How To Attract New Sports Nutrition Consumers: using mainstream health trends to pitch professional-style products

Total consumer spending on sports nutrition foods, beverages and supplements reached US$5.4 billion in 2005 and is rising at an average 5.8% a year. Sports-related food and drinks are longer niche products that only target professional athletes and bodybuilders they are increasingly popular among mainstream consumers seeking to improve their physical and mental health.

Report Highlights


The most important category to consumers in Europe and the US alike is sports food and beverages, which account for US$4.5 billion of the total market. This is also the fastest growing category, with average annual growth running at 6.4% between 2000 and 2005 in Europe and 6.7% over the same time period in the US.

Although the core users of sports nutrition products are Athletes and Bodybuilders, Recreational and Lifestyle users are driving market growth. Recreational users of Sports Nutrition products are fitness enthusiasts, weekend sportspeople and gym-goers, while Lifestyle users just seek a refreshing beverage, a quick meal replacement or healthy snack.

Manufacturers of sports nutrition products need to make customers better aware that these products can offer a healthy alternative to confectionery and carbonated drinks, and increase the feeling of wellbeing. Seniors, in particular, need to be made better aware of the ways in which sports nutrition products can contribute to their health.
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DATAMONITOR VIEW
CATALYST
SUMMARY
METHODOLOGY
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Datamonitor View 1
CATALYST 1
SUMMARY 1
METHODOLOGY 1
TABLE OF CONTENTS 2
Analysis 5
TREND: consumers increasingly demand healthy and convenient lifestyle solutions 5
TREND: people are buying more sports nutrition products than ever before 8
INSIGHT: sports nutrition consumers can be divided into four groups 11
INSIGHT: the sports nutrition consumer base is widening 13
INSIGHT: there are strong inter-country variations in attitudes to sports nutrition 16
INSIGHT: sports nutrition products can help people overcome the attitude/behavior gap 20
INSIGHT: consumers will require demonstrable benefits to switch to sports nutrition 22
ACTIONS 25
Target Recreational and Lifestyle consumers for new growth opportunities 25
Avoid alienating Athletes as products become mainstream 27
Exploit underdeveloped areas across the sports nutrition spectrum 28
Make sports nutrition products more widely available and better known 29
Align products with wellness trends 30
APPENDIX 33
Additional data 33
Definitions 43
Extended methodology 44
Ask the analyst 44
ANALYSIS
TREND: consumers increasingly demand healthy and convenient lifestyle solutions
Consumers are increasingly aware of the importance of healthy lifestyles
Consumers feel more stressed and time-pressured than ever before
There is a gap between consumers' attitudes and behaviors concerning health
TREND: people are buying more sports nutrition products than ever before
Consumer spending on sports nutrition is growing fast across all countries considered
Growth in sports foods and beverages (SFBs) far outstrips overall food and drinks spending growth
Sports nutritional supplements (SNS) are not outpacing general supplements growth
INSIGHT: sports nutrition consumers can be divided into four groups
Bodybuilders and Athletes are the historical core audience
Recreational sportspeople have been the most important growth market
The biggest new opportunity is among Lifestyle consumers
INSIGHT: the sports nutrition consumer base is widening
Traditional sports nutrition consumers tend to be young males
Recreational sport is becoming a more prevalent behavior across all levels of society
Younger consumers are the major Recreational users
Women are increasingly taking up sports and exercise
Men also see the appearance benefits of exercise
Older consumers are increasingly using sports nutrition products to counter the effects of aging
Consumers can fit into more than one group
INSIGHT: there are strong inter-country variations in attitudes to sports nutrition
French consumers are focused on low cost, but penetration is rising
German consumers are strongly benefit-driven
High prices deter consumers in Italy
Appearance drives uptake in Spain
The UK consumer base is widening
US consumers seek maximum return on time invested
INSIGHT: sports nutrition products can help people overcome the attitude/behavior gap
Healthy convenience is a crucial unmet need for consumers
Sports nutrition products provide a convenient package for health
Taste concerns deter many consumers from widespread sports nutrition consumption
INSIGHT: consumers will require demonstrable benefits to switch to sports nutrition
Consumers do not trust food and drink manufacturers' health or nutritional claims
Credible scientific evidence and endorsement can help build consumer trust
People prefer products that provide obvious short-term boosts to longer-term lifestyle changes
ACTIONS
Target Recreational and Lifestyle consumers for new growth opportunities
Use convenience to gain leverage with Recreational users
Target Lifestyle consumers with multifunctional food and beverages
Avoid alienating Athletes as products become mainstream
Provide functionality and flavor in combination
Develop separate brands to target serious sportspeople
Exploit underdeveloped areas across the sports nutrition spectrum
Focus SFB development on sports bars and gels
Provide more practical ready-to-consume SNS products
Make sports nutrition products more widely available and better known
Increase supermarket distribution of SNS products
Engage in mainstream advertising
Align products with wellness trends
Use natural and added-nutrition claims to draw in wellness consumers
Target sports food and beverages at specific age groups' wellness needs
Highlight products' illness avoiding and recovery effects to Seniors
Produce child-friendly products that address parents' health concerns
APPENDIX
Additional data
France
Germany
Italy
Netherlands
Spain
Sweden
UK
Rest of Europe
Europe overall
US
Definitions
Extended methodology
Ask the analyst
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Table 1: European and US snack and drink treating occasions occurring in response to stress, 2003-2008
Table 2: Consumer spending on sports nutrition products, US and Europe (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 3: Consumer spending on sports nutrition products in Europe (US$ m), by country 2000-2010
Table 4: Sports food and beverages as % of total food and soft drinks spending (% value), by country 2000-2010
Table 5: Sports nutritional supplements as % of total supplements spending (% value), by country 2000-2010
Table 6: Gym members as a proportion of total population, US and Europe (% population), 2000-2010
Table 7: Consumer spending on sports food & beverages in France (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 8: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in France (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 9: Consumer spending on sports food & beverages in Germany (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 10: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in Germany (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 11: Consumer spending on sports food & beverages in Italy (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 12: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in Italy (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 13: Consumer spending on sports food & beverages in the Netherlands (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 14: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in the Netherlands (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 15: Consumer spending on sports food & beverages in Spain (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 16: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in Spain (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 17: Consumer spending on sports food & beverages in Sweden (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 18: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in Sweden (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 19: Consumer spending on sports food & beverages in the UK (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 20: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in the UK (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 21: Consumer spending on sports food & beverages in the rest of Europe (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 22: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in the rest of Europe (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 23: Consumer spending on sports food and beverages in Europe (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 24: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in Europe (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 25: Consumer spending on sports food and beverages in the US (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 26: Consumer spending on sports nutritional supplements in the US (US$ m), by category, 2000-2010
Table 27: Category definitions


Figure 1: Wellness affects all aspects of consumer life
Figure 2: Consumers show a 26 percentage point attitude/behavior gap concerning physical health
Figure 3: Sports nutrition users can be divided into four types
Figure 4: Different sports nutrition consumer groups have different core needs
Figure 5: Consumers can fit into more than one sports nutrition consumer group at a time
Figure 6: Most health-on-the-go applications are directly related to sports food and beverages
Figure 7: Consumers' ultimate healthy-eating need is convenient, guilt-free indulgence
Figure 8: Consumers generally do not trust health-boosting claims
Figure 9: Consumers are concerned primarily with short-term needs
Figure 10: Established brands can benefit from more hardcore line extensions
Figure 11: The gel/drink crossover may present opportunities
Figure 12: Technology developments are blurring the beverage/supplement boundary
Figure 13: Tie-ins with famous sporting brands can bolster credibility
Figure 14: Adopting a natural positioning can boost products' wellness credentials
Figure 15: Products aimed at children's sports nutrition needs can be successful
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