28 Apr Brooks Takes Top Spot In Performance Running Market
Brooks Running said that in the first quarter, it took the top spot in the U.S. national performance footwear market for the first time, with 22 percent dollar share across all U.S. channels—athletic specialty and sporting goods, mid-tier, premium, and shoe chain.
The figures are based on The NPD Group’s POS data for the twelve months through March 2022. The data shows the Brooks Ghost and the Brooks Adrenaline GTS were the company’s top two selling shoes at U.S. retail, collectively accounting for 14 percent of the dollar share across all channels.
Brooks also said that after ending 2021 with over $1.11 billion in global revenue, Brooks Running projected double-digit year-over-year growth in 2022.
“While Vietnam factory closures last year caused us to fall short of fulfilling strong market demand for Brooks in Q1, we remain bullish for substantial growth in 2022,” said Brooks’ CEO Jim Weber. “Brooks’ performance products continued to lead with runners, and the best is yet to come as our new Glycerin styles come to market featuring DNA Loft v3, a nitrogen-infused midsole compound that delivers an incredibly compelling running experience.”
Brooks said its success continues to be driven by its long-term focus on product innovation, execution excellence and increasing runner demand. According to the 2022 SFIA Manufacturers Sales Report, total U.S. running industry growth, including equipment, apparel and footwear, grew 15.8 percent in 2021. With this backdrop of increasing demand, Brooks said it would continue using runner insight to inform innovation.
Brooks recently introduced a refreshed Dare Run Bra collection, using runner insight. In partnership with the Research Group in Breast Health at the University of Portsmouth, Brooks performs biomechanical testing on a wide range of sizes, using lab and consumer research to engineer a range of support options and sizes for runners.
This July, Brooks will introduce the Glycerin 20, Glycerin GTS 20 and Caldera 6, bringing a Brooks BlueLine Lab midsole innovation, DNA Loft v3, into in-line footwear styles.
Josh Kerr debuted a prototype of the Brooks Wire 8 spike shoe with Scottish, British and European indoor records with his 3:48.87-mile time at the Boston University Last Chance Meet in February. Brooks athletes played an integral role in providing feedback to the Brooks BlueLine Lab team through multiple rounds of prototyping the Wire 8, scheduled to launch in summer 2022 ahead of the World Athletics Championships.