” Based on this generic model more than 60 national sport organizations have developed sportThere are three big components to LTAD: specific LTAD programs, and these have been supplement1.  The development of physical literacy: Mastery of basic ed by “No Accidental Champions” which is LTAD for athhuman movements, fundamental movement skills and letes with physical or sensory disabilities, and a Special foundation sport skills, which need to be learned before Olympics Canada LTAD model for those with intellectual the onset of the adolescent growth spurt (usually age 11 disabilities. The vast majority of these documents are availin females and 12 in males). Physical literacy provides the able free of charge from www.canadiansportforlife.ca. necessary foundation for EITHER recreational engagement, or for the development of excellence/high performance. 2.  Active for Life: Once physical literacy has been developed, individuals have competence and confidence to independently engage in recreational sporting activities. 3.  E xcellence: Building on physical literacy those individuals with the talent, drive and commitment work their way through three excellence stages until they reach the peak of their performance. At each of the 7 stages experts have determined what needs to be done in optimally teaching skills, building speed, strength and endurance, and in developing appropriIt is also a way of aligning all parts of a national system for ate psychological approaches. Each stage also takes into aca more effective and efficient delivery of programs. count the stage of cognitive, emotional and moral development the player is passing through. With this roadmap in place, the health system has focused its attention on Active Start and Active for Life, and the Stages not ages recreation system on FUNdamentals, Learn to Train and AcA critically important part of the whole LTAD process is the tive for Life. The sport system generally focuses on Learn to focus on the stage of development of the player – not his or Train and the Excellence pathway, while education sees its her age. Some children hit puberty early, while others are place in FUNdamentals, Learn to Train and Active for Life. much delayed – and in LTAD coaches and teachers do what In this way the systems work together rather than in comis appropriate to the stage they are passing through – repetition to each other. gardless of their age. It’s the principles not the model I’ve presented the Canadian Sport for Life model, with its focus on doing the right thing, for the right person, at the Dr. Colin Higgs is Professor Emeritus at Memorial University of right stage of development. We know the model is roughly Newfoundland, Canada, and one of the original authors of Canadiright, but are working hard to refine and improve it, and an Sport for Life. He runs a successful international consulting company and is heavily involved in LTAD, using sport in international base our work on the Japanese philosophy of kaisan – or development, and in sport for persons with a disability. He lives and continuous improvement. The model itself will change, and works in Ontario, Canada, and can be contacted at: there are other models out there. It is the principles that are chiggsconsulting@mac.com important – not the specific model. Train to Train

Physical Literacy

Onset of Adolescence

Birth

Long-Term Athlete Development is about doing the right things, in the right way, at the right time for all par­ ticipants, and is based on their stage of development – not their age.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

25


Physical Activity: Time for action Multisectoral partnerships

Making Physical Activity a Priority through MultiSectoral Partnership By Areekul Puangsuwan, Manager of Built Environment and Physical Activity Research Project supported by Thai Health Promotion Foundation, and Assoc. Prof. Wilasinee Adulyanon, Director of Physical Activity and Sports for Health Program, Thai Health Promotion Foundation

In Thailand, NCDs have become the leading cause of death, causing 71 % of all deaths in 2010.1 Almost 3.3 million people were sick from NCDs. Besides, a worrying trend is seen in obesity. Physical inactivity is part of the reasons for these alarming facts. Modern lifestyle and urbanization came along with the economic growth in the past decades and have led to more sedentary behavior. Thais reported that 13.4 hours of their time were spent inactively. It was also found that 33.7 % of them had insufficient physical activity.2 Thai Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth), established in 2001, has been operating proactively to alleviate these public health concerns. In its master plan for 2012– 2014, the Physical Activity and Sports for Health Program aims to promote active living for all by increasing physical activity to 80 % of the population. The target has been driven by two main strategies, Active People and Active Places. That means more research, policy advocacy and social marketing have to be done for people to be active throughout their life course. Built environment has to be promoted in various settings for active places. These two strategies are implemented based on a perspective at several levels including individual, interpersonal, organizational, community and national. Promoting physical activity in all school courses © ThaiHealth

At an individual level, a nationwide campaign namely “No Belly No NCDs” was initiated in partnership with Department of Health and likeminded networks. This campaign raises individual health concerns by communicating two important messages: 1) “Reduce fat, sweet and salt and eat more fibers by half” and 2) “Be Active!”. This campaign has successfully gained 85 % public awareness and has more than 85,000 members in online social networks.

World Health Organization, NCDs Country Profiles, 2011, p. 184

1

P. Katewongsa, Preliminary Report on Physical Activity of the Thais, Thai Health Promotion Foundation, 2012

2

26

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Interpersonal change has been stimulated by the talk-ofthe-town “Run for New Life”, another successful campaign. A high number of active participants drawing in through several networks including physician and professional, areabased, media and communication, park and runner networks. Overwhelmingly, more than 22,000 new face runners joined the running club and 45 % of them became active runners. Promoting physical activity in all school courses is an example of the implementation at the organizational level. ThaiHealth works mainly with the Ministry of Education and 430 primary and secondary schools to promote walking


Physical Activity: Time for action Multisectoral partnerships

and biking to school, after-school sports programs and to integrate physical activity in all curriculums. Besides, phys­ ic­al education has successfully been increased from 1 to 1.5 hours per week.

Collaborative action through ­multisectoral p­ artnership is the key to success. Community engagement has always been a priority for ThaiHealth. In 2012, a physical activity project was piloted in 12 national housing projects reaching more than 100,000 low-income households. These projects addressed supportive built environment, capacity building for community leaders and involvement of and self-initiated activities by community dwellers. Recently, the National Housing Authority has moved on to 32 more projects in 2013.

The last case is the public health policy pushed forward by ThaiHealth’s partner, Thai Cycling for Health Association and its allies. The resolution on “Supportive Structure for Walking and Cycling in Daily Living” was adopted in the 5th National Health Assembly. The resolution will be further considered by the Cabinet. If it is endorsed, walking and cycling will be promoted as a major mode for short-distance travel. Taxation measure will also be considered to reinforce the use of bicycle. You will find the distinctive characteristics of ThaiHealth in making these projects possible. Collaborative action through multisectoral partnership is the key to success. A concerted effort from various sectors beyond health arena is a prerequisite to a powerful move. We believe we can make the impossible possible through multisectoral collaboration. It can happen elsewhere. Let’s make the physical activity a priority!

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

27


Physical Activity: Time for action Partnership for a healthier America

Partnership for a Healthier America By Drew Nannis, Chief Marketing Officer, Partnership for a Healthier America (OpEd)

In recent years, physical inactivity has become the accepted standard. Today, only 42 % of kids ages 6 to 11 and 8 % of adolescents ages 12 to 19 get the recommended 60 minutes a day of physical activity. The Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA), which works with the private sector and its honorary chair First Lady Michelle Obama to end childhood obesity within a generation, has made addressing the physical inactivity epidemic a priority. From busy schedules to a lack of safe places to play to limited access to playgrounds and parks, the obstacles to getting the recommended amount of physical activity are considerable. But PHA and its private sector partners are working to create early positive experiences for children in physical activity that will help integrate movement into their everyday lives.

28

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

One example is “Let’s Move! Active Schools”, a comprehensive program that empowers school champions – P.E. teachers, classroom teachers, principals, administrators and parents –

to create active environments that ­enable all students to get moving and reach their full potential. Three PHA partners – Nike, Kaiser Permanente and Reebok, along with seven other organizations – are part of this unprecedented collaboration. “Let’s Move! Active Schools” combines the effective parts of existing programs and draws on new resources to provide customized support for each participating school to help them incorporate physical

First Lady Michelle Obama participates in a “Let’s Move! Active Schools” event with athletes and students at McCormick Place in Chicago, February, 2013 © All rights reserved Let’s Move! (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)


Physical Activity: Time for action Partnership for a healthier America

activity before, during and after school for at least 60 minutes per day. In addition, today in America, one in five kids doesn’t have access to a playground – that’s millions of children who can’t pick up a ball, run outside or have fun in a safe environment. This lack of safe play spaces led to the development of Play Streets, a PHA initiative supported by The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. Play Streets events, which close specific streets to traffic and open them up for play, were introduced in 10 cities across the nation in 2013. At the halfway point, this program had already reached almost 13,000 attendees, generated more than 70 hours of physical activity programming for communities in need and created more than 12 miles of open space for children and their families to be physically active. We already know that active kids do better. When kids are physically active, their test scores are higher, they have better attendance in school and their behavior improves. The benefits are obvious, and by making the healthy choice the easy choice, PHA and its partners believe that more and more families will embrace physical activity and make it a

part of their daily lives. We are all designed to move and by spreading this message of movement, the physical inactivity epidemic can become a thing of the past.

Students exercise during a Let’s Move event at River Terrace Elementary School in Washington, D.C. © All rights reserved Let’s Move! (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)

KidTribe hula hoopers perform during the Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House, April, 2013 © All rights reserved Let’s Move! (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

A participant runs a football drill during a “Let’s Move!” launch event at Woldenberg Park in New Orleans © All rights reserved Let’s Move! (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

29


For the first time in history, this generation may die five years younger than their parents.

Let’s give them those five years back. designedtomove.org


Physical Activity: Time for action Social and economic impacts

The Social and Economic Impacts of Physical Inactivity By Lord Sebastian Coe, Chairman of the British Olympic Association, CSM Sports & Entertainment, Olympic gold medalist (OpEd)

Today we face a problem of epidemic proportion. One that threatens the social and economic prosperity of the United Kingdom. People aren’t moving. More specifically, our children aren’t moving. The health impacts of physical inactivity are simply unsustainable. For every child that experiences type 2 diabetes – once considered a geriatric disease – I say this is unforgiveable. For every child that shows up with rickets – once a

disease consigned to history, that is now increasingly common when children aren’t exposed to the outdoors – I say this is unconscionable. The economic impact is just as bleak – in just four countries (China, India, the U.K. and the U.S.), the cost of physical inactivity is estimated to have been more than USD 200 billion in 2008. By 2030, the direct costs alone in China and India will each increase by more than 450 per cent. To put

The economic costs and consequences 2 24.10.13 15:17 Measuring the direct and indirect costs associated with inactivity, today and future projections A

29_30_costsnoflag.pdf

2008

USA

2008

Indirect Costs (US$)

2030

Direct Costs Projection (US$)

% Increase in Direct Costs (US$) 2008-2030

TOTAL SPEND (US$) IN 2008

Direct Costs (US$)

$147B

$90.1B $56.5B $191.7B

113%

$16.1B $16.7B $26.0B

61%

OR

~2x the federal budget for the Department of Education (based on US$77.4B 2012 budget)B UK

$33B OR

Close to the National Health Service’s annual efficiency target (based on £20B of annual efficiency savingsover the next four years)C GREATER CHINA*

$20B

$12.2B $7.5B

$67.5B

453%

$1.3B

$7.5B

477%

OR

*Data represents Mainland China only

INDIA

Almost 1/3 of China’s total health care budget

(based on 2011 planned investment of approx. US$63B)D

$2B

$0.7B

OR

Equal to the total annual budget for secondary education

(based on US$1.9B/year for 2007-2012)E

For references A to E: Designed to Move, p. 120 / designedtomove.org WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

31


Physical Activity: Time for action Social and economic impacts

this in context, these increases are expected to be more than China’s current health care budget, and nearly four times India’s current budget for secondary education. Do we really want to fast-forward a decade when our children cannot even climb a flight of stairs? Can we wait for our economy to stumble and then crumble, just because we didn’t encourage them to patterns of activity? While the issue is complex, the solution is rather simple.

It is imperative that the next generation run, jump, swim, kick; frankly ­whatever it takes, to navigate their way to ­activity and realize their own ­personal potential. If that ­happens, the world changes. And what better way to emphasize the benefits and import­ ance of physical activity than in school, where children spend a significant portion of their day. The school day currently emphasizes academic subjects almost exclusively. This may seem sensible, but our children are paying a price for this decision. Many studies around the world have shown that students receiving regular physical education at school – even at the expense of time spent on

academics – perform as well as, or better than, their phys­ ically inactive classmates. Meanwhile, being physically ­active is associated with better health, cognition and selfesteem, along with higher future income and productivity. Few investments have this spectrum of benefits individually, socially and economically. Now our job is to inspire the next generation of athletes to realize their potential. And by ‘athletes’, I mean the potential of all children – whatever their shape, size, circumstance or ability – whatever they believe, wherever they live – to enter the world of physical activity. And because physical inactivity is so deeply entrenched in society, only action across a united front can possibly begin to reverse its damaging cycle. The solution will require a multisector, collaborative approach, and is not as simple as asking individuals to get off the couch anymore. This will require government and non-government organizations, corporations, the education system, our city infrastructures, parents and children alike. This is a global fight that every country is losing at the moment. Nothing short of our children’s futures is at stake. And every individual in every part of the world is in a position to make a difference and inspire the next generation of children to realize their full potential. The time to act is now.

Run, jump, swim, kick; frankly whatever it takes, to navigate the next generation’s way to activity © Nike, Inc.

32

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014


BECOME ONE WITH SPEED JENS VOIGT

SCHWALBE ONE. New compound. New construction. New puncture protection. For every wheel system: Folding, tubular and tubeless. The fastest and, at the same time, most reliable competition tire we have ever made.


BICYCLE matters World Cycling Alliance

Why we need a World Cycling Alliance By Dr. Bernhard Ensink, Secretary General of the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF)

We live in the era of changing dynamics. Failing attempts to address complex issues such as climate change and physical inactivity have redirected efforts of problem solving from national governments to the international level. UN, OECD and the European Commission’s intentions to take action create a unique opportunity for cycling. Our responsibility is clear: we need to act now with our eyes in the future. And we need to go global. The European Cyclists’ Federation proposes the creation of a World Cycling Alliance as a centre of coordination, a platform of knowledge exchange and a strong advocacy voice targeting international organizations. WFSGI is doing a great job in sports representation, but there is nothing equivalent for daily and leisure cycling; that means that the momentum might go to waste. Cycling associations from Canada, Australia, USA as well as Kenya, Ghana and South America want to be part of the big debate and they request from ECF to take the lead. This consensus has been a major pursuit of ECF. Our yearly international event, Velocity, currently the largest venue of cycling enthusiasts in the world with 1,000 delegates from different sectors, shows the ample variety of future perspectives. A new narrative needs to be invented and answer the question: Why does the world need cycling? Perhaps the most common answer is that cycling benefits health. What is not accentuated enough is that cycling is also good for the economy. The HEAT (Health Economic Assessment Tool), developed by WHO, translates the health benefits and regular physical activity that cycling generates into hard cash. For example, Austria shows financial gain of EUR 405 million from cycling every year, based Bernhard Ensink has since May 2006 been Secretary General of ECF and Velo-City Series Director. He was previously Director of the Fietsersbond, Interim Director of the Milieufederatie Groningen (the Dutch Environmental NGO in the province of Groningen). He has been Vice Mayor of the Dutch city of Coevorden where his responsibilities included public affairs, spatial planning, environment, housing and finance.

34

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Cycling in Ghana: access to Education © Olivier Asselin/GAVI/2007

on the country’s current modal share of about 5 per cent. On European terms, if ECF’s goal of doubling the number of ­cyclists by 2020 materializes (from 7 to 14 per cent of daily transport, or from 35 to 70 million people) the potential ­financial benefits will approximately reach EUR 200 billion. In a time of shrinking budgets and increased spending in health, the argument gains additional importance. Another obvious answer for the benefits of cycling is that it is good for the environment. Again here, there is more than meets the eye. Following what specialists call the “chain of impact” we can trace the various positive consequences of cycling. For example, bicycle parking is up to 300 times cheaper than car parking, with one space fitting 10–20 bi­ cycles. Cycling as a means of mass transport emerges as well; the cost of 1km of urban freeway can build 150km of bicycle paths. China: a big market for bi­ cycles © AP1


BICYCLE matters World Cycling Alliance

Commuting: cyclists in a city centre © iStockphoto World bicycle and automobile production, 1950–2000 120

100

Bicycle

80

Millions

Apart from advocating at the highest level, the World Cycling Alliance would focus on rebranding cycling as the ultimate item of modern living. There is a need to upgrade the status of someone who prefers a car to a bike. For the developed countries, it is a matter of sustainability and active living; for the developing countries it is a proof of social equality and road safety. In countries such as Nigeria and Thailand highways for cars marginalize pedestrians while limiting their potential to compete with those who can afford mechanical vehicles. It is clear that the gains from cycling can have a real impact both in the economy and in people’s lives. The creation of a World Cycling Alliance with the guidance of ECF is imperative to make the best out of this window of opportunity and communicate the multiple benefits of cycling to millions of people worldwide.

60

40

Automobile 20

0 1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

Source: Worldwatch Institute

Global cycling industry: global bicycle market by region 2011 According to the 7th annual study on the global cycling market, conducted by NPD Group, Inc., a leading market research company, some 191 million bicycles were sold in 2011. Global sales totaled nearly EUR 36 billion (USD 50 bn – VAT included) in 2011 – an increase of 5 per cent compared to 2010 (the same growth rate as for the global sport

market). The 191 million bicycles sold in 2011 had an average price estimated at EUR 136 (USD 190). With EUR 36 billion in sales cycling accounted for 15 per cent of all sporting goods revenue. 50 per cent of the global cycling growth has been made by five countries since 2006: China, Germany, India, South Korea and Brazil.

Continent

GDP per Capita

Population/% of Total

Bicycle Sales Units

Average Price

Total Bicycle Sales / $

Asia

$ 2,539.00

4.1 Billion/ 60%

122.7 Million

$ 272

$ 22.9 Billion

Africa

$ 1,560.00

1.0 Billion/ 15%

10.0 Million

$ 50

$ 500.0 Million

Europe

$ 25,467.00

738.2 Million/ 11%

26.6 Million

$ 399

$ 10.6 Billion

North America

$ 32,296.00

542.1 Million/ 8%

18.7 Million

$ 205

$

3.8 Billion

South America

$ 9,254.00

392.6 Million/ 6%

10.0 Million

$ 150

$

1.5 Billion

Oceana

$ 29,909.00

29.1 Million/ 0.4%

3.0 Million

$ 205

$ 615.0 Million

Total/Average

$ 16,387.00

6.8 Billion

191.0 Million

$ 190

$ 40.0 Billion w/o VAT

Source: VCP Estimates using various sources

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

35


BICYCLE matters trends and urban cycling

Cycling trends and urban cycling – future potential for manufacturers, brands and innovators By Lars Wiskum, Managing Director of SportVenture, and Johan Diepens, Founder and CEO of Mobycon

Bicycle Book published in 2011. About half of these bikes or around 435 million are in China – according to the Earth Policy Institute. 130 million bicycles are manufactured each year, and in 2012, overall bicycle sales were estimated to be worth USD 6.1 billion, according to a report commissioned by the National Bicycle Dealers Association in the U.S.

Bike-to-school campaigns and cycling tests for schoolkids are parts of developing a bicycle culture © Lars Wiskum

In ten years, Great Britain has the ambition that 10 per cent of all daily trips will be made by bike. By 2025, the goal is that 25 per cent of all daily trips should be made by bike. More than one billion euro will be invested in making cycling for daily transportation a reality. Why is Great Britain interested in cycling? Or for that matter, why are the cities of Paris, Barcelona, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro, Sydney and New York interested in bicycle transportation? Urban cycling is liveability in cities One reason is that with the current trend of urbanization the quality of life in built-up spaces is becoming a critical issue. The World Health Organization estimates that 70 per cent of the earth’s population will live in cities by 2050. Cycling is a solution to problems related to mobility, public health, the environment and the economy. Governments supporting cycling as a legitimate means of transportation see the potential to ease traffic congestion, curb pollution and combat obesity by better accommodating two-wheeled transportation in the city. For the industry there is a tremendous opportunity to create innovative products that meet the needs of utilitarian cyclists. Currently, it is estimated that there are more than one billion bicycles in the world – or twice as many bicycles as cars – according to Bella Bathurst’s The

36

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

As the function of cycling expands beyond being a sporting activity, potential customers for bikes, related accessories, clothing and other products are also expanding. In the Netherlands, only 6 per cent of all bike trips are made for recreational purposes, but 26 per cent of all daily trips are made by bike. The needs of these riders for cycle-friendly work clothes and other products that make cycling for transportation efficient and comfortable are not necessarily being met today. Cycling is ageless and everyday physical activity In countries with mature bicycling cultures, like the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany, children often receive their first bikes before they can walk in order to establish a lifelong habit. Commuting by bike is normal. In Copenhagen, Denmark – one of the world’s most bike-friendly cities – 36 per cent of citizens use their bikes to travel to work or school, and the city hopes to reach 50 per cent by 2015. Cycling is being actively promoted in these countries in order to sustain affordable and sustainable transportation. Campaigns encourage children to bike to school, adults to bike to work and the elderly to continue using bikes for everyday mobility. In these countries, cycling is ageless. In fact, cycling is health promotion at its best, and it represents a business opportunity and a benefit to the community. Cycling as a lifestyle trend In many countries in Europe the bicycle is also popular among the young urban population who choose to use trendy bikes to get around. CICERO, a German magazine on politics and culture, recently named the bicycle the key


BICYCLE matters trends and urban cycling

Cycling trends Below are some of the hottest trends in cycling, according to Marianne Weinreich from the Cycling Embassy of Denmark.

MAMILS (middle-aged men in lycra) are using cycling for a combination of networking and physical activity © Annika Mostert

status symbol in a society where health and the environment are such crucial issues. However, it is not only hipsters who are choosing the bike, but also men between the age of 35 and 45 are embracing sports cycling, the way previous generations embraced golf as a networking opportunity. Women are also embracing sports cycling. Landon Cycling Tours, which organizes 10 cycling events every year in the Netherlands, reports an increase from 10 per cent female participants in 2010 to 23 per cent female participants in 2013. Cycling vacations are also on the rise. According to Deutscher Tourismus Verband, cycling tourism grew from 5 billion euro in 2005 to 9 billion euro in 2009. Thus, the bike is popular among different groups and for different purposes. Developing markets In countries where there is no bicycle culture or the bicycle culture has been forgotten, there is much work to be done, but a reversal is not only possible, it has already begun, as London, New York and other cities show. In Beijing, China, eight out of ten people were using bicycles as their primary mode of transport as recently as the 1980s. The Copenhagen Institute for Future Studies predicts the bicycle will be the common and rational choice for transportation by 2100 as a response to trends like population growth and urbanization. It is expected that countries such as China and Brazil will ­benefit economically from massive relocations to the city. In China, it is ­expected that 20 million people will move to cities by 2050. Pedaling forward The bike is on the rise in cities around the world among people of all ages and for many different types of trips. Smart manufacturers will find new opportunities by shifting the way they view cyclists and helping urban popu­lations move about more easily with innovative bike designs and other products. A large market already exists in countries like the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany where daily cyclists need breathable work clothes, well-constructed waterproof bags, collapsible panniers, smarter locks and all manner of products that make life by bike easier and more convenient. The demand for these types of products will grow, as the bike becomes a legitimate mode of transportation in more places around the world. Some people ride a bike to add days to their life. Others ride a bike to add life to their day. Cycling is about commuting, sports, leisure and networking activities, personal and public health and sustainability.

1. The bicycle is becoming a legitimate means of transportation because of public investment in cycling infrastructure and policy and programming that supports cycling culture.   2. Cities are investing in bike-sharing systems to get more people cycling for daily trips. New York City just launched the world’s largest programme in summer 2013.   3. Public transportation and bicycles are being paired together to solve the problem of the last mile and offer a viable alternative to the car.   4. Cargo bikes are being used as a solution to transport children and groceries and to make transporting more than a single-person possibility.   5. Electric bikes are being embraced. E-bikes are also a solution for elderly people and in places with steep topography.   6. M AMILS (middle-aged men in lycra) are using the bike to bond and talk business the way previous generations used to do on the golf course.   7. Sports cycling is becoming popular among women. According to the Centraal Bureau voor De Statistiek, 55 per cent of all daily bike trips in Holland is already women.   8. Pimping the bike with all manner of baskets, racks, flowers, bells and other accessories is a popular way of individualizing the bike and projecting style among young cyclists.   9. Cycling super highways are making the distance between the city centre and suburbs more surmountable by bike. 10. Technological solutions using mobile devices are allowing cyclists to track their miles and navigate more easily.

Johan Diepens, Founder and CEO of Mobycon. Strategist and trendwatcher Johan wants his company to play a role in the develop­ment of smart solutions and cooperation in mobility. One smart mobility solution the Dutch employ is the use of the bicycle. www.mobycon.nl

Lars Wiskum, Founder and Director of SportVenture – a consultancy for the international sporting goods industry and for development of projects in Denmark and internationally within the fields of outdoor exercise culture and physical activity in the nature. SportVenture is a member of WFSGI. Lars Wiskum is a member of the Physical Activity Committee. www.sportventure.eu and www.naturstadion.dk.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

37


We love all bicycles. We love all sports. And we love the combination.

Whether you play with a team or cheer for your favorite sport club, The Accell Group has a bicycle that can get you to your event. Our brands are for all cyclists and are perfect for riding to work, home, around the city, through the country-side, for weekend rides, to the playground, the beach, in the mountains, in the Tour de France, and to your sport club. We are 100% committed to offering the best products from our portfolio of international brands. See for yourself: www.accell-group.com


BICYCLE matters Commuting, ­leisure, sport

Commuting, Leisure, Sport Cycling towards a healthy society By Erik van der Hout, CSR, Accell Group NV

Cycling is the most efficient way of getting around. In fact, cycling is five times as efficient as walking. It’s the perfect way to get exercise for those who want to exert the min­ imum amount of effort to do so. But is cycling really that healthy? Definitely. You still burn calories, and when you are riding a bicycle, your legs don’t have to bear your full body weight. Since the burden on your joints is also minimal during cycling, it’s a great way for people who are overweight to start getting exercise again. As your condition improves, you will start cycling faster, and burn more calories. Apart from being healthy and fun, cycling is also a quiet, clean and economical way to commute to and from work. Cycling is relatively inexpensive. The costs of purchasing and maintaining a bicycle are low compared to other means of transport. After all, there’s a good reason it used to be called “poor man’s transport” in the past. Investing in ­cycling mobility is also beneficial and efficient for society. Cycle paths are narrower and less expensive to build than roads, and the costs of bicycle parking facilities are even 20 times less than facilities for parking automobiles. Besides, they only take up a fraction of the space cars do. And

Cycling to sport © Accell

we haven’t even mentioned advantages such as sound reduction, cleaner air, better accessibility to city centres and a more social living environment. It’s no wonder we are seeing a global increase in the use of this green means of transport. But how green are bicycles, actually? As one of the largest producers of bicycles, the Accell Group wanted to be able to provide an answer to this question. In order to gain more insight into how green bicycles really are, we had a Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) carried out for several different types of bicycles. Using an LCA, the environmental impact of a product may be illustrated for the various stages during the product life cycle, such as the acquisition of raw materials, production of the materials and spare parts, transport, assembly, use and disposal. As many different types of environmental impact as possible are identified, including from the extraction of raw materials from the earth, and the emissions of substances resulting from the various processes. The results of the analyses are expressed in the environmental impact of kilometres of car use. In other words, how many kilometres do you have to cycle (instead of covering this distance in a car) to compensate the environmental impact during the entire life cycle of a bicycle? The environmental impact a bicycle has during its total lifetime is approximately equal to the environmental impact of 500 km of car use, depending on the type of bicycle. This varies from about 370 km for a bare-bones racing bicycle to 660 km for a luxury city bike. In other words, after 25 weekend trips of 20 km, or cycling to work and the gym (5 km) for six months, the impact of the bicycle will already be fully compensated. Every kilometre you cycle after that will in fact benefit the environment. If we focus on the distribution of the various aspects that cause environmental impact, we will find that the greatest environmental impact of cycling actually comes from the use of the materials and the paint processing. This is why increasing the per centage of recycled materials and using the right materials is getting our organisation’s full

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

39


BICYCLE matters Commuting, ­leisure, sport

attention. The Accell Group is also one of the leaders of a (bicycle) industrywide initiative to make the supply chain more sustainable. In addition to standard bicycles, the environmental impact of the increasingly Cycling as sport © Accell popular electric bicycles is also being studied. Depending on how the bicycle with their more active friends. And don’t think for a mois used by its owner, the environmental impact is between ment that you no longer have to do the cycling yourself; you 1,400 and 2,800 km of car use. On the one hand, this ­higher do still have to work the pedals! The electric bicycle is getenvironmental impact is due to the presence of a motor and ting more and more people moving. Once you have taken a battery (total of 31 %). On the other, 40 % of the environtest ride on this bicycle with “legal EPO”, you’ll be sold. mental impact is due to the energy consumption (charging the battery) during the bicycle’s lifetime. Although the There’s no doubt about it: cycling (with or without an elecnumber of kilometres that must be travelled is two and a tric boost) is healthy, social and environmentally friendly. half to five times higher than with a standard bicycle, the Taking the bicycle instead of the car for short distances has environmental benefit is still considerable. After all, the disa significant positive effect on the environment, and is also tances travelled are higher than those covered when riding the perfect way to warm up before a work-out. I am therea standard bicycle. Should a user charge the battery using fore curious which mode of transport you will choose next green energy, the environmental impact of the use is minitime when you go to your sports club training. mised. The developments in the electric bicycle sector are occurring at a rapid pace. The rise of the electric bicycle started in the Netherlands in 2003 with the introduction of the Sparta ION. This time, it wasn’t the younger generation that was the first to embrace this new product, but in fact the older members of the population. The successful formula was a patented concept, whereby the motor and the battery were nearly invisibly integrated into the bicycle. This made it impossible to distinguish the bicycle from a “regular” bike, and couples could enjoy their recreational cycle trips together for much longer periods of time. During the 10 years that followed, the electric bicycle has grown from being a niche product in Europe to one of the most important products in the bicycle industry. In the Netherlands, nearly one out of every five bicycles sold is manufactured with electric pedal-assistance, and Germany is quickly following suit. These models are no longer limited to recreational bicycles, since the sports models have provided an added impulse over the last few years. When Haibike was the first to manufacture a mountain bike with electric pedal-assistance in 2010, everyone thought it was nothing more than a publicity stunt. However, one year later, nearly every top sports brand had included one of these models in its range. It’s all about sports and fun. Even less well-trained people can now climb a mountain on their bicycles, and enjoy the sport together

40

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Cycling efficiency: a comparison of the energy cost of various forms of transportation shows that the bicycle is most energy efficient © The Exploratorium: www.exploratorium.edu


BICYCLE matters Counterfeits anD TM abuses

Counterfeits and TM abuses over the Internet: the bicycle industry is ready to counter-attack By Ing. Michele Provera, VP Internet Brand Protection Services, Convey Srl

The war against online counterfeits is one of the toughest challenges that today’s companies inevitably need to fight. No matter the industry, no matter the firm’s size: if your TMs are renown –the criminal industry of Internet fakes is already making terrific revenues from you, by selling counterfeit products online and registering hundreds of domains abusing your TMs. Watchmakers, designer labels and software houses are well concerned for the losses of revenues and for the reduction of the value of their brands. Things are much more complicated for bicycles: financial losses and brand dilution are accompanied by the threat of ruptures of such fake compon­ ents, exposing consumers to serious risks of accidents and injuries, and your companies both to liability issues and to the Internet media assaults. It is not even imaginable how many fake bikes and components are flooding the major online marketplaces, especially the Chinese and Asian ones (i.e. Taobao.com, Alibaba.com, 1688.com, etc.) – giants if compared to our western e-Bay and Amazon – who have kept showing no respect for companies’ IPRs, thus representing the major source of counterfeit goods. With just a few clicks you can purchase Specialized S-Works Venge bikes for EUR 500, Cervèlo S3 frames for EUR 350, Scott MTB frames including front suspension for EUR 22, FSA OS 99 stems for EUR 8 – same price for Ritchey 4 Axis carbon stems, Shimano Dura Ace 2 7,970 electronic groupsets for USD 500 as well as USD 400 for a complete SRAM XX1. Zipp and Corima Wheels, Mavic and Enve rims, 3T handlebars, Rock-Shox and Fox forks, Avid and Magura brakes, Haibike and Giant frames … tens of thousands of offerings and millions of euro per month in transactions: numbers are huge and no company gets spared. Just not to mention the hundreds of domain names exploiting your notoriety in connection with illegitimate business models, such as pay-per-click ads to your competitors (i.e. specialized.com or shimano.com or mavicwheels.com). There is a war to fight: the enemy is a criminal industry, and has at its disposal Internet experts and SEO strategists who

know their bloody work; plus, the Internet battleground is ever changing and makes things very difficult. Fighting an enemy, who fires with “bombs and lasers”, with arrows and axes won’t bring us any further: “ex-post” interventions with traditional “lawyerish” means against single targets (C&D letters and lawsuits – the first too weak, the second too slow and too expensive), may only bring a few results, but their long-term effectiveness is solely appreciated by law firms’ purses. The WFSGI is now launching a new online anti-counterfeit project. With the co-operation of the company Convey Srl, specialized in Internet brand protection and anti-counterfeit activities, WFSGI bicycle companies will have the concrete chance to win the war against counterfeits, by removing thousands of fake offerings from the major marketplaces, by shutting down the abusive websites and by preventing ­future abuses generated by the launch of the new gTLDs. The project, presented during the WFSGI Steering Committee Meeting at the 2013 Eurobike Show, puts its basis on innovative fundamentals: sophisticated Internet-crawling technologies, highly efficient administrative complaining procedures (no lawsuits!), and a new collective approach – with the involved brands fighting side by side, as allies against a common enemy. Time has come for the industry to react – new strategies, innovative weapons and a strong alliance will let us win this war.

Michele Provera has a Degree in Informatics Engineering at the Politecnico di Torino as well as a Master Degree in Management and Financial Engineering and a Master in Intellectual Property and Anti-Counterfeiting. Since 2009, Mr. Provera is the head of the Internet Brand Protection and Enforcement Services of Convey Srl in Turin, Italy. He is also client manager for Anti-Counterfeiting and AntiPiracy Internet services in several industries (luxury, fashion, sports/ apparel and automotive) and supervisor of the registration procedures of trademarks on the Trademark Clearinghouse, in quality of accredited agent.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

41


BICYCLE matters The tectonic plates of media and ­communications are shifting

The tectonic plates of media and communications are shifting, will your brand fall through the cracks? By Simon Wear, Founder of SHIFT Active Media and the Global Cycling Network

Just a decade ago marketing communications relied on great media relationships. Having the right connections with the media was of paramount importance to ensure your products were featured in the right magazine or TV show. But just 10 years later it is very different – the media world is in turmoil with magazine sales in global decline, the Internet offering free content to the consumers globally, not to mention the social media freight train that has careened through the traditional media world. It’s not just tough and perilous for media owners – it’s fiercely dangerous for brands as well. But where there’s risk there’s opportunity and moving quickly in this modern marketing landscape to capitalise on this is a must. Just take the incredible success Beats by Dr Dre had at the last Olympics: their ambush marketing activity swamped efforts from Sony and other tech giants, their smart thinking was then amplified by the social media noise that surrounded these athletes. Global sales soared with athletes from every corner of the globe littering the world’s media with images of

Digital advertising screen shot on consumer media site © SHIFT Active Media

42

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

them all wearing this distinctive product. Historically brands have rarely communicated directly with their consumers, the vast majority of the time there was an intermediary – a distributor, a retailer or a media owner. But now it’s all so very different. We all communicate directly through our own websites and social ­media pages, not to mention the frequency in which we need to communicate. One in ten people check their smartphone every ten minutes in Europe. To say we are always connected is now very true. Again, not 10 years ago it was a media campaign created and executed in the press, TV and events that gave a brand its voice. Now we need to exploit the opportunity that the constant chatter of social media offers. We need to champion the surging streams of social media, and that means we no longer need to transmit content in one direction, we also need to listen and engage as well. Never before have consumers had such a powerful voice to praise, criticise or even destroy brands. In almost every market there is a consumer review site – the big online retailers all have this functionality on their product pages – and they rank and order products based on what consumers are saying. A decade ago companies such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vine and YouTube were nowhere to be seen; in fact only Google existed, yet today they dominate the consumer airwaves – this is where the global conversation is now taking place. It’s here, between the shifting tectonic plates of media and communication, that new global players are rising between the cracks; be that online mail order


BICYCLE matters The tectonic plates of media and ­communications are shifting

Swift Carbon Newsletter on iPad (top) and homepage © SHIFT Active Media

giants or direct to consumer brands that deliver better value for money for the consumer at aggressive price points. These new “disruptor” brands instinctively know how to communicate using these digital tools and they think differently.

KASK Facebook competition artwork © SHIFT Active Media

The best brands are moving with the times, getting the right advice, the right support and skills to allow them to capture this huge opportunity to talk to targeted consumers on a scale never seen before through mass digital platforms such as Google Display Network and Facebook Ad Exchange. Never before has a brand been able to buy such a targeted audience at scale for such an affordable price. With over 700 million people a day using Facebook and 1 billion people on YouTube every week we don’t need much more evidence that we need to change the way we communicate and how we spend our marketing budgets. In my humble opinion the effect of the Internet has only just started to happen. The generation below the age of 15 have never known a time without the Internet, an iPad and their own social media voice. These consumers don’t read magazines or watch television – they communicate through their social media groups. As they graduate into their 20s and 30s the habitual marketing planning cycles many brands follow will fall on deaf ears; the new breed of businesses that speak social and digital as their first language will tighten their grip on the modern consumer leaving many traditional brands to flounder and die like dinosaurs of a bygone age.

Create your own: ProCycling Cover Creator app © SHIFT Active Media

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

43


Global Trade Developments Free Trade Marathons

Free Trade Marathons Approaching the “Wall” By Jeff Whalen, Senior Counsel, Customs and International Trade, Legal Department, Nike, Inc. & Chair WFSGI Trade Committee, and Karl Sedlmeyer, VP Global Government Affairs, adidas Group & Vice Chair WFSGI Trade Committee

For any marathoner, the “Wall” is the well known point in the race – usually around 20 miles (32 km) where even welltrained athletes begin to feel the depleting physical effects of the race. For those who aspire to win, however, the Wall is the point when the race begins in earnest. Negotiations involving a number of free trade agreements important to the sporting goods industry are approaching conclusion or are increasing their pace. Specifically, the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the EU–Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership have the potential to deliver an enormous economic boost to the sporting goods industry with the potential elimination of hundreds of millions of dollars of customs duties that could in turn be used to keep consumer prices affordable and to invest in economic growth and job creation. From the policy perspective, the view that trade liberalization works to promote economic growth is virtually axiom­ atic. At the conclusion of the G8 summit in Northern Ireland in June 2013, the leaders of eight of the eleven world’s largest economies issued a joint communiqué in which trade and investment were recognized as “engines of global economic growth, job creation, and sustainable development.” The G8 leaders acknowledged the role that global interdependence and the evolution of complex global supply chains play in fostering economic growth and jobs in the 21st century economy. They jointly committed to “refrain from and roll back protectionist measures” and to “work to conclude deep, ambitious and genuinely liberalizing bilateral, regional and plurilateral agreements.” As one examines the history of some past “free” trade agreements involving these countries, however, many agreements undermine the intended economic cooperation and integration by excluding or limiting benefits from targeted sectors – like sporting goods footwear and apparel – through long tariff phase outs and restrictive rules of origin. The question now becomes whether global leaders – both executives and legislators – will marshal the political courage to give reality to their vision by concluding genuinely

44

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

liberalizing agreements or will they fall back on the failed politics of protectionism. Trans-Pacific Partnership: The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a free trade agreement currently being negotiated by twelve countries: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and the US. With the addition of Japan in July 2013, this FTA would open an enormous market with a total population of over 750 million people and a GDP of over USD 25 trillion. At stake for the sporting goods industry in the TPP is over USD 500 million in athletic footwear and apparel customs duties paid for imports from key sourcing origins like Vietnam, Malaysia, and Mexico. These duties deprive companies in our industry of financial assets for investment in design, distribution, logistics, marketing, and retail that result in a large number of jobs – both domestic and international. While both footwear and apparel protectionists argue that these duties are essential to keeping manufacturing jobs, the facts prove otherwise. In a 2011 report issued by the US International Trade Commission, the positive benefits to US economy of eliminating footwear and leather product tariffs is calculated to be USD 215 million with a minimal impact on US manufacturing. These findings were further supported by a study that focused on the US athletic footwear industry and that demonstrated that production would shift from other Asian manufacturing origins, not from the US. For competitive companies, increased market access in this enormous market should expand business opportunities. Negotiators are working to conclude the TPP by the end of 2013. The agreement will then move on to ratification and implementation by the negotiating countries. EU–Vietnam Free Trade Agreement: Nearly parallel to TPP, Vietnam is negotiating an FTA with the European Union. For the sporting goods industry this negotiation is of similar importance. Behind China, Vietnam is the 2nd most


Global Trade Developments Free Trade Marathons

important sourcing country for apparel and footwear. Like TPP, the industry is facing similar issues with demands for protecting EU-manufacturing, foremost in the apparel ­sector. This is hardly logical, as EU-producers are having a long and successful history in combining imports with EUproduction and concentrating on different segments in the whole apparel sector. Furthermore Vietnam is seen as one of the upcoming markets for European brands in the clothing sector. Therefore, the sporting goods industry is promoting market access with the same importance as ­duty reduction. Over the last rounds the negotiations made considerable progress so it still can be expected to finish the negotiations by end 2014 and hope for a fast ratification by the 28 EUmember states. Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) is a proposed free trade agreement between the EU and the US. This agreement has the potential to join more closely two economic markets that include over 800 million people with a combined GDP of over USD 32 trillion. Opportunities for financial benefits to the sporting goods industries through the market access and tariff elimination talks are more modest than for the other referenced trade negotiations. However, the TTIP has the potential to set global precedents for important policies on issues such as

intellectual property, environment, and labor. It will therefore be essential that the sporting goods industry stay engaged in these discussions. The first round of negotiations took place in July 2013 in Washington DC. In addition to the above high-lighted FTA’s, there are a remarkable number of additional FTA negotiations in prog­ ress. Foremost the EU wants to balance a successful TPP with various bilateral agreements for sustaining the market positions in concerned countries, e.g. EU–Japan, EU–­ Canada. Our industry is hopeful that with these countries a harmonization of certain technical standards can be achieved, which will have – from cost- and market-access perspective – more impact than duty-reductions between these developed economies. Given the global “footprint” of the sporting goods industry and the prospects to grow our businesses in the emerging countries or regions, it is worthwhile for WFSGI members to expand the interest representation in FTA’s beyond the North America- and EU-related activities. In the “startingblocks” there are a couple of FTA talks amongst the growing economies in Asia: China with South Korea and Japan; India with some of its neighboring countries; or even ­Russia with Vietnam. All of these can strengthen open market access, critical to our industry.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

45



Global Trade Developments Overview trade restrictive measures

A hotchpotch trade canvass By Edwin Vermulst, and Juhi Sud, both are Trade Counsels to the WFSGI, VVGB Advocaten, Brussels, Belgium

Over the past twelve months, the global trade canvass has been smeared with continued red strokes but with the silver lining of a few green strokes. Starting with the positive green strokes, the first half of this year witnessed the elimination of certain crucial measures by some of the protectionist countries. Argentina eliminated the product-specific non-automatic licensing system including for textile products and footwear as well as the generally applicable automatic import licensing which in spite of being labelled as “automatic” resulted in de facto trade restrictions. This development, as admitted by Argentina, is in response to the dispute brought by the EU, the US and Japan against the Argentine system of “sworn prior import statements” and non-automatic import licensing requirements as well as the requirement for economic operators to undertake certain actions in line with the policy objectives of elimination of trade balance deficits and import substitution. Additionally, Turkey, after extending the safeguard measure on cotton yarn in January 2012 for a second term, termin­ ated the measure. On a similar note, Egypt did not impose definitive safeguard measures on cotton textiles. Canada eliminated import tariffs on certain sports equipment and apparel types. Another bright spot on the trade canvass is the impending termination of the transitional product-specific safeguard mechanism available against Chinese imports, in December 2013. This mechanism has been used by countries such as Turkey and Peru in the past. While Turkey used it for nontextile/footwear products, Peru initiated China-specific safeguard investigations against textiles and cotton yarn but no measures were imposed. These positive developments are overshadowed by the ever increasing protectionist strokes across the canvass by new and old WTO members alike. The world’s stubbornness in refusing to acknowledge the role of global value chains has worsened the situation.

Peru recently confirmed the definitive imposition of antidumping measures on a range of Chinese origin apparel products and accessories as well as anti-subsidy measures against US cotton imports. The safeguard measures on cotton yarn terminated by Turkey were replaced by new antidumping investigations against imports of different types of yarn from countries such as China, Malaysia, India, Pakistan, Thailand, Viet Nam and Egypt. Indonesia extended the non-automatic import licensing requirement for footwear and apparel products until 31 December 2015. While on the one hand Argentina terminated the automatic licensing system for footwear parts, on the other hand it increased the import duty on the latter by 10 % while maintaining its reference price system as well as the “sworn prior import statement” requirement for footwear and apparel products. Overall, raw materials and fabrics continue to remain the soft spots, and anti-dumping as well as countervailing duty investigations targeting Asian countries seem to be much more rampant. Furthermore, hidden trade barriers in terms of unclear and onerous customs as well as labelling requirements for apparel and footwear products such as those imposed by Mexico, Ecuador and Colombia among others, continue to have trade distorting effects. Another unwanted stroke which has come to be deeply engraved on the trade canvass is the increasing engagement of WTO members in tit-for-tat wars not only in terms of unilateral measures but equally in terms of WTO dispute filings. As there are no quick fixes for such issues at the international platform, the price will continue to be paid by exporters and importers unless a more radical solution is found.

Contact: edwin.vermulst@vvgb-law.com juhi.sud@vvgb-law.com

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

47


Global Trade Developments Overview trade restrictive measures

Overview of global trade restrictive measures in the footwear & Textiles sector* Updated November 2013

For more information visit the Trade Committee at www.wfsgi.org. WFSGI members go to the Member Area for the complete and regularly updated overview and background information.

48

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014


Global Trade Developments Overview trade restrictive measures

Importing Country Sector

Argentina

Targeted countries of origin

Type of measure

Footwear

All

Sworn Prior Import Statement (DJAI), Prior information on planned imports, Sworn Declaration of Product Composition (DJCP), Increased import tariff on footwear parts, Reference values for several countries like India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, China, Brazil, Pakistan, Laos and Cambodia

Raw Materials & Fabrics

All

Sworn Prior Import Statement (DJAI), Prior information on planned imports, Sworn Declaration of Product Composition (DJCP)

Raw Materials, Fabrics & Apparel

Certain groups of countries including China and Vietnam

Updated reference values

Raw Materials, Fabrics & Footwear

China

Anti-Dumping

Apparel

All

Sworn Prior Import Statement (DJAI), Prior information on planned imports, Sworn Declaration of Product Composition (DJCP)

China

Anti-Dumping

All

Import licensing

Indonesia

Anti-Subsidy & Anti-Dumping

Footwear Brazil

Chinese Taipei Ecuador Egypt EU Indonesia

Raw Materials & Fabrics

China, Korea, Thailand & Chinese Taipei

Anti-Dumping

Apparel

All

Safeguard

Footwear

China

Anti-Dumping

Footwear

All

Tariff increase & Non-tariff trade barriers

Apparel

All

Tariff increase

Raw Materials, Fabrics, Apparel, Accessories & Footwear

All

Technical Barriers to Trade

Raw Materials & Fabrics

All, excluding some developing countries

Safeguard

Raw Materials & Fabrics

China

Anti-Dumping

All, excluding some developing countries

Safeguard

China, Chinese Taipei, India

Anti-Dumping

All

Non-Automatic Import Licensing

China

Negotiated measure

All

Import licensing

Apparel

All

Non-Automatic Import Licensing & Onerous labelling requirements

Raw Materials & Fabrics Footwear

Mexico

Peru

Russian Federation Thailand

Turkey

Footwear

Footwear

China & Vietnam

Anti-Dumping

Raw Materials & Fabrics

US

Anti-Subsidy

Apparel

China

Anti-Dumping

Footwear

All

Reference Price Mechanism (customs internal measure to secure a minimum customs value)

Raw Materials & Fabrics

All

Safeguard, Non-tariff trade barriers

Apparel

All

Non-tariff trade barriers

Raw Materials & Fabrics

All

Safeguard

Footwear

All, excluding some developing countries accounting for less than 3 % of Turkish imports

Safeguard

Raw Materials, Fabrics & Apparel

All

Tariff increase

Raw Materials & Fabrics

Egypt, Malaysia, Pakistan, Thailand, Vietnam, China, India

Anti-Dumping

Accessories

All, excluding some developing countries

Safeguard

* Non-exhaustive list.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

49


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Laying the foundation for performance

The Games approach: Laying the ­foundation for Performance in Brazil By Lucille Hostel, Marketing Director of Real-Alliance, an ABRIESP (Associação Brasileira da indústria do deporte – Brazilian sporting goods industry association) partner

As host of the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and the 2016 Olympic Games the sports facilities and equipment market in Brazil has received a lot of attention in recent years. These events are the impetus to investment in the sports equipment sector, which along with Brazil’s growing middle class has developed very quickly over the last few years. With the world’s spotlight on Brazil, the nation has a legacy to leave behind. Beyond stadiums and arenas, the sports

facilities market includes a wide range of sports venues such as public facilities, clubs, condominiums, schools and outdoor fields. Brazil’s 13,826 sports and leisure clubs are the training grounds for the majority of its Olympic athletes. In 2011, there were 19,681 gyms registered in Brazil according to the Federal Council of Physical Education, putting Brazil 2nd place worldwide.

More than stadiums: the market includes also recreational public facilities © iStockphoto

50

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Laying the foundation for performance

With a huge “active” population to foresee of sports facilities, Brazil’s sports infrastructure market is very much at the beginning of a golden era. Part of the legacy of the sports events that is already being felt is investment in infrastructure, and specifically sports infrastructure. With Brazil set to host the world’s best athletes, many fiscal incentives have been created to stimulate the nation’s athletes to train and also make it possible for clubs, gyms and other training grounds to invest in their infrastructure creating the grounds for these athletes. Over the coming decades thousands of fitness centers, swimming pools, football fields and arenas in Brazil will receive investments. Clubs, schools and municipalities will invest in their locations and equipment for both leisure and professional use. Arenas and stadiums not used for the FIFA World Cup will have to raise their standards in order to compete with other more-modern venues to gain or maintain revenues. Opportunities in the Brazilian market Although the sports market has grown greatly, much of the media attention have been aimed at the World Cup stadiums and development for the megaevents. However,

operations, security consulting – crowd control and risk management. Brazil’s sports infrastructure market To facilitate market development, events such as fairs and trading shows are being held aiming at the management, equipment and technology for sports venues. These events are Latin America’s only platform that is 100 % focused on sports equipment, services and infrastructure for stadiums and arenas as well as sports venues and recreational facilities of all types and sizes such as fitness centers, swimming pools, recreational areas, sports fields and gyms. In collaboration with ABRIESP, Brazilian Sports Industry Association, these events like “Sports Infratech 2013” and “Sports Business 2013” will feature match-making programs bringing together foreign and national buyers to suppliers of the sports equipment industry, This year, Sports Infratech launched the industry’s first magazine for managers of sports facilities of all types and sizes, a good example of Brazilian market shortage. There is much to do in many areas in the coming years. It is a matter of strategy, willing and patience.

a whole movement has arisen to ­cater to the growing use of sports and leisure facilities in Brazil. Many companies with specialist expertise who dedicate time and effort to understanding the culture and finding the right partnerships and market niches in Brazil are very well placed to benefit from the country’s prosperity. Opportunities for companies lie in the provision of sustainable design and architecture, temporary structures – fitting out and overlay, arenas management, environmental consultancy, air, rail and road transport projects (transport planning), urban regeneration, security training and

Footballer at the beach on Praia do Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil © iStockphoto

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

51


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Market data

BRAZIL: A BIG BUT CHALLENGING MARKET By Eugenio di Maria, Founder and Journalist EDM Publications

Even beyond the megaevents that the country is going to host in 2014 and 2016, nobody who is involved in sport can ignore Brazil because of the sporty spirit of the population and the very positive underlying socio-economic trends. Aside from its diversity, this country of almost 200 million people offers enormous opportunities because of its growing middle class and its huge natural resources, which may well move it from the sixth to the fourth place among the world’s largest economies by 2020. Brazil also presents some challenges for foreign sporting goods companies. Nevertheless,

many companies – large and small – have eventually found their way into the market, often in partnership with one of the big local players or, like in the case of Dorel Industries’ recent takeover of Caloi, through an acquisition. Some foreign companies, such as Adidas, are boasting the highest growth rates around the world in the region. Their successes and the news of some failures encouraged us a couple of years ago to look as deeply as possible into the dynamics of the Brazilian sporting goods market, adopting the same methodology that we have used in analyzing many other markets around the world. With the support of ISPO and the Adventure Sports Fair in São Paulo, we searched for all kinds of available statistics and conducted interviews with more than 100 industry executives and government officials, plus a survey of more than 1,000 sports-minded Thanks to ISPO’s financial support, the 175-page report on the Brazilian sporting goods market is available at a relatively low price, with discounts for subscribers to Sporting Goods Intelligence Europe. It was released in September 2012 by EDM Publications, the company behind SGI Europe and other international business publications. The main authors of the report are Eugenio Di Maria, publisher of SGI Europe, and Barbara Smit, associate editor and head of research.

consumers. The research allowed us to release the first comprehensive report on the Brazilian sporting goods market (175 pages of text and charts), which we had to reprint several times due to the high demand from our readers. In the course of our analysis, we were disappointed to find insufficient or contradictory statistical information on the size of the market. We ran across estimates ranging from the equivalent of USD 4 billion a year to USD 13 billion. We were told that the market had been rising at annual rates of between 5 and 10 per cent until the third quarter of 2011. The growth subsequently softened, in line with the rest of Brazilian consumption, but it seems to have picked up again lately, judging from the figures reported by some major brands, and it will likely get a further boost from the World Cup and the Olympics. After analyzing the definition and the segmentation of the market used by our sources, we concluded that the performance-oriented portion of the sporting goods market was worth at least R$13 billion (a hefty USD 5.7 billion even after the devaluation of the real) a year. This does not include surfwear, a big category in Brazil, where it is mostly worn for leisure, or tens of millions of sports-inspired vulcanized shoes, fan shirts and other T-shirts that are sold through all kinds of channels. When we add all that, the size of the market nearly doubles to around R$25 billion (USD 10.9 billion). Sales of sports products in Brazil at retail, R$ billions, 2011 Sports shoes by major brands

5

Sports clothing by major brands

4

Sports shoes & clothing by secondary brands

2

Sports equipment

2

TOTAL TECHNICAL MARKET

2

Sports-inspired footwear

3

Sports-inspired clothing

6

Other categories TOTAL SPORTS MARKET Source: Own compilation

52

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

13

Surfwear

1 25


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil XXX

The high share taken by footwear is interesting. The equipment market is dominated by fitness and cycling.

The total market would even be 20 to 30 % bigger including fakes – particularly in the category of fan shirts – and the branded items purchased by Brazilians when they travel abroad, where they are often 30 to 50 % cheaper than at home. The major international brands estimate that their combined sales of sports clothing and footwear were close to R$9 billion a year (USD 4 billion) through 2011 and that they would have been much higher without the high import duties imposed by the Brazilian government to encourage local production. Adidas, Nike and other major foreign brands still import between 50 and 80 % of their products from the Far East, especially highly technical shoes that cannot be made in Brazil although the country is the world’s third-largest producer of footwear. Besides the high import duties, taxes and prices, there are several other challenging conditions that foreign sporting goods companies must face to enter the Brazilian market or to do a profitable business there in the short, medium or long-term. For example: •  high temperatures, which tend to discourage participation in outdoor sports activities (other than football) in certain parts of the country, •  high cost of capital investments and discriminatory ­credit policies, •  poor quality of infrastructure, •  mixed quality of retailing.

All pictures © Adventure Sports Fair in São Paulo

Nevertheless, the level of foreign direct investment in Brazil remains high by global standards. The Brazilian government has shown its determination to improve infrastructure, and when it comes to retailing, it is a lot more evolved than in some other emerging countries. We also found that Brazilian consumers – even the wealthier ones who can afford to travel abroad – don’t hesitate to buy all kinds of products locally on credit if they want them. Premium pricing and brand positioning can be an incentive for them to make the purchase, but price promotions appeal to everybody. We discovered, for example, that sales of two special Babolat racquets more than doubled after its importer lowered temporarily its price, with the support of its French supplier. Brands like Mizuno have successfully resorted to licensing and local manufacturing – and in some cases they have done this with the customs-free Mercosur area or the whole promising Latin American market in mind. Amer Sports closed its Brazilian subsidiary and attacked the market sideways through its strong distribution partner in Argentina. The North Face has linked up with a major retailer that knows its way around with the shopping centres. We are providing other examples of indirect penetration strategies in our market research report, which also describes the major domestic companies that they have to deal with in the sector.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

53


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Topper – global expansion

Topper prepares for global expansion By Fernando Beer, Director of the Alpargatas sports line products

Topper, a Brazilian sporting goods brand, part of Alpargatas Group, consolidates operations in South America and prepares for global expansion. Topper is proud to be part of the Alpargatas Group, which has 106 years of history, and is currently the largest Brazilian footwear company in Latin America. Listed in the São Paulo Stock Exchange (BM&F Bovespa) since 1913, Alpargatas is part of the Level 1 group of companies in the differentiated Corporate Governance program, with 6,500 shareholders. The company offers innovative products and has expertise in building and managing desired brands, with presence in retail with over 500 exclusive shops. Aside from Topper, other brands under the Alpargatas Group include Havaianas (Brazil’s internationally recognized footwear brand), Rainha (one of the most traditional brands of sporting goods in the country), Mizuno (Brazil’s leader in running performance apparel) and Osklen (recently acquired Brazil’s luxury fashion brand) as well as the multisport Topper brand, wellknown in South America, where sport, especially football, is much more than a game. In the Football World Cup which has been played 19 times, South America and Europe are locked in a fierce competition. The South Americans have nine titles and the Europeans, who took the lead after Spain won the 2010 World Cup, have ten. These figures show that even with fewer countries affiliated with FIFA than those in Europe, South America carries a lot of weight and importance in the football world. This importance is proportional to the passion that South American people have for this British sport. For us, South Americans, football is a passionate matter. We play with heart. We support our teams with absolute intensity. That’s why, when it comes to sports in South America, it is the heart that dictates the rules. Topper, a South American brand, is taking the next step to expand beyond its main markets. As a sporting goods company that shares its values summarized in the slogan “Coração Manda” (The Heart Rules), Topper is proud of the history it has built throughout the continent, especially in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Chile. Specifically in those markets, the brand has established itself by sponsoring

54

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

major clubs, several sports, athletes and events. In nearly 40 years Topper has invested in a wide range of sports driven by its core message of determination and passion for sports. Today, Topper is an established brand in South America and believes it is the ideal time to expand. In 1975, Topper launched its first line of sporting goods. Four years later, the brand launched its first football shoes and sponsored Sócrates, a world-class football star, who played for the Brazilian national team. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Topper became synonymous with football, sponsoring the Brazilian national team and some of the top clubs in the country. In the early 1980s, the Brazilian national team played the most beautiful football in the world, and although the Brazilian team did not win the 1982 World Cup, Topper became associated with a team considered to be the last representative of genuine Brazilian football art. Other successful partnerships include the sport of futsal in Brazil, as well as the Brazilian Confederation of Rugby (CBRu). The latter became increasingly more popular in the country through this partnership. Topper is also known for supporting and sponsoring athletes in other sports such as basketball, swimming and tennis.

Currently, the brand has a strong presence in three major regions of Brazilian football: in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, sponsoring Grêmio Futbol Porto Alegrense club and its great tradition, including having won the world title. In São

Rugby campaign by Topper: making the sport popular in Brazil © Topper


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Topper – global expansion

Urban – lifestyle and casual line for Brazil and Argentina © Topper

Paulo and Rio de Janeiro we sponsor regional championships, tournaments with the presence of eight of major Brazilian clubs and include some of the country’s star players. In addition, Topper sponsors the largest amateur football league in the world, the Kaiser Cup, which includes the participation of 192 teams and thousands of players. In 2008, when Alpargatas made the acquisition of Topper’s Argentinean operation, a branding study showed a significant strengthening in the image of Topper in the continent. Topper was rebranded and unified its message, created a new logo and created the slogan “The Heart Rules”, which accurately translates the brand’s essence. Topper also created a more casual and lifestyle line of products for Brazil and Argentina. The brand increased its workforce in South America, becoming the leader in footwear while starting to explore new markets. Topper sponsors the Argentinean team during the Davis Cup, the largest annual international team competition in tennis. We have sponsored top-ranked players such as David Nalbandian and Guillermo Vilas. In Argentinean football, Topper sponsors the Newell’s Old Boys, Velez Sarsfield and Atlético Tucumán club, teams that dominated in local championships in 2013. In addition, Topper also sponsors David Trezeguet, a striker who made history wearing the French national team jersey, and other Argentinean rugby

and hockey clubs. Topper has also been present in casualwear tennis shoes in South America, mainly in Argentina, and last year their premium line segment was brought to Brazil. Topper is focused on the brand’s continued growth in all areas of performance in South America as they gradually enter new markets with the same approach as the past 40 years of goals, baskets, points, records and trophies. More info: www.topper.com.br

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

55


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Netshoes – e-commerce case study

Netshoes Case Study From the back of a parking lot to a half-billion-dollar e-commerce By Renato Mendes, Head of Corporate Affairs at Netshoes

Netshoes is the largest sporting goods, web-only e-retailer, of the world.¹ Founded thirteen years ago in São Paulo by two young cousins, it is nowadays a R$1.2 billion (around USD 600 million) company with over 2,000 employees in Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. With the support of the industry’s most important brands, Netshoes is able to offer more than 38,000 products through its online shop and to deliver approximately 28,000 packages per day. It is estimated that Netshoes has more than 15 million unique visitors per month and that it is the destination of 25 % of the total active Internet users in Brazil. With such record Netshoes is a unique case of success in the Latin American digital market.

Development of Netshoes gross revenue

When founded, the company was set to be another brickand-mortar retailer. Its first store was located in the back of a parking lot which was close to a famous local university. After two years in the business, Netshoes’s founder Marcio Kumruian took his first step towards the digital market by selling sporting shoes through QualliVillas, an online marketplace, and Mercado Livre, a local version of eBay. The digital bet proved to be worth every penny. In just five years, Netshoes’s digital operation sold much more than the combination of its seven physical stores. That was enough for Kumruian to make his most important decision and become a pure player. Even after being called “crazy” by his

56

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

family and friends, he went on and closed all physical stores in order to focus on the digital market. A major change in each and every sense. Only one thing did not change for Netshoes: it’s obsession in providing customers the best shopping experience. The company not only was the first one in Brazil to offer customer care service 24 hours a day, seven days a week, but was also the first to make it a social experience through talking to customers on Twitter and Facebook, where the company is close to six million fans. Based on its consumers’ need for assistance in buying the right product, Netshoes created the Sports Consultants program, which directs customers to professionals from different sports categories for assistance. If one wants to buy a bike but does not know which one is the most suitable, a consultant will provide support to one’s needs. Such professionals are part of a 500 people structure, all of which are focused on customer needs and providing a better shopping experience. Sometimes clients will talk to a human, other times they will talk to a robot. Yes, technology also plays its part when it comes to customer services at Netshoes. Robots are programmed to “chat” with clients and search for the right answers in FAQ lists. With fine tuning, robots are able to respond almost 20 % of the total customer related demands and through all of its experience, a client always has the option to choose between being attended by a team member or a robot. As another good example of interaction between customer relations and technology, a few months ago, Netshoes launched “Return on the web”, a service that allows customers to process their returns through the website, without having to interact with anyone or pay anything as Netshoes guarantees its customers the first return shipping for free. Customers seem to like all this devotion, since almost 70 % of all sales are made to “old clients”, a relevant sign of brand loyalty. With all that, being #1 among all retailers in Reclame Aqui’s ranking (a Brazilian website that gathers


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Netshoes – e-commerce case study

consumer reviews) was much more of a consequence than a goal. And it happened. Netshoes also found out that customers really like new stuff and, above all, things that can make life easier. A good example of that is ShoefitrTM , which was born this way and is provided by Netshoes to its customers. When someone wants to buy shoes and does not know the exact size of a different brand, ShoefitrTM provides the customers with all the proper care. The only thing that such customer has to do is to inform about the size and brand of shoes he is used to wear. With that, Netshoes and ShoefitrTM will make magic happen! ShoefitrTM compares sizes through 3-D technology and presents the customer with the proper size of another brand. Another good example is Netshoes Click, the world’s first mobile app to recognize products using images. You’re running at the park or walking somewhere and you see a pair of nice shoes on the feet of a stranger, but you don’t know the exact brand or model, with a single picture, which you take with your smartphone, and four clicks you are at Netshoes check-out, and within a couple of days (or in some occasions even on the same day), you’re wearing the same model! Besides innovation, customization is another option for Netshoes customers. The company was Brazil’s first player to offer customization services for goods such as jerseys, soccer cleats and casual shirts. Nowadays, anyone can have its name and country flag on a pair of soccer cleats, an exclusivity for the players not so long ago. The drive and dedication to providing customers with a unique digital shopping experience attracted not only the

customer’s attention but also the market’s attention. In 2010, Tiger Global Management, one of the world’s most relevant hedge funds, joined the company and helped it sustain Netshoes’ fast pace towards high quality in services. Between 2008 and 2011, Netshoes’s operating revenues grew more than 120 % a year. In October 2011 Netshoes opened its operations in Argentina and Mexico. A year later, another three major players joined Netshoes’ team: Temasek Holdings, Iconiq Capital and Kaszek Venture all became part of Netshoes. With a strong and well-structured organization, Netshoes has a clear goal to achieve: become a global reference in ecommerce. On such path, the company must also lead the transformation of the Latin American e-commerce market, helping the players to build healthy and sustainable business environment. Would anyone say Netshoes will not get there? Well, this person would first have to bear in mind that throughout the article we didn’t get even close to mentioning the possibilities that will be brought to the Brazilian e-commerce market by both the World Cup in 2014 and Olympics Summer Games in 2016.

Don’t know your size? ShoefitrTM finds the right size based on the size and brand you use to wear.

Netshoes was the first company to offer customized products in Brazil. A big player in e-retail today: www.netshoes.com.br

Go Netshoes!

¹  S ource: Internet Retailer: Top500guide.com Database. Search applied filters: all guides, web only, sporting goods.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

57


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Penalty – internationalization

Penalty: the Brazilian footsports brand for export By Alexandre Estefano, former Global Marketing Managing Director of Cambuci S. A.

The process of Penalty brand internationalization is a story of how a Brazilian brand adapted to the Brazilian sports market competitive environment. How it had to be more Brazilian in its essence, but less Brazilian in its market approach. My father and his brothers created the Penalty brand in 1970, when they took over the textile company of their family and created a whole new business. Today Penalty is the biggest footsports brand in Brazil, present in South America, some countries in Europe, in Japan and expanding to North America. The history of the sporting goods industry in Brazil is strictly related with the history of Penalty brand. By understanding that Penalty is the most authentic representation of the Brazilian footsports – soccer, futsal, beach soccer, footvolley, etc. – the board of Cambuci – name of the company that owns Penalty – decided to assume the Brazilian identity as part of the Penalty brand essence. This is an important element of differentiation to positioning the brand in international markets. And also, this was the first aspect of conflict between Brazil and the rest of the markets: international markets always request much more Brazilian seasoning in the product style, and for Brazil it had to be almost subtle. The second aspect is the Brazilian government police. A few years ago, with the objective to protect the national industry in Brazil, an anti-dumping procedure was opened

against China, what made Cambuci to move all the shoes production to Brazil. Secondary impacts happen in the international markets, without the scale was difficult to produce in China just for these markets, as the final result Penalty shoes prices in the international markets were higher reducing competitiveness. As an industrial company, Cambuci today produces almost 80 % of all products sold by Penalty, the other 20 % is produced in OEMs in Asia and in South America. This composition allows Penalty to be flexible and respond quickly to new demands in Brazil, what is very important in segments such as the club business – if the club is winning the sales of replicas improves. The flexibility is one of the elements that always differentiated Penalty in Brazil. But it is a characteristic that cannot be exported to other markets, as the cycles in the international markets are much more defined, has to be planned in advance respecting the seasons and the windows of presale. A transformation in the R&D department was made to work both in a longer cycle for the collections without loosing the flexibility and the ability to react when needed. The final aspect is related with portfolio, which was totally designed to the environment of sporting goods industry in Brazil. And as Brazil is a huge mass market of middle and lower classes, the international market is pushing Penalty to improve its portfolio and the final result is excellent to the brand. The uniqueness of the Penalty Brand and its proposition has unquestionable potential all over the world; the challenge was and still is to go beyond the Brazilian business model in order to expand The Brazilian Footsports Brand in the world. At the end, this process is also improving the Penalty brand in Brazil.

Alexandre Estefano is a former Global Marketing Managing Director of Cambuci S. A., who was in charge of the internationalization process. He had worked at Cambuci for 10 years and he left the company in 2013, as the family decided not to be in the executive positions anymore.

58

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014


With more than 5’400 specialist sports stores in 42 countries, INTERSPORT has the worldwide leading position in the sporting goods retail market. Visit us at www.intersport.com


Retail and Market: Focus Brazil Centauro – sporting goods retail in Brazil

Behind Centauro’s footprint The champion of sporting goods retail By Sebastião Bomfim Filho, CEO of Grupo SBF

A brand that spans decades knows that it needs to constantly reinvent itself, without giving up its repertoire and greater purpose. Technology evolves, consumers seek innovation, requirements become increasingly complex, and with them, new solutions are developed every day. In the world of sports, this transformation occurs at an even more intense frequency since product evolution occurs in tandem with the evolution of the human body, which takes on new challenges and goes beyond its own limits constantly. While only 0.33 seconds separate the marks of Olympic medalists Usain Bolt (London 2012) and Linford Christie (Barcelona 1992) in the 100-meter dash, the technology applied to the pair of running shoes used by each of them was significantly different. This rationale, translated to the businesses of Grupo SBF as a commitment to serving our clients and quality in the products offered, has always been a part of the way Centauro operates. In its 32-year history, the network has adopted different models and objectives, and each of these phases contributed in helping the company better understand the market and achieve its leadership position in retail sporting goods in Latin America. In the beginning, for example, the challenge was to differentiate itself from the regular sporting goods stores in Belo Horizonte (Minas Gerais), where the company was born. Through creativity and daring, the brand conquered consumers not only through the sales of tennis shoes, but also accessories and casual sports clothing.

Centauro retail shops © Centauro

60

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Naturally, the next challenge was to penetrate new markets in Brazil. This, however, was a big step. At the end of the 90s, the brand had 22 stores in the states of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and Brasília. The business was stable;

nevertheless, it had the potential to be much bigger. At the time in Brazil, a country where people tend not to read a lot of books, there were megabookstores; so why not invest in a megastore for sportswear in a country that loves football? This insight led to the idea of creating stores with areas in excess of 1,000 m² inside shopping malls. Today the brand is partnered with the major groups that manage shopping centers throughout the country and is frequently sought out as an anchor store, along with other large department stores such as C&A and Renner. In recent years, Grupo SBF has been working to establish a presence in more and more regions, including cities with a population of more than 200,000. This strategy is instrumental for the brand whose mission statement is to democratize sports in the country. To achieve this objective, the group partnered with GP Investments. With solid experience in management and e-commerce, GP Investments proved to be the ideal partner to help Centauro in its development cycle and take quality sporting goods and technology to a greater number of Brazilians. Today there are more than 220 stores throughout the country and 18 new stores should come on board by the end of the year in the s­ uperstore and megastore format. In 2013, we launched the first Full Size store, a new concept store with more than 3,000 m² which, in addition to having a greater variety of sporting goods, favors product experimentation and a new way of interacting with the brand through events and services. This store is located in Rio de Janeiro, the city that will be hosting the FIFA 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. Grupo SBF will invest a total of R$150 million this year in the expansion of the network, and one third of this total will be allocated to the online operation Centauro.com.br – the network’s third growth vector. This channel will close 2013 with net sales of R$190 million, and its goal is to reach R$450 million by 2014, representing 20 % of sales for the group. The company is now prepared to run the marathon and the plans have been laid.


www.sport2000international.com

We keep the world in motion RETHINKING BOUNDARIES INTERNATIONAL EXPERTS COMMUNITY PERSONALLY CARING FOR CUSTOMERS EXPERTISE THROUGH PASSION We are the professional and passionate companion that enhances the individual capabilities of every athlete by understanding their personality and needs.

MORE THAN 3.500 RETAIL S TORES IN 23 COUNTRIES


Retail and Market Taking the healthy path

We are taking the healthy path By Wolfgang Schnellbügel, Managing Director of Sport 2000 International

Growing health awareness among Europe’s citizens is the driving force that is boosting sales by billions in the industries and niches of the “secondary health care market” year on year. Sectors such as tourism, sport and leisure as well as the food industry are benefiting from the general fitness trend. In contrast to traditional health care provision in the primary market, this secondary health care market is defined by all privately financed products, services and health care concepts, also including sport and wellness packages, which encourage a healthier and more sensible lifestyle. Under the aegis of Sport 2000 Germany, we at Sport 2000 have for a number of years also been analysing the opportunities presented by this new trend market for expanding sales of sports articles and leisure fashion in our retail network. Our German colleagues have been pioneers in this field, preparing the way with their concept and initiative “The healthy path”. In order to take this path, they trained to become certified health sports consultants. The basis for the course is a modular programme of training that Sport 2000 Germany developed in cooperation with the University of Tübingen. As part of the programme, sports medicine specialists from the university teach Sport 2000 retailers about modern lifestyle diseases and the positive role that sport can play in prevention and also in fighting existing disease. This offer for all retailers participating in the programme is supported by a comprehensive brochure that introduces readers to the most important forms of healthy sport with their particular benefits and special features. In the light of the positive experience of our partners, Sport 2000 will continue to implement it at the European level in the coming years. This is why we have joined HEPA Europe – the European network for the promotion of healthenhancing physical activity. Health-enhancing physical activity refers to all pursuits that are beneficial to health and functional capacity without exposing individuals to unnecessary risk. Such activity does not need to be strenuous: even 30 minutes of medium-intensity movement result in a significant reduction in

62

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

chronic illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer. Physical activity also helps to prevent obesity and the incidence of osteoporosis and depression. As we learn from studies, around a quarter of the European population fail to achieve this level of activity, causing approximately 600,000 deaths each year. Increased physical activity thus has a positive effect in demographic terms as well as at the individual level. Furthermore, it also means that significant savings can be achieved in the public health system. All of us in Europe are literally sitting ourselves ill – the WHO estimates that our sedentary lifestyle will contribute to at least two-thirds of physical ailments in Europe and around the world in 2020. Healthy physical activity is therefore the single effective therapy for prevention and avoidance and a decisive step towards greater health and a higher quality of life. In Germany, these ideas have already found their way into Sport 2000’s concept “The healthy path”, which we as a marketing group intend to follow in future throughout Europe. Activity as therapy. This is what health sports consultants wish to communicate to the customer in our stores by offering specific advice on performing sport-related physical activity. Our service is of course not intended to replace necessary specialist medical advice. Diseases caused by a general lack of physical activity also require medically prescribed therapies. But physical activity can be part of such therapy.


Retail and Market Taking the healthy path

What we want to achieve in our Sport 2000 stores throughout Europe is that our specialist sales staff are informed about the effects of healthy activity and of the appropriate forms of sport on the human body and are able to communicate this information to the customer together with advice on the comprehensive range of articles in a sports retailing store. In other words, “putting them on the right path”. Many of our major brand partners want to take this path with us because our colleagues in the branded goods industry also realise what potential lies dormant in the secondary health care market for the entire sports goods industry. Our partners in industry who cooperate with us at Sport 2000 in the development of suitable products for our healthy path realise in exactly the same way as we do how the primary and secondary health care markets are merging into one. This trend has become clear in the ispo health ­forums in which we as Sport 2000 were involved.

In a recent survey conducted by Roland Berger, the volume of the health care market today totals EUR 68.5 billion a year in Germany. According to the definition of the market researchers it comprises all privately financed products, services and health care concepts, icluding sport and wellness, that promote a healthier and more responsible attitude to life. This figure is set to grow to EUR 75 billion in Germany by 2020. As could be seen on a visit to the Outdoor trade fair in Friedrichshafen, the rising health awareness expressed in the figures for the secondary health care market is the major driver for the outdoors market in which Sport 2000 successfully engages in Europe. According to a target group analysis conducted by Sport Scheck Group in Munich, one of Germany’s largest sports goods retailers, and presented to the public in Friedrichshafen, 35 per cent of Germans engage in outdoor sports. The average age of outdoor enthusiasts is 46, with a high proportion of active agers. 92 per cent of outdoor activities are accounted for by hiking and trekking while only 5 per cent by climbing and bouldering. 22 per cent of the sports market volume is generated by the outdoors segment. Sport is a key component of outdoor activities but there is little focus on performance. In the same survey, 97 per cent of those who engage in outdoor sport attach great importance to physical and mental well-being, 95 per cent wish to remain mobile, 88 per cent are focussed on health and 85 per cent emphasise work-life balance. These figures show, too, that almost all sections of the population in Germany as well as in other member states of the European Union increasingly want to do something for their health, independent from income, and to this end also want to make use of products and services. If we believe what market researchers say, there is an additional demand of EUR 16 billion developing in the market that has as yet not been satisfied by a corresponding supply. We at Sport 2000 want to increasingly exploit the opportunities of the secondary health care market focussing the range of goods and services offered in our stores in Europe and thus continue our success along the healthy path that our German partners have been following with increasing market success each year.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

63


Retail and Market Selective distribution ­channels

Selective Distribution Systems with a Special Focus on Online Trading By Dr. Jochen M. Schaefer, Legal Counsel of the WFSGI since 1986, Legal Counsel of the European Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (FESI) and lawyer in private practice

“Wind of Change“ had been a very successful song of the rock group The Scorpions at the beginning of the 90s. These winds of change are forcefully blowing also right now in the landscape of selling branded sporting goods globally. Consumers are substantially changing their purchase patterns starting from the point where they begin looking at a specific sports product they have in mind to buy up to the time when they will eventually purchase it. The big game changer is undoubtedly the Internet by offering consumers new options and sources of information including specific product information, price comparisons and products ratings up to the possibility to buy them 24/7 and get them delivered right to their homes.

of the selective distribution system and not to outsiders. The European Union has explicitly recognized this business model in its EU Regulation on Vertical Restraints 30/2010 of April 20, 2010. Needless to say that such special type of

New pure online players such as Amazon or Zalando suddenly surfaced from seemingly nowhere and became powerful players at retail level. These operators are viewed differently by the sports brands and traditional retailers, some see them as a mere threat to their business model, others view them as a chance to generate additional turnover. Regardless how they are perceived, brand owners want and also need to control to a maximum permissible extent the way their brands are presented and sold by their customers at B2B level offline and online. This is how the business model of selective distribution comes into play and where I found myself intensively involved in helping to structure such selective distribution models with a special focus on online trading. “Selective distribution” means that a brand owner/manufacturer enters into a written contractual arrangement with its sports retailer customers, which are selected on the basis of a number of objective primarily qualitative criteria as defined in such written contract, with the consequence that only those dealers will belong to the selective distribution system who meet such criteria. This also implies that only retailers within the system are permitted to resell the branded products to other members

64

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Chinese basketball player Sun Mingming with Jochen Schaefer at SuperShow in Atlanta.


Retail and Market Selective distribution ­channels

vertical distribution has a restraining effect on competition with considerable competition law implications.

same time respecting the autonomy of the retailers to define and determine their selling prices at B2C level.

Market leaders such as Adidas and Asics same as quite a number of other brands, primarily in the Outdoor sector in particular in Germany have chosen to implement a selective distribution system. Based on the experience I made in consulting a number of individual clients in this area, there are basically two schools of thought: One is making the attempt to interdict any online business on open third-party platforms such as eBay, Amazon and others, whilst the other group only seeks to imply certain rules and quality standards for online activities of their retail customers, including pure online players. Both schools are – at least under actual European and German competition laws and based on several German court verdicts – legally permissible. The set of contractual arrangements ranges from defining certain quality standards for the retail store itself and the websites operated by the dealers up to a number of clauses dealing with aggressive pricing and selling methods by at the

The first experience of those companies who introduced selective distribution systems has been quite positive based on the feedback I am receiving from my clients. Their turnover has not suffered within the last few months, to the contrary it has increased in several instances. Further, this business model is also and in particular meant to strengthen the sports retailer customers in terms of a two-way-street concept by providing them among others with more marketing support. Consequently, major retail buying groups such as Intersport and Sport 2000 in Germany have reacted positively when they received the corresponding information from various manufacturers. Since the whole business model is based on a European framework of regulations, it can and should also be introduced European wide and it is suitable also for strong brands ranking below the group of market-leading sports brands, including medium-sized up to smaller companies.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

65


WE KNEW THEY’D FIND MORETHEY’D DISTANCE. WE KNEW WE KNEW THEY’D WE DIDN’T KNOW FIND MORE DISTANCE. FIND MORE DISTANCE. THEY’D FIND IT WE DIDN’T KNOW WE DIDN’T KNOW WITH MORE LOFT. THEY’D FIND IT THEY’D FIND IT WITH MORE LOFT. WITH MORE LOFT.

WE GAVE SLDR MORE DISTANCE BY MOVING THE SLIDING WEIGHT AND CENTRE OF GRAVITY LOWER AND MORE FORWARD. T H E N T H E P RO S D I D S O M E T H I N G T H AT M A D E N O S E N S E AT A L L — T H E Y G OT E VE N M O R E YA R DAG E BY I N C R E A S I N G LOFT. LIKE DUSTIN JOHNSON: HE WENT FROM AN 8.5 UP TO A 10.5. SLDR ISN’T JUST THE LONGEST DRIVER WE’VE EVER WE GAVE SLDR MORE DISTANCE BY MOVING THE SLIDING WEIGHT AND CENTRE OF GRAVITY LOWER AND MORE FORWARD. M A D E — I T ’ S T H E M O S T S U R P R I S I N G D R I VE R W E ’ VE E VE R M A D E . N OW, G O F I N D YO U R N E W LO N G E S T. T H E GAVE N T H ESLDR P RO SMORE D I D SDISTANCE O M E T H I N GBY T HMOVING AT M A D THE E N OSLIDING S E N S E WEIGHT AT A L L —AND T H ECENTRE Y G OT EOF VE N M O R E YA R DAG E BY MORE INCREA SING WE GRAVITY LOWER AND FORWARD. IN DUC LOFT. DUSTIN T HTRO E N LIKE T H E ING P RO S D IJOHNSON: D S O M E T H IHE N GWENT T H AT FROM M A D E AN N O 8.5 S E NUP S ETO ATAA10.5. L L — SLDR T H E Y ISN’T G OT EJUST VE N THE M O RLONGEST E YA R DAGDRIVER E BY I N WE’VE C R E A S EVER ING

M A D E LIKE — I T ’DUSTIN S T H E MJOHNSON: O S T S U R P HE R I SWENT I N G D RFROM I VE R W VE E VETO R M D E . NSLDR OW, GISN’T O F I NJUST D YO U R NLONGEST E W LO N G E S T. LOFT. ANE ’8.5 UP AA10.5. THE DRIVER WE’VE EVER M A D E — I T ’ S T H E M O S T S U R P R I S I N G D R I VE R W E ’ VE E VE R M A D E . N OW, G O F I N D YO U R N E W LO N G E S T. IN TRO DUC ING IN TRO DUC ING

©2013 Taylor Made Golf Company Limited. Driver claim based on robot testing of 9.5° drivers in neutral setting at approximately 150 mph ball speed. #1 Driver in Golf claim based on combined 2012 wins and usage on the PGA, European, Japan Golf, Web.com, Champions and LPGA Tours, as reported by the Darrell Survey Co. and Sports Marketing Surveys, Ltd. Driver claim based on 2013 tour testing.


APPLICATION form

become a wfsgi member

WFSGI Membership fees are defined according to company turnover or association/federation size. If you wish to become a WFSGI Member and to know your annual fee, fill in this form and send it back with your company profile by fax to +41 31 939 60 69 or by e-mail to rdekock@wfsgi.org. We will immediately contact you and inform you about the next steps.

▪  Industry Supplier / Industry Supporter

▪  National / Regional Organization / Association

Turnover Fees Company in USD in CHF Turnover

Evaluation Fees Association Scale in CHF Category

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

> 5 bln 30’000 2.5 bln > 5 bln 25’000 1 bln > 2.5 bln 20’000 500 mln > 1 bln 15’000 100 mln > 500 mln 10’000 50 mln > 100 mln   7’750 30 mln > 50 mln   5’000 10 mln > 30 mln   3’750 5 mln > 10 mln   2’500 2.5 mln > 5 mln   2’250 1 mln > 2.5 mln   2’000 < 1 mln   1’500

Regional

Single member

Country member from the regional organization National

12’000

plus 4‘000 per country

▪ ▪ ▪ ▪

Large 12’000 Medium   8’000 Small   4’000

Optional: Sustaining Membership

▪  Gold (20’000 CHF)

▪  Silver (10’000 CHF) ▪  Bronze (5’000 CHF)

Name: Address: Zip code/city:

Country:

Phone: Fax: E-mail: Website: If you are an Industry Supplier or Supporter, specify your type of activity:  Brand  Retailer  Manufacturer Other:  Importer/Distributor

Products/Trademarks/Services:

Name of President/CEO/Owner:

We hereby confirm that we have read and understood the WFSGI By-Laws and Code of Conduct and we agree to become a WFSGI Member:

Place and date:

Name and signature:

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

67


Connecting Global Competence

To be one of the top players in the sports business you’ll need to know where the top is. This means always being up-to-date on industry news and the latest trends, and having quick and convenient access to the right contacts. ISPO offers all that – and not just at ISPO MUNICH, ISPO BEIJING and ISPO BIKE, but 365 days per year, providing exceptional services such as ISPO JOBS (sports business job exchange), ISPO BRANDNEW (young entrepreneurs’ competition) ISPO AWARD (awards), ISPO CARD (event bonus card) and ISPO ACADEMY (information and continuing education platform). Take advantage of what ISPO has to offer. SportS. BuSineSS. ConneCted.

ISpo.com


WFSGI ISPO

ISPO Offers Innovate Services All Year Long By Tobias Gröber, Business Unit Leader ISPO

ISPO provides the international sports business with two strong contact hubs: ISPO MUNICH and ISPO BEIJING. Exhibitors and visitors experience the international leading trade exhibitions as multi-communication events with a wide variety of professional services. The broad-reaching, informative and competent catalogue of services further strengthens the direct and personal communication among sports business professionals not just during the days of the exhibition, but all year long. As one of the industry’s largest job exchanges ISPO JOBS consistently informs the industry about open positions. ISPO is a dependable partner for retailers, young entrepreneurs and traditional brands alike. The multitude of international conferences, workshops as well as retail tours of the ISPO ACADEMY endorse the exchange of global expertise and help master the challenges of the sports market with their exceptional ideas and expert reports. Independent, successful industry experts offer presentations on current topics such as finance, shop concepts, distribution, e-commerce and more. Yet another professional service for exhibitors and visitors, the international leading sports business network observes trends and offers companies the opportunity to enter their concepts and products into competitions appraised by juries consisting of international industry experts. The winners of ISPO BRANDNEW, ISPO TEXTRENDS and ISPO AWARD provide a reliable overview of the most interesting developments. ISPO communicates this selection with the help of a variety of channels, thus actively infusing new life into the market and generating retail sales success for the winners. ISPO BRANDNEW is a selection of the most promising newcomers. The successful format has now been applied for ten years, introducing the winning start-ups to the global sports business, and actively supporting them in their market entry. A considerable number of former contestants have become staples in today’s sports business, among them Maloja, Burton, Nixon, Poc or On Running.

They benefited from the ISPO BRANDNEW effect, further strengthened by special services provided by ISPO. Twice a year, at ISPO MUNICH and ISPO BIKE, the ISPO BRANDNEW Village becomes a popular magnet for the media and sports business professionals. The ISPO AWARD has established itself as the quality seal for extraordinary sporting goods. The award is divided into the segments Action, Outdoor, Ski and Performance, which, in turn, consist of a number of categories. The final selection of award winners, evaluated by an independent jury of international experts, provides a comprehensive and authentic product overview for the wide variety of sports and requirements. ISPO MUNICH hosts close to 2,500 exhibitors. The ISPO AWARD selected 139 winning innovations from close to 50,000 exhibited products. ISPO promotes all award winners to sporting goods manufacturers, retailers, and consumers, thus providing them with extensive exposure reaching beyond the exhibition halls. The winners are exhibited in a special area at ISPO MUNICH, and the best of the best are honoured at the ISPO AWARD Ceremony. Two new divisions were added to the ISPO AWARD in 2013: Asian Products und Communication. Asian Products offers companies from Asia an objective stage on which they can present their products to a jury of experts. The ISPO AWARD Communication selects the best sports-related communications projects that have a deep impact on the market. In 2014, ISPO will once again search for and select the best and most exciting innovations from the sports industry. Effective immediately, interested companies may register at www.ispo.com.

ISPO BRANDNEW Exhibition 2013 © Messe München GmbH

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

69


WFSGI Board of Directors

Board of Directors

February 2011 – January 2014 President

Vice-Presidents

Motoi Oyama Asics/Japan President

Tom Cove SFIA/USA Vice-President Americas

Frank Dassler adidas Group/DE Vice-President Europe/Africa

Rajan Mayor SGEPC/India Vice-President Asia/Oceania

Peter Bragdon Columbia Sportswear Company/USA

Killick Datta International Brand Partners LLC/USA

Hilary Krane Nike, Inc./USA

Kevin Plank Under Armour/USA

Ma Jilong CSGF/China

Hirotaka Miyaji JASPO/Japan

George Wood TSMA/Taiwan

AMERICAS

Fernando Beer Alpargatas/Brazil

Asia/Oceania

Nouman Butt SCCI/Pakistan

Honorary Directors Anil Sharma, past Representative SGEPC India Arthur Lin, Freesport Corp. Benjamin Liu, past Representative TSMA Giancarlo Zanatta, past Representative Tecnica Group Henri Rossolin, past Representative French Sporting Goods Federation and FESI Howard Bruns, past Representative SFIA, former SGMA USA James Easton, past Representative Jas. D. Easton, Inc.

70

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

John Riddle, past Representative SFIA, former SGMA USA Klaus Uhl, past Representative Uhl Sport Lindsay Stewart, past Representative Nike, Inc. Liu Jun, past Representative CSGF China Masato Mizuno, past President, Mizuno Corp. Pashi Sondhi, past Representative F.C. Sondhi & Co. (Pvt.) Ltd. Peter Martin, past Representative Canadian Sporting Goods Industry Raul Hacker, past Representative Brazilian Federation


WFSGI Board of Directors

ABOUT US The World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (足W FSGI) is the world authoritative body for the sporting goods industry officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the industry representative within the Olympic Family. The WFSGI is an independent

association with no objective of economic character for its own gain and formed by sports and sports-inspired leisure brands, manufacturers, suppliers, retailers, national/regional federations, industry and trade associations and all sporting goods industry-related businesses. www.wfsgi.org

Europe/Africa

Martin Kuenzi Intersport International Corp./CH

Andy Rubin Pentland/UK

Jeroen Snijders Blok Accell Group/NL (Bicycle)

Christian Voigt Puma/DE

Alberto Zanatta Tecnica Group/Italy

Michel Perraudin MP Consulting/DE

Christina Li Wei Li Ning/China

Charles Yang Apache Footwear/ China

Klaus Uhl Chairman Administrative Board Uhl Sport WFSGI Treasurer

Jochen Schaefer Law Office Dr. Jochen M. Schaefer WFSGI Legal Counsel

Executive Nomination

Klaus Dittrich Messe Munich GmbH/DE

Steve Li Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings Ltd./China

Past president

Ex Officio

John Larsen New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc./USA past President

Robbert de Kock WFSGI Secretary General

Honorary Presidents Stephen Rubin, Honorary President representing Pentland Group

Honorary Members Manfred Wutzlhofer, Honorary Member, past Representative Messe Munich

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

71


WFSGI committees

WFSGI Bicycle Committee Activity Report 2013 The WFSGI Bicycle Committee, established in June 2010 to represent the bicycle industry towards international organizations such as UCI, IOC and ISO/CEN, continued its growth in members and importance in 2013. Next to the collaboration with those important parties, projects in the field of CSR and IPR have been started and advocacy work for the support of physical activity has been done in different meetings with the WHO. The increasing strength of the group is illustrated impressively by the number of in the meantime already 58 bicycle brands being part of the WFSGI. Due to different new projects, the benefit for WFSGI members will further increase and therefore a rising number of memberships is also predicted for the near future. The added value will not only be given by the voice you have during different Committee meetings taking place at the biggest tradeshows such as Eurobike and Taipei Cycle show, but also by individual meetings at the UCI in Aigle (CH) and services like they are in elaboration for CSR and IPR. The enormous effort done by the WFSGI Bicycle Committee on the clarification of the UCI rules came to a first positive intermediate result by this summer when the last 11 of initially 84 open issues could have been clarified. Even though the clarification is already a big success and benefit for the entire bicycle industry, it was not the final step in this topic as the rules are indeed clear now, but don’t yet satisfy all our wishes. The WFSGI Bicycle Committee, initially put in place to improve the relationship between the industry and the UCI, has developed during the last years also other projects which start now to generate a great benefit to its members. The furthest developed one is the WFSGI Bicycle CSR project which took its first practical steps by the end of 2013. The regulation of social responsibility is getting more and more important also for the bicycle industry. Therefore the WFSGI and its biggest bicycle members worked out a

72

Chair Bicycle Steering Committee

Members

Jeroen Snijders Blok COO, Accell Group

Roman Arnold CEO, Canyon Bicycles

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

self-assessment questionnaire to firstly get an impression where the industry stands and where the biggest issues are to be solved. This step will be followed by shared audits to be efficient and cost-effective for all companies involved. Next to CSR the IPR problematic won a lot of awareness during the last couple of years as the losses, created through fake products and fake selling platforms whose numbers are increasing alarmingly, are getting higher and higher. The WFSGI together with Convey, an Italian company specialized in the fight against counterfeit websites, started in September 2013 a project to unite the bicycle industry in their actions towards those pirate platforms. Goal is to unify the bicycle industry and to take joint actions. First results can be expected by spring 2014. Membership of the WFSGI is a “must do” for bicycle and bicycle components companies who are not member yet, as united we are stronger than any individual company can ever be. Besides the power of collaboration, the WFSGI also brings an impressive knowledge based on several relevant issues every member can tap on very easily. Joining is therefore in the interest of all.

Francois-Xavier Blanc Head of Marketing & Communication, Mavic

Dirk Bruynseraede Chief Information Officer, Ridley Bikes


WFSGI committees

Stan Day CEO, SRAM

Pascal Ducrot VP Bike and Winter Sports, Scott

Ignacio Estelles CEO, Rotor Bikes Components

John Koo Vice President & Chief Staff Officer GGG Office Corporate Headquarters, Giant

Scott Nielson Director of ­Engineering, ENVE ­Composites

Tony Lo President, Giant

Robert Margevicius Executive Vice-President, Specialized

Claudio Marra Managing Director, FSA

Bernie Doering Sr. Vice President, Easton Bell Sports

Pierre-Jean Martin CEO, Corima

Morgan Nicol AeroDesign

Takeshi Oi Senior Executive President & Head of Bicycle Components Division, Shimano Inc.

Gervais Rioux President, Argon 18

Martin Schuttert Koga

Rolf Singenberger Head of BMC ­Business Unit

Lorenzo Taxis Group Head of Marketing & Communication, Campagnolo

Armin van Hoogstraten General Manager/Pres­ ident VP ASI Europe, Advanced Sports

Marc van Rooij President, Shimano Europe Holding BV

Ex Officio Robbert de Kock WFSGI Secretary General Jochen Schaefer WFSGI Legal Counsel Martin Walthert Vice President R & D, DT Swiss

Phil White Cofounder, Cervelo

René Wiertz President & CEO, 3T Cycling

Yves Moeri WFSGI Communication and Bicycle Manager

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

73


WFSGI committees

CISO Committee Activity Report 2013 IOC The IOC relations in 2013 were shaped by the debriefing and experiences from the London Olympic Games 2012 and the continued effort to sign a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). After the London 2012 Olympic Games, a number of challenges related to the implementation of Rule 40 and its exceptions were raised by constituents of the Olympic Movement including the WFSGI. The objective is now to ensure an easier practical implementation and better adherence by all parties concerned while protecting the integrity and the spirit of Rule 40. For Sochi 2014, Rule 40 will remain as per previous editions of the Olympic Games. However, WFSGI is looking forward to a new set-up of Rule 40 including a MoU with the IOC until Rio 2016. WFSGI has been invited by the IOC to be part of the review of Rule 40, considering the unique position of the sporting goods industry as personal outfitters of the Olympic athletes and the impact of the Rule on its members.

74

Swimwear group For several years the leading brands of the swimwear industry have united under the WFSGI. In 2013 the group expressed the growing concern around the different requirements from the organizers of international swimming events. By making a comparison of the various branding situations of International and National Federations (FINA, PAN PACS, IOC, IPC, LEN, NCAA and NFHS) it can be easily seen that different branding is required in events organized by different Governing Bodies. These different rules cause for increasing difficulties for federations and athletes. To simplify the process, the WFSGI and its swimwear manufacturers would like to seek a standardisation of the various product identification rules leading to an alignment across the world and to obtain a lean and simple process for all parties involved (athletes, referees, federations and manufacturers) reflecting the FINA rules as the world governing body for swimming.

Regarding Rule 50 WFSGI has a good relation to the IOC and further discussions are taking place with view to Rio 2016 where a comprehensive review of all aspects of Rule 50 is being planned.

The group is fully aware that the project has a long-term approach and will continue to keep this on the agenda. Meanwhile the group worked on improved submission dates with FINA.

At the IOC itself a new presidency has started and the 足WFSGI congratulates Dr. Thomas Bach to the election as IOC President and looks forward to a fruitful collaboration. A meeting between the President of the IOC and the 足WFSGI is envisaged in 2014.

Other relations to international sport federations The WFSGI Pledge for FIFA and other projects continue on a day-to-day basis. We especially thank IRB, UCI, FIS and ITU for their good collaboration.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014


WFSGI committees

Chair

Vice-Chair

Wolfgang Schnellbügel Chairman, SPORT 2000 International

Celia Muir Worldwide Head of Sports Marketing, Sponsorship & PR, Speedo International

Members

Nadia Erni Head of Sports Marketing & Event, Odlo

Franck Horter General Manager for EMEA, TYR

John Larsen President Emeritus, New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. & Director, New Balance UK &  WFSGI past President

Christina Li Public Relations Director, Li-Ning

Craig Masback Director of Business Affairs, Global Sports Marketing, Nike, Inc.

Jean-Pierre Morand Secretary General, SRS Ski Racing Suppliers Association

Marc Pinsard Deputy Senior General Manager Global Sales & Marketing Division, Asics

Reto Rindlisbacher Managing Director Sales & Marketing Nordica, Tecnica Group

Hiroshi Sako European Apparel Business Manager Sports Division, Mizuno

Hamish Stewart SVP International and Apparel, Brooks Sports, Inc.

Rachel St. Peter Senior House Counsel, Under Armour

Christian Voigt Senior Head of Global Sports Marketing & Sports Law, Puma International Division

Ex Officio

Guenter Weigl SVP of Global Sports Marketing & Sport Relations, adidas Group

Robbert de Kock WFSGI Secretary General

Jochen Schaefer WFSGI Legal Counsel

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

75


WFSGI committees

CSR Committee Activity Report 2013 “Life is like a bicycle, to keep your balance you must keep moving.” But it is even of similar importance to mind the road when it becomes bumpier; i.e. new social and environmental trends emerge or become even more visible and tangible. In this spirit the CSR committee acted and continued its collective work in 2013. Changing regulatory frameworks and expectations by stakeholders about the role of business as well as technological innovations are posing many challenges but also opportunities for the sporting goods industry. These are just a few examples of developments which need to be observed carefully and companies need to find responses for to remain successful in the global market place. In 2013, the CSR committee continued in focusing its activities and work on the following key areas: •  observe CSR and sustainability trends, share knowledge and best practice approaches; •  join forces to drive collective initiatives; •  lead and represent the industry. Observe trends, share knowledge and best practice Frequent updates and sharing activities The CSR Committee continued in the regular publication and distribution of the “CSR Heads-up report” outlining important country specific developments in major sourcing countries. Information was also shared with members about other industry alliances addressing specific topics like restricted substances management and products safety as well as management of chemicals in global supply chains. In this context, the committee continued to operate as a CSR directory, i.e directing members to well-established working groups within the industry that can provide profound information and guidance on specific topics. Raising awareness for relevant topics In February 2013 the CSR Committee organized an event during the ISPO to raise attention for key subjects which are seen as of critical relevance for our industry. Under the guiding theme SUSTAINABILITY– NEW CHALLENGES presentations and speeches were held about the following topics: •  Daniel Vaughan Whitehead, ILO Responsible for Wage Policy and Founder and Co-Chair of the Fair Wage Network, provided an overview about the concept of fair wages.

76

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

•  Frank Henke, Global Director Social and Environmental Affairs, adidas Group, shared the company’s experiences in piloting the concept of fair wages. •  Susanna Harkonen from ILO Better Work provided insights in the ILO BETTER WORK PROGRAMME targeting to improve compliance with labor standards and increase competitive advantages in global supply chains. •  Dai Forterre, (formerly) Sustainability Manager Asics Europe, gave a lecture about 21ST CENTURY MANUFACTURING and the respective challenges and opportunities. Join forces to drive collective initiatives Promoting the Fair Factory Clearing House as sharing platform In 2010, the WFSGI signed a membership agreement with the New York-based non-for-profit organization Fair Factories Clearinghouse (FFC). This action was taken to further drive and support collaboration among brands and manufacturers in supply chain monitoring and compliance management. This step supports the industry-wide goal to achieve greater audit harmonization and enhanced sharing platform for all players in the sporting goods industry in order to avoid costly duplication of factory auditing and audit fatigue. The FFC provides software to help companies in collaborating on improving ethical sourcing and conditions in outsourced manufacturing. FFC’s goal is to optimize factory compliance by providing a common platform for collaboration and increased transparency. The CSR Committee and FFC organized a range of webinars and presentations for its members to further explain the details of the tools. In 2013, the WFSGI has further broadened its collaboration with FFC. The WFSGI is currently working on a CSR solution for sporting goods companies starting their activity in this area. For this solution the FFC system will serve as the audit sharing platform. Lead and represent the industry Conference on “Future of Manufacturing” Inspired by the lively discussions and constructive engagements between WFSGI members in early 2013, the CSR Committee together with major footwear manufacturers identified the “Future of Manufacturing” and its implications on business process, people, the environment and


WFSGI committees

Chair

Vice-Chairs

Frank Henke Global Director Social & Environmental Affairs, adidas Group

Zoe Cokeliss CR Communications Manager, Pentland Brands

Christine Madigan Vice President Responsible Leadership, New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc.

Minako Yoshikawa General Manager CSR, Asics

Toshiaki Mizuno Senior Manager, Presidential General Affairs Office, Mizuno

Members

Norman Cook Executive VicePresident, Kamik

Reiner Hengstmann Global Head Environmental & Social Affairs, Puma

Klaus Hohenegger CSR Manager, Skins

Michael Levine Senior Director of Corporate Social Responsibility and Senior Counsel, Under Armour

Abel Navarette Director of Corporate Responsibility, Columbia Sportswear

Rudger Oldenhuis European Corporate Counsel, Shimano

Markus Rist Business Unit Manager Supply Chain Operations, IIC

Erik van der Hout R&D Manager, Accell Group N.V.

Jochen Schaefer, WFSGI Legal Counsel

Marc Magnus, WFSGI Trade and Corporate Responsibility Manager

Caitlin Morris Director of Integration and Collaboration CR Compliance, Nike, Inc.

Ex Officio Robbert de Kock, WFSGI Secretary General

society as an important subject for the WFSGI’s future activity in corporate responsibility. To acquire the necessary insight in this complex subject and to share this expertise with the broader WFSGI constituency as well as to create a rich and valuable discussion, a two

days’ conference was designed and held in Taipei in early December 2013. The WFSGI Manufacturers Committee assisted in the organization and administration. Please read the WFSGI Manufacturers Committee activity report for more details.

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

77


WFSGI committees

Legal (IPR) Committee ACTIVITY REPORT 2013 The Legal (IPR) Committee fully concentrated its activities creating a tool to collectively and efficiently combat intellectual property infringements on the World Wide Web, which include the misuse of IP protected trademarks, domain and company names for dubious business practices of the operators of such websites to generate revenue by pay-per-click models (i.e. an Internet user who is trying to obtain information on a well-known sports brand or intends to buy branded products online is misdirected on these websites “click-per-click” to other third-party websites, which may well offer the sale of counterfeit products or are filled with other illegal content (in particular online platforms such as Taobao, Alibaba or eBay where counterfeit products are offered in large quantities either at B2B level or directly to consumers all over the world). In close cooperation with the Italian specialized service provider, company Convey SRL/Dr. Michele Provera, we staged a series of webinars for the WFSGI members. These clearly demonstrated how serious the whole issue is and which substantial financial damages the brands are suffering by being hijacked by these illicit operators. It also turned out that many of these rogue websites are owned and operated by highly sophisticated organizations belonging to the organized crime. Further, it is also fact and proven by the web screening of Convey that in most cases not only one brand was affected, but that several famous/well-known brands are simultaneously misused. This speaks clearly for a collective brand approach also in terms of cost savings for joint activities. Dr. Provera and Dr. Schaefer gave a presentation to the WFSGI Steering Committee prior to the Eurobike trade fair in Friedrichshafen. The result was

the creation of a specific Internet AntiCounterfeit and Brand Protection project for the WFSGI bicycle industry members at highly preferential and discounted WFSGI member rates. In this context we are closely cooperating with the World Intellectual Property Organization WIPO in Geneva, same as with other IP organizations and institutions (WIPO offers fast-track remedies and alternative dispute resolution procedures in particular in the area of domain name disputes).

Chair

Ex Officio

Dr. Jochen Schaefer WFSGI Legal Counsel

Robbert de Kock WFSGI Secretary General

Hirotaka Miyaji Director General, JASPO – Association of Japan Sporting Goods Industries

Gumercindo Moraes Neto Owner, GMN Marketing Consulting

Members

Frank Dassler General Counsel, adidas Group

78

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Mark Granger Chair Legal Task Force SFIA – Sports & Fitness Industry Association – USA

Edward J. Haddad VP Intellectual Prop­ erty and Licensed Products, New Balance Athletic Shoe Inc.

Kingson Lai Legal Counsel, TSMA – Taiwan Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association


MOVE LIKE YOU’RE MEANT TO.

©2013 Reebok International Limited. All rights reserved. Reebok and OneSeries are registered trademarks of Reebok International Limited.



WFSGI committees

Manufacturers Committee Activity Report 2013 The Manufacturers Committee continued to raise important issues like the sustainable development between manu­facturers and brands. The mechanism of communi­ cation and cooperation between manufacturers and brands needs to be built up and with regards to sustainability ­further trust has to be established. Together with major footwear manufacturers the CSR Committee identified the “Future of Manufacturing” and its implications on business process, people, the environment and society as an important subject for the WFSGI’s future activity in corporate responsibility. The Manufacturers Committee assisted the WFSGI to hold the event in Taiwan on December 2–3, 2013. At the conference high-level academic key note speakers presented their visions for the “Future of Manufacturing”. 200 people attended the event which was hosted by the Chinese National Federations of Industries, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council, the Taiwan Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association and supported by Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, DESMA,

Porsche Consulting, SGI Media, Bike Europe as well as the Sport and Fitness Industry Association. Representatives from other industries, brands, retailers, manufacturers and technology suppliers provided their experiences and hands-on advice to the participants. The conference gave an exciting opportunity to “learn and share”. The event has been seen as a start of a journey with the clear goal to intensify cross-industry engagements in future. In 2014, the Manufacturers Committee aims at more participation of WFSGI members to raise concerns and issues. The Annual Manufacturers Forum 2014 will be held again in Taiwan during an international sporting goods show, TAISPO 2014. More details will follow on www.wfsgi.org.

Chair

Vice-Chair

Members

George Wood Chairman, TBS Group & Honorary President TSMA – Taiwan Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association

Hirotaka Miyaji Director General, JASPO – Association of Japan Sporting Goods Industries

Nouman Butt Owner Muta Ind./ Capital Sports & SCCI The Sialkot Chamber of Commerce & Industry

Advisor

Johannes Rathmer Managing Director, Brands & More GmbH

Tom Cove President & CEO, SFIA – Sports & Fitness Industry Association – USA

Ex Officio Robbert de Kock, WFSGI Secretary General

Jochen Schaefer, WFSGI Legal Counsel

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

81


WFSGI committees

Physical Activity Committee ACTIVITY REPORT 2013 At ISPO Munich 2013, WFSGI has officially installed a Committee dedicated to promoting physical activity, sport and health. Since many years the WFSGI has driven advocacy efforts, but against the background of international developments now was the time for concerted action. A summary of WFSGI activities, all submission and position papers, member initiatives and valuable resources including video library are available on www.wfsgi.org. The role of the WFSGI is to actively support the promotion of physical activity on a global level and one of the first tasks of the Committee was to establish a policy statement: Vision A global healthy society in which people can be physically active and/or do sport without barriers or constraints. Mission Promote physical activity and sport as a sustainable solution for a healthier society. Role and tasks •  Advocate and support global, regional, and national level efforts to promote physical activity, sport and recreation; •  support UN Agencies to advocate and support global, regional, and national level efforts to promote physical activity, sport and recreation; •  support WHO to advocate and support global, regional, and national level efforts to promote physical activity, sport and recreation; •  assist countries implement physical activity and sport campaigns, programs, etc; •  advocate for and support countries to meet the global physical activity targets; •  support countries to measure physical activity. The WFSGI is the WHO contact for the sport industry and resumes the following tasks: •  participate in the NCD advisory group of the private sector; •  participate in UN/WHO organized meetings (New York, Geneva etc.); •  disseminate WHO information to the industry; •  provide industry position papers to the WHO on PA; •  relation to the WHO member states permanent missions.

82

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Since its creation the Committee has gained traction and achieved some notable results. At the 66th Session of the World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva, Member States unanimously adopted and supported an omnibus resolution on NCDs entitled “Follow-up to the Political Declaration of the High-level Meeting of the General Assembly on the Prevention and Control of noncommunicable Diseases”. The resolution includes an agreement to a Global Action Plan (GAP) for the prevention and control of NCDs 2013–2020 to adopt the global monitoring framework on NCDs, including the 9 global targets and 25 indicators and an agreement to develop a global coordination mechanism. It is now the role of the national governments to translate this political commitment into action. This is a great achievement for global promotion of PA and the culmination of long consultations the WFSGI has also contributed to as the GAP includes strategies for increasing population levels of physical activity and the global target to reduce physical inactivity by 10 per cent. Physical activity is a huge part of the NCD solution! As part of the advocacy WFSGI participated at conferences and organized events to bring physical activity on the agenda, foster exchange and share best practice and experiences: •  Plenary session at the World Sports Forum by WFSGI “Physical inactivity – The role and consequences for our industry”, ISPO Munich, Germany. •  Presentation at Manufacturers Forum in Taiwan and at TaiSPO trade show at the Bicycle Committee Meeting at Taipei International Cycle Show. •  WFSGI Physical Activity Round Table in Tokyo, Japan, with WFSGI Members and the Japan Sporting Goods Industry. •  World Conference of Sport Ministers, MINEPS V, Berlin, Germany. •  8th Global Health Conference in Helsinki, Finland, cohosted by WHO. •  MOVE Congress 2013 in Barcelona, Spain. •  WHO High Level Regional Forum on a Life Course Approach to Promoting Physical Activity, Dubai, UAE.


WFSGI committees

Chair

Members

Lisa MacCallum Vice President Access to Sport, Nike Inc.

Mandy Ayres Sustainable Manager, Nike Inc.

Tom Cove President & CEO, SFIA – Sports & Fitness Industry Association, USA

Pat Cunnane President/CEO, Advanced Sport

Frank Dassler General Counsel, adidas Group

Justin Dekoszmovszky PUMAVision Global Strategy, PUMA

Tobias Gröber Head of ISPO Group/ Executive Director of Business Unit Consumer Goods, ISPO

Martin Künzi CFO, Intersport International Corp.

Christine Madigan Vice President Responsible Leadership, New Balance

Toshiaki Mizuno Senior Manager, Presidential General Affairs Office, Mizuno

Randy Neufeld SRAM Cycling Fund Director

Rudger Oldenhuis European Corporate Counsel, Shimano

Mr. Marc Pinsard Deputy Senior Gen­ eral Manager Global Sales & Marketing Division, Asics

Cynthia Raposo VP Legal, Under Armour

David Robinson President, Speedo Int. Ltd.

Wolfgang Schnellbügel Chairman, SPORT 2000 International

Lars Wiskum CEO, Sportventure

Robbert de Kock WFSGI Secretary General

Stefanie Burkert WFSGI Project Manager

Ex Officio

Alberto Zanatta President, Tecnica Group

Dr. Jochen Schaefer WFSGI Legal Counsel

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

83


WFSGI Committees

TRADE COMMITTEE ACTIVITY REPORT 2013 In 2013, the WFSGI Trade Committee has worked in close collaboration to encourage the exchange of views and promote advocacy efforts on global trade and customs issues that affect the sporting goods industry. Via the committee, the sporting goods companies have shared their expertise and best practices to tackle most successfully their common challenges by a joint approach in different areas: A cooperative relationship with China on trade topics WFSGI Apparel Trade Meetings, June 2013, Shanghai (China) In June 2013, several concerted actions have been taken under the umbrella of the ­WFSGI to find an optimum solution regarding the Mexican subsidies trade measures against Chinese textile imports: •  An Apparel Trade Meeting was organized on June 11, 2013, in Shanghai with Chinese suppliers and some participating brands in order to address the situation. Trade Committee members addressed the group on the legal basis for the trade measures. The use of a questionnaire has been proposed to evaluate whether suppliers are subject to subsidies and to provide them an overview of questions and type of information generally solicited in an anti-subsidy investigation by the European Union. •  The WFSGI also engaged in further discussions with the the Ministry of Commerce People’s Republic of China (MOFCOM) on June 13, 2013. Close monitoring of current trade issues WFSGI Trade Meeting, September 19, 2013, Tokyo (Japan) Besides the Mexico apparel case, the W ­ FSGI Trade Committee also closely monitored further trade developments. The different

84

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Brazilian trade cases affecting footwear, textile, apparel and also the new Brazilian anti-dumping law and non-tariff barriers still remained on the agenda of 2013. MOVE and the Sporting Goods brands worked actively, in partnership with other 5 national associations, to defend and represent the sporting goods industry’s interests. Also the WFSGI Trade Committee regularly provided updates on trade liberalization. Amongst others, the Committee attached value to the TransPacific Partnership negotiations and the Transatlantic Trade and investment Partnership negotiations. Different FTAs being negotiated by the European Union were taken into serious consideration as well, in particular, the negotiations with Vietnam, Indonesia and India were followed. Moreover the WFSGI took the opportunity to give the floor at its meeting in Tokyo to the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the President of Yano Research Institute, a leading market intelligence provider in Japan. By doing so a specific focus on Japan’s position towards FTAs could be provided to the participants. The WFSGI Trade Committee as a platform for regular discussions The WFSGI Trade Committee has organized several meetings in 2013. Beside the regular meeting at the ISPO, meetings took place in Shanghai, China in June 2013 and in September 2013 in Tokyo, Japan. Those gatherings gave the opportunity to provide participants with an update on trade barriers as well as on trade liberalization affecting the sporting goods industry. Between the face-to-face meetings, the Trade Committee also has frequent conference calls to address current issues.

Chair

Vice-Chairs

Jeff Whalen Senior Counsel, Customs and International Trade, Legal Department, Nike, Inc.

Peter Bragdon VP & General Counsel, Columbia Sportswear Company

Karl Sedlmeyer VP Global Government Affairs, adidas Group


WFSGI Committees

Members

Alberto Bichi Secretary General, FESI – Fédération Européenne du Sport et de l’Industrie

Tom Cove President & CEO, SFIA – Sports & Fitness Industry Association – USA

Frank Dassler General Counsel, adidas Group

Wilfried Hauenstein Director Global Logistic Distribution, Puma

Ma Jilong Vice-President, CSGF – China Sporting Goods Federation

Hideaki Kitahara Director Corporate Strategy, Asics

John Larsen President Emeritus, New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. & Director New Balance UK & WFSGI Past President

Michael Levine Senior Director of Corporate Social Responsibility and Senior Counsel, Under Armour

Hirotaka Miyaji Director General, JASPO – Association of Japan Sporting Goods Industries

Toshiaki Mizuno Senior Manager, Presidential General Affairs Office, Mizuno

Gumercindo Moraes Neto Owner, GMN Marketing Consulting

Andy Long COO, Pentland Brands

Steve Li Executive Director, Yue Yuen

Jonathan O’Riordan Expert Governmental Affairs, Puma

Patrisia Reyes de Gottschall Head of Legal and Government Relations, adidas Group

Hamish Stewart SVP International and Apparel, Brooks Sports, Inc.

Leonid Strakhov Vice-President, RASIE – Russian Association of Sports Industry Enterprises

Jeff Tooze Director Global Customs & Trade, Columbia Sportswear Company

Edwin Vermulst WFSGI Trade Counsel

Marc Magnus WFSGI Trade and Corporate Responsibility Manager

Ex Officio

George Wood Chairman, TBS Group & Honorary Pres­ ident TSMA, Taiwan Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association

Charles Yang Executive General Manager, Apache Footwear

Robbert de Kock WFSGI Secretary General

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

85


WFSGI Members Directory

FULL MEMBERS – INDUSTRY SUPPLIERS 3T Cycling Srl www.3tcycling.com Accell Group www.accell-group.com Accell Bisiklet (see Accell Group) www.bianchi.com.tr

Batavus (see Accell Group) www.batavus.com Berghaus (see Pentland) www.berghaus.com

adidas AG www.adidas-group.com

Bike Parts (see Accell Group) www.bike-parts.de

Advanced Sports Inc. www.advancedsports.com

Bladerunner (see Tecnica) www.rollerblade.com

AeroDesign morgan.t.nicol@gmail.com

Blizzard Sport (see Tecnica) www.blizzard-ski.com

Akay International anilsharma@akayindia.com

BMC Switzerland AG www.bmc-racing.com

Alberta Sports (PVT) Ltd. www.alberta-sports.com

Bosco Sport Srl. www.boscociliegi.it

Ali Trading Co., (Pvt.) Ltd. www.alitradingco.com

Boxfresh (see Pentland) www.boxfresh.com

Anta Sports Products Limited www.anta.com.cn

Brasher (see Pentland) www.brasher.co.uk

ApacheFootwear Ltd. ivan-lee@apachefootwear.com

Brasseur (see Accell Group) www.brasseur-bicycles.com

Aravon (see New Balance)

Breezer (see Advanced Sports) www.breezerbikes.com

Arena Italia SpA www.arenainternational.com Argon 18 www.argon18bike.com Ashworth (see adidas) www.taylormadegolf.eu/­ ashowrth

86

Awan Sports Industries (Pvt) Ltd. www.awansports.com

Bremshey (see Accell Group) www.bremshey.com Brine (see New Balance) www.brine.com

Campagnolo SA www.campagnolo.com

Cosco (India) Ltd. www.cosco.in

Canterbury (see Pentland) www.canterbury.com

Currie Technologies (see Accell Group) www.currietech.com

Canyon Bicycles GmbH www.canyon.com Capital Sports Corp. (Pvt.) Ltd. www.capital-sports.net Cervelo Cycles www.cervelo.com ChangShin (DS Korea) www.dskorea.com/eng Chi Hung Co. Ltd. www.chihung.com.cn/en Chingluh Shoes Co Ltd www.chingluh.com Chung Ah Athletic Wares Fty. www.chungah.com Cicli Pinarelllo Spa www.pinarello.com Cole Haan (see Nike) www.colehaan.com Colnago Ernesto E.C. Srl. www.colnago.com Columbia Sportswear www.columbia.com Comet Sports (Pvt.) Ltd. www.cometgroup.com.pk

Brooks Sports Inc. www.brooksrunning.com

Continental Chemical Industries Co., Ltd. www.contisports.com.tw

Asics Corp. www.asics.com

Brunotti Europe BV www.brunotti.com

Converse (see Nike) www.converse.com

Atala SpA (see Accell Group) www.atala.it

Budget Sport (see Intersport)

Corima www.corima.com

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Cycles France Loire (see Accell Group) Cycling Sports Group (Cannondale, see Dorel Industries) www.cannondale.com Dayton Industrial Company Ltd. candyliu@dayton.com.hk DCG Wheels LLC (DBA Mad Fiber) www.madfiber.com Dean Shoes Company Ltd. nikihuang@mail.deanshoes.com Descente Ltd. www.descente.com Diamondback (see Accell Group) www.diamondback.com Dolomite (see Tecnica) www.dolomite.it Dong Luc Joint-Stock Company www.dongluc.vn DT Swiss AG www.dtswiss.com Dunham (see New Balance) Dynatour (see Intersport) Easton-Bell Sports www.eastonbellsports.com Ellesse (see Pentland) www.ellesse.com


WFSGI Members Directory

Emirates Sports Stores www.falaknazgroup.com

F.C. Sondhi & Co. (Pvt.), Ltd. www.fcssport.com

FSA (Fullspeadahead) www.fullspeedahead.com

Head Sport GmbH www.head.com

Energetics (see Intersport) www.energetics.eu

Firefly (see Intersport) www.flrefly.eu

Fuji (see Advanced Sports) www.fujibikes.com

Hercules (see Accell Group) www.hercules-bikes.de

Enkay (India) Rubber Co., (Pvt.) Ltd. www.enkayrubber.com

Five Ten Footwear (see adidas) www.fiveten.com

Fulgent Sun International (Holding) Co. Ltd. www.fulgentsun.com

Hunat Kft. www.winart.hu

Enve Composites www.enve.com Esprime Ltd. www.ssife.com etirel (see Intersport) www.etirel.de Etonic (see Lotto Sport) www.etonic.com Evervan International Limited. Lucas.Huang@evervan.com.cn

Fortunate International Corp. www.fortunesports.com Forward Sports (Pvt.) Ltd. www.sports.forward.pk Franco Sarto (see Pentland) www.francosarto.com Freesport Corp. www.freesport.com Freewill Sports Pvt. Ltd www.niviasports.com

Ghost (see Accell Group) www.ghost-bikes.com

Hunter (see Pentland) www.hunter-boot.com

Giant Manufacturing Co, Ltd www.giant-bicycles.com

Hurley International LLC (see Nike) www.hurley.com

Gravity (see FSA) www.ridegravity.com

HWA Seung www.hwaseunggroup.com

GT Bicycles (see Dorel Industries) www.gtbicycles.com

I&I Srl (Agla) www.agla.it

Haglรถfs (see asics) www.haglofs.com

Iconix Brand Group www.iconixbrand.com

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

87


WFSGI Members Directory

IIC-Intersport International Corp. www.intersport.com InSTEP (see Dorel Industries) International Brand Partners LLC kdatta@ibpl.us Iron Horse Bicycles (see Dorel Industries) www.ironhorsebikes.com ISM Saddles / Tampa Bay Recreation, LLC www.ismseat.com Jordan (see Nike) www.nike.com/jumpman Juncker (see Accell Group) www.juncker.nl Kamik-Genfoot Marketing Europe GmbH www.kamik.com

Mitre (see Pentland) www.mitresports.com

Odlo International AG www.odlo.com

Leatherware (Pvt.) Ltd. www.leatherware.com.pk

Mizuno Corp. www.mizuno.com

Orbea S. Coop www.orbea.com

Li Ning Sporting Goods Co., Ltd. www.li-ning.com

Molten Corp. www.molten.co.jp

Likai Shoes Manufacturing Co. Ltd. carson.guo@shuntien.com.cn

Mongoose (see Dorel Industries) www.mongoose.com

Oval Concepts (see Advanced Sports) www.ovalconcepts.com

LK International AG – Kjus www.kjus.com

Montrail (see Columbia) www.montrail.com

Penn (see Head) www.pennracquet.com

Loekie (see Accell Group) www.loekie.nl

Moon Boot (see Tecnica) www.moonboot.it

Pentland Brands plc www.pentland.com

Lotto Sport Italia SpA www.lottosport.com

Mountain Hardwear (see Columbia) www.mountainhardwear.com

Petra Sports www.petrasports.com.pk

Lowa (see Tecnica) www.lowa.it Madrigal Sports (Pvt.) Ltd. www.madrigalsports.com

KangaROOS (see Pentland) www.kangaroos.com

Mares (see Head) www.mares.com

Kapur (Pvt.) Ltd. www.kapur.com.pk

Marker Völkl (International) GmbH www.voelkl.com

Kestrel (see Advanced Sports) www.kestrelbicycles.com KÉZMŰ Nonprofit Kft. www.kezmu.hu Kickers UK (see Pentland) www.kickers.co.uk Koga (see Accell Group) www.koga.com Lacoste Chaussures (see Pentland) www.lacoste.com Lapierre (see Accell Group) www.cycles-lapierre.fr Laser Sports (Pvt.) Ltd. laser@lasersports.com.pk

88

Le DD (see Lotto Sport) www.le-dd.com

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

Mavic SAS www.mavic.fr Mayor & Company www.mayorworld.com Mayor International Limited www.mayorworld.com McKinley (see Intersport) www.mckinley.eu MEC – Mountain Equipment Co-op www.mec.ca Metropolis (see FSA) www.metropolisbikes.com Mikasa www.mikasasports.co.jp/e/

Multisport Ind. Com. Repres. Ltda rhacker@speedo.com.br Nationman Thailand Co. Ltd www.nationmanthai.com New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. www.newbalance.com

Pacific Trail (see Columbia) www.pacifictrail.com

PF Flyers (see New Balance) www.pfflyers.com Phenix Co., Ltd. www.phenix.co.jp Pou Chen Corporation www.pouchen.com Poyang International Co., Ltd www.poyang-intl.com.tw

Nike Golf (see Nike) www.nike.com/golf

Pro Touch (see Intersport) www.protouch.de

Nike, Inc www.nike.com

ProStar (see Pentland) www.prostar.co.uk

Nippon Takkyu Co., Ltd. www.nittaku.com

PUMA SE www.puma.com

Nishi Athletic Goods Co.,Ltd. (see asics) www.nishi.com

Raleigh America Inc. (see Accell Group) www.raleighusa.com

Nitro (see Tecnica) www.nitrousa.com

Raleigh Canada (see Accell Group) www.raleigh-canada.ca

Nordica (see Tecnica) www.nordica.com Oakley, Inc. www.oakley.com

Raleigh UK Litmited (see Accell Group) www.raleigh.co.uk


WFSGI Members Directory

Ranson Sports Industry www.ranson.in

SE Bikes (see Advanced Sports) www.sebikes.com

Tae Kwang Industrial Co., Ltd. www.tkgroup.co.kr

Uhlsport GmbH www.uhlsport.de

Red or Dead (see Pentland) www.redordead.co.uk

Seattle Bike Supply (see Accell Group) www.seattlebikesupply.com

Taiwan Butyl Co., Ltd. www.taiwanbutyl.com

Umbro International Ltd. (see Iconix Brand Group) www.umbro.com

Reebok (see adidas) www.reebok.com Reema Group www.reemagroup.com Reynolds Cycling LLC www.reynoldscycling.com Ridley Bikes – Race Productions NV www.ridley-bikes.com Ritchey Design Inc. www.ritcheylogic.com Roadmaster (see Dorel Industries) Rockport (see adidas) www.rocksport.com Rollerblade (see Tecnica) www.rollerblade.com

Sharma Exports sanjay@provin.com Shimano Inc. www.shimano.com Silver Star Enterprises (Pvt.), Ltd. www.s-stargroup.com Skins International Trading AG www.skins.net Soccer (India) International Ltd. www.soccerindia.com

Tajmahal Sports www.tajmahalpk.com Talon Sports (Pvt.) Ltd. www.talonsports.com Tamasu (Butterfly) Co., Ltd. www.butterfly-world.com TaylorMade (see adidas) www.taylormadegolf.com TBS Group Corp. www.tbsgroup.com.tw Tecnica SpA www.tecnicagroupcom

Sorel (see Columbia) www.sorel.com

TECNOpro (see Intersport) www.tecnopro.eu

Sparta (see Accell Group) www.sparta.nl

Ted Baker Footwear (see Pentland) www.tedbaker.com

Rotor Bike Components www.rotorbike.com

Specialized Bicycle Components, Inc. www.specialized.com

Sakay Traders www.sakayindia.com

Speedo (see Pentland) www.speedo.com

Toa-Strings Co., Ltd. www.toalson.co.jp

San-Ei Corp. www.sanei-net.co.jp

Sport 2000 International GmbH www.sport2000international.com

Topper www.apargatas.com.br

Sanspareils Greenlands (Pvt.) Ltd. www.sgcricket.com

Sportica Group www.sportica-group.com

Tramondi Sport AG www.tramondi.com

SRAM Corporation www.sram.com

T-Shoes (see Tecnica) www.t-shoes.it

Staiger (see Accell Group) www.staiger-fahrrad.de

Tunturi (see Accell Group) www.tunturi.com

Schwinn (see Dorel Industries) www.schwinn.com

Starpak Martial Arts (Pvt) Limited www.starpak.com.pk

Tyr International www.tyr.com

Scott Sports SA www.scott-sports.com

Sugoi (see Dorel Industries) www.sugoi.com

Saucony, Inc. www.saucony.com Schwalbe – Ralf Bohle GmbH www.schwalbe.com

Terry (see Advanced Sports) www.terrybicycles.com

Tyrolia (see Head) www.tyrolia.com

Under Armour, Inc. www.underarmour.com Uvex Sports www.uvex.de Van Nicholas (see Accell Group) www.vannicholas.com Vartex (see Accell Group) www.vartex.se Vision (see FSA) www.visiontechusa.com Vision Technologies Corporation www.vision.com.pk Vittoria S.p.A. www.vittoria.it Vivasports Co., Ltd. www.vivasports.co.kr Warrior Sports (see New Balance) www.sports.warrior.com Winora (see Accell Group) www.winora.de Wintex Exports www.wintexexports.com Yamamoto Kogaku Co., Ltd. www.yamamoto-kogaku.co.jp Yonex Co., Ltd. www.yonex.com Yuan Chi Overseas Ltd. www.yuanchi.com.tw Yue Yuen Industrial (Holdings) Ltd. www.yueyuen.com

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

89


WFSGI Members Directory

FULL MEMBERS – INDUSTRY SUPPORTERS Anwaltskanzlei Dassler www.dassler.info

Klaus Uhl Uhl.Klaus@t-online.de

MP – Consult michel.perraudin@mp-consult.ch

brands & more gmbh www.brandsandmore.com

Law Office Dr. Jochen M. Schaefer www.sjlegalonline.com

Navispace AG www.navispace.de

GMN Marketing Consulting www.rg3consulting.com.br Granger Legal Consulting www.mgrangerlaw.com

Messe Friedrichshafen www.messe-friedrichshafen.de Messe München GmbH www.messe-muenchen.de

SportVenture www.sportventure.eu Thürl PR www.sportpress.de

FULL MEMBERS – NATIONAL OR REGIONAL ORGANIZATIONS Associação Brasileira do Mercado Esportivo – ABRAMESP SEE MOVE (only Move in MD)

SCCI – The Sialkot Chamber of Commerce www.scci.com.pk

CSGF – China Sporting Goods Federation www.chinaexhibition.com

SFIA – Sports & Fitness Industry Association www.sfia.org

JASPO – Association of Japan Sporting Goods Industries www.jaspo.org

SGEPC – Sports Goods Export Promotion Co. www.sportsgoodsindia.org

MOVE www.move.org.br

SRS – Ski Racing Suppliers Association jpmorand@carrard-associes.ch

RAPSI – Russian Association of Sports Ind. Enterprises www.rapsi.ru

ASSOCIATE MEMBERS FIFA – Fédération Internationale de Football Association www.fifa.com

90

WFSGI MAGAZINE 2014

KSPO – Korea Sports Promotion Foundation www.kspo.or.kr

TSMA – Taiwan Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association www.sports.org.tw ASGA – Australian Sporting Goods Association www.asga.com.au FESI – Fédération Européenne du Sport et de l’Industrie www.fesi-sport.org Taiwan Textile Federation www.textiles.org.tw




Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.