Halting their run since the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, demand for sportswear from running shoes to joggers and yoga mats from leading firms such as Nike, Adidas, Puma, Skechers and Asics has slowed down.

In FY24, sales by sportswear firms increased by 1-25 per cent Y-o-Y as against 35 per cent -85 per cent increase for the previous financial year, according to the latest regulatory filings.

Demand for fitness wear and sports equipment for disciplines other than cricket increased with the priortising of health by consumers with the onset of COVID-1.

Companies across the country capitalised on the rising popularity of casual styles in the wake of the pandemic. Demand for premium categories including sportswear, especially in cities, declined.

The segment faces short-term consumption stress although future outlook over long term remains bright, says Devangshu Dutta, Founder, Third Eyesight, a retail consulting firm. Over the last few years, footwear companies such as Under Armor, Asics, Skechers have expanded aggressively across India, making it amongst the fastest growing and largest markets for footwear companies.

With mid-to-high growth rates, Puma India has outpaced market growth even as subdued demand has lagged expectations, says Karthik Balagopalan, Managing Director

In October, Foot Locker entered into a long-term licensing agreement with Metro Brands to foray into the India market. According to this agreement, Metro Brands will own and operate Foot Locker’s stores in India while Nykaa Fashion will be its exclusive e-commerce partner.

However, the government ‘s decision to make BIS certification mandatory for footwear companies to obtain BIS certification in August’24 impacted sales even last year as BIS had not issued licences to several foreign brands whose products were manufactured outside India, which in turn, forced brands to cut down on supplies.

The regulatory changes caused certain anomalies in the earnings call of American footwear firm Skechers this year. The brand continues to work closely with both its team in India and regulators to further advance its local sourcing strategy. The brand is seeing positive trends and remains optimistic about the progress in this important market, says David Weinberg, COO, Skechers.