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Sports
Sneakernomics: Predictions for Sports Retail in 2019
Matt Powell expects a rocky year for the sports industry in 2019, as macro issues will likely weigh heavily on the industry. In these challenging times, what can retailers and brands do to stand out? Powell outlines his expectations and what opportunities should be seized to thrive.
B2B Technology
Thank you, Maslow! CES Takeaways
NPD B2B tech industry analyst, Michael Diamond, takes a look at some of the technologies from CES 2019 that will impact the B2B tech market.
Video Games
Spider-Man’s Resurging Brand Power across Entertainment Industries
The Spider-Man license in the U.S. has an incredible impact across multiple industries, including media entertainment, video games, books, and toys.
Putting a Fresh Perspective on “More of the Same”
The core consumer needs haven’t changed, but we need to find new ways to keep consumers engaged with housewares, appliances, and home textiles products.
Entertainment
Who’s That Nipping at the Heels of the “Big Three” SVOD Services
The “Big Three” U.S. SVOD players – Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video – receive a lot of media attention for their original runaway hits, award-winning series or meme-spurring content.
Sports
Sneakernomics: What Really Happened with Athletic Footwear and Activewear Sales in 2018
Matt Powell provides the highlights and his analysis on how the brands and categories across the U.S. athletic footwear and activewear markets fared in 2018.
Foodservice
Driven by technology and convenience, British foodservice industry visits fall as consumers increasingly prefer ‘off-premise’ dining options
Dominic Allport, UK’s Insight Director for market research company, The NPD Group, provides insight into expectations for the British foodservice industry through the end of 2020.
Office Supplies
The E-Commerce Effect
2018 was a year of continued online growth for the U.S. office supplies industry; while brick-and-mortar retail sales were relatively flat, the e-commerce channel grew double digits compared to 2017. E-commerce has transformed the way consumers browse, compare, and purchase products, and this behavior continues to evolve. As a result, we expect the online channel will bring even more opportunities and changes to the office supplies space in 2019.
Video Games
Mat’s 2019 US Video Game Market Predictions
The U.S. Video Game industry experienced strong growth in 2018, as sales increased 18% to over $43 billion. According to NPD’s Mat Piscatella, it will be difficult, but not impossible, to show significant growth this year against what may have been the strongest software slate in a decade a year ago.
B2B Technology
Like A Box Of Chocolates - 2019 U.S. B2B IT Channel Predictions
The U.S. B2B IT channel experienced eight percent growth in 2018 propelled by a stronger PC market, growth of all-flash arrays, cloud, collaboration screens, and many more. With 2018 in the rearview mirror, see what NPD’s B2B Industry Analyst, Michael Diamond, expects in 2019.
Sports
Sneakernomics: Golf and Team Sports Equipment 2018 Recap
Matt Powell recaps how sales fared for baseball, golf, soccer, and other sports equipment products in 2018. Baseball/softball equipment sales grew largely as a result of new youth bat safety regulations that required most youth players to replace their bats. Golf was another bright spot for the market. After years of soft sales, the category bounced back. One of the top growth categories in golf were complete golf sets, particularly at opening price-points, suggesting new entrants.
Video Games
Mat’s 2018 US Video Game Market Prediction Results
Market research company The NPD Group’s video game industry analyst Mat Piscatella provides an overview on his 2018 prediction results for the U.S. video game industry.
Google Finally Doubling Down on Wear OS
Could Google’s purchase of Fossil IP lay the groundwork for a Google branded Pixel smartwatch? See what Connected Intelligence analyst, Weston Henderek, thinks in his latest blog.
Foodservice
In 2018, Russian Consumers Sought Value When Dining Out
In Russia, throughout most of 2018 there was a noticeable shift in consumer behavior around eating out, with the average individual check in foodservice was virtually flat compared to the same time period in 2017, while the average price per item on the menu increased.
Fashion Footwear & Accessories: Keeping Up the Momentum in 2019
2018 was an impressive year for the U.S. fashion footwear market—its strongest performance in recent years—and most accessories categories saw improved sales results. Though at a slower pace, footwear’s momentum will likely continue, and the accessories market will continue to level out. The most significant trends to watch will be an amplification of the familiar, including athleisure, comfortability, online’s growth and social/environment concerns.
Automotive
Automotive Aftermarket Forecast for 2019
Nathan Shipley outlines the opportunities as well as challenges for the automotive aftermarket industry this year. NPD forecasts that the industry will see little to no growth in 2019. The biggest factors driving this forecast include a combination of our outlook on miles driven (flat to slightly positive), our forecast for product pricing on the shelf (continuing to increase in the 5 percent range), and Moody’s 2019 forecast for the consumer price index for new and used cars (falling).
Beauty
Beauty Outlook for 2019
In beauty, we have seen stress-reducing ingredients like adaptogens, healing crystals and CBD emerge as some of the breakout stars of 2018. The coming year will see areas of growth within each U.S. prestige beauty category, but recession fears may slow the performance of the total market as consumers make the move to more careful consumption.
Born To Be Wired
NPD Connected Intelligence President, Eddie Hold, reflects on how the wearables market is starting to move beyond the old anchor products of fitness trackers and smartwatches, and into new categories.
Sports
Sneakernomics: Nobody Wins a Race to the Bottom
According to Matt Powell, Holiday 2017 was the most promotional on record for the U.S. sports industry – that is, until Holiday 2018. Powell says we need to return the industry to one of aspiration and inspiration, or we face the risk of running a race to the bottom; and that’s a race nobody wins. A new year brings new opportunity to change course.
When Walls Start To Crack
NPD Connected Intelligence President, Eddie Hold, provides analysis of the latest news from Apple.
Watches Jewelry
What Sells? What’s New?
Women’s watches are outperforming their male counterparts for the first time in history, and the market opportunity lies in the hands of new introductions.
Foodservice
Eating Trends in 2019
Sluggish growth will continue in the food and foodservice industries in 2019. In order to grow, food companies, grocers, foodservice distributors and operators must align with changes in consumption patterns, be leaders in creating customer solutions, and be differentiated in product innovation, quality, experience, and execution.
Apparel
2019 - A Year of Preparation
2019 will be the bridge to awaited transformations of a new decade, and there are six key strategies that retail and the fashion industry will need to focus on.
Foodservice
Are 3rd Party Restaurant Apps Too Restrictive?
Most common uses for apps like Grubhub/Seamless, UberEATS, and DoorDash are looking up items, paying for meals, and checking prices. While branded restaurant apps see special offers and loyalty rewards as their top uses. Are loyalist restaurant users short-changed using third-party apps?
Apparel
It’s the Most Influenced Time of the Year…
Consumer use of social media to keep up with fashions, bolstered by the growth in online holiday shopping, is playing a big role in the apparel industry.
Toys
The Pressure is Building
NPD Group’s global toys industry analyst, Frederique Tutt, gives her take on the perils of waiting until the last minute to complete holiday toy shopping.
Books
Foodies and Homebodies Rejoice – This Holiday Season is All About Lifestyle Books
Market research company, The NPD Group’s Allison Risbridger provides her expectations for books sales in the U.S. over the holidays
Hooking Them Young(er)
NPD Connected Intelligence President, Eddie Hold, looks at the opportunity for carriers to acquire new subscribers through kid-friendly plans.
Fashion Accessories
Breaking Down Black Friday
In 2017 the 2 weeks of Black Friday/Cyber Monday posted a decline of -3 per cent across the fashion industry in Canada as buying visits (both online and in-store) experienced declines. In an attempt to reverse this trend, this year we saw promotions starting as early as the first week of November.
Data Corruption
What will it take to make smart cities a reality? Collaboration. See more in this blog by NPD Connected Intelligence President, Eddie Hold.
Office Supplies
A Creativity-Inspired Holiday Season
The holiday season presents consumers with a perfect opportunity to get in touch with their creative side – a behavior that bodes well for the office supplies market. Several arts, crafts, and traditional supplies categories tied to ornament decorating, homemade décor, and other trends will be top industry performers this holiday.
Sports
Sneakernomics: Hot Topics at the Outdoor Retailer Show
At Outdoor Retailer’s first ever November show, Matt Powell put a different spin on his industry trend breakfast. Here are some the questions and common themes he identified as being top of mind for folks in the industry.
