Industry news

At last! Some good tennis news for SA

Inflation is up from less than 6 % in 2007 to more than 11% in 2008. The price of petrol has increased by more than 50% in one year. Bank interest rates have escalated alarmingly. Export markets are closing doors due to the US meltdown. Tennis clubs have closed down.

And yet, tennis retailers and suppliers have not immigrated to Australia, or needed anti-depressants because they have become totally pessimistic about business prospects for the coming season.

They are, in fact, fairly optimistic.

“Tennis rackets have been selling consistently well over the past few years, but we do anticipate this slowing down over the next year or so. Thankfully, I think that there has been some growth in the sport as a whole,” says Brett Burnill, marketing manager and director of Leisure Holdings in SA.

He attributes the renewed interest in tennis to the excitement created by the rivalry between players like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, says Burnill.

In addition, a plethora of national and international events promise to restore the high profile tennis enjoyed in SA during the 1970’s when we became Davis Cup champions and the SA Open was considered by many to be the fifth Grand Slam.

Retailers and suppliers mostly sing from the same hymn book as Burnill about the sales of tennis products in SA.

According to Jerome Goslett of Omni Sport, the return of the SA Open as an ATP event, and the prospects of this tournament gaining momentum and possibly attracting some top-ten players, can only benefit SA retailers and suppliers.

“If you have a tournament in your back yard attracting top players, with a potential bigger audience, it can only be a good thing for the tennis goods industry.”

The sales of tennis products seems to be on the up, agrees Steve Gallienne, owner of Dunslaz Distributors. More attention to junior tennis has been a positive factor to boost tennis sales and the fact that it is more an individual sport, instead of a team sport where politics seem rife, he believes.

Asked what the short and medium prospects for sales of tennis products are, Gallienne says: “I guess retail confidence has a large role to play here. With economies slowing and hesitant consumers, we will possibly see a slow down in top end sales as players will probably make a frame last for another round before replacing it. Previously, they had to have the latest, which is OK for those who can afford it. There will continue to be entrants into the sport and lower to mid-priced frames will do fine.”

Asked if anything can be done by the SA Tennis Association (SATA) to support the retailers or suppliers and their business prospects, Gallienne responds that it is the responsibility of the association to build a profile for tennis that will maintain structures and stability within the sporting code. This has greatly improved during the past five years, he adds.

Most suppliers are currently doing well, he says “but maintaining sales in an industry like this is hard work, believe it or not,” says Gallienne.

Retailer benefits

The visibility of tennis, the depth in talent in men’s tennis, as well as the attractive faces in the women’s game, has done a lot for retailers too.

“A factor that has enhanced sales, is the visibility of Grand Slams on TV,” says Marinus Potgieter, owner of M-Sport Tennis in Pretoria. “The fact that a Davis Cup-event was recently hosted in SA, has also created heightened awareness and interest,” he says.

The sales value of rackets and grips, as well as tennis shoes, are more or less the same as in 2007, but the economy has influenced the buying pattern. “People like to buy cheaper products that prove to be excellent value for money,” he explains. “They prefer to buy entry level rackets and upgrade as their level of playing evolve.”

Says Tony Jackson, owner of Jackson Sport in Durban: “Racket sales for the year so far have been pretty good, considering that I have had another two shops opening in opposition to myself. People do shop where it is convenient for them and the old loyalty seems to have dwindled a bit — but again, the happy customer always comes back if not satisfied with the service of others.”

He adds that suppliers of major brands need to promote their products during the good and bad times. This would boost sales in the tennis market.

Greg Moran, co-owner of Roscoe’s Tennis in Durban, says: “Being in a club that has a large membership of affluent people, we continue to have good racket sales, particularly to clients of our coaching academy. We are able to give prospective buyers professional advice on rackets, which make them more comfortable in spending on the frames.”

Moran says the Wimbledon final was a great catalyst in getting people out on court. Another contributor to growing sales is to stock the top tennis brands. The majority of the players at the coaching academy are kids and they are very brand conscious, he says.

Anchel Wiid, sport division manager of Kloppers in Bloemfontein, says their sales of tennis products have been excellent and they have seen double figure growth annually for the past few years.

All the surrounding towns regularly buy their tennis stock from them, and they have also had massive interest from Port Elizabeth and Durban.

He adds that Grand Slams have a massive influence in attracting people who want to start playing tennis socially. He believes the return of the SA Open, as well as TV-coverage in a good time slot, would do much to stimulate interest in the game and to lure prospective buyers of tennis goods.

A competitive price structure, and good product offering at different racket price levels, have contributed to the greater interest from other regions in buying from Kloppers, he adds.

Only one club in Vanderbijlpark

But, on the other hand, says Daleen van Rooyen, owner of Thinus Rakette in Vanderbijlpark, “my market has dwindled over the past three years. The lack of finances and social factors have played a big part in this state of affairs. Ten to twelve years ago, the whole family used to play tennis. The mother played in the morning league, and the father played on a Saturday afternoon. Now the parents don’t play anymore.”

In addition to interest rate hikes and other tough conditions, the residents of Vanderbijlpark have been hard hit by lay-offs in the steel industry, the main employer in the area.

“We have only one tennis club left in Vanderbijlpark,” she says. “A few years ago we had three. Other sports clubs have also suffered because of financial factors. The chairman of the squash club boasted 1 500 members six years ago. Currently, they only have 300 members,” says Van Rooyen.

Yet, new players are constantly being introduced to the game as, she says that junior tennis players still at school provide her biggest market.

The drop in tennis product sales is not limited to the areas surrounding Vanderbijlpark, as sales in other country areas have also been disappointing of late, says Andrew Wentzel of W.E.T. Sports Importers, who market and distribute mainly to independents in towns across the country.

He believes that this was due to a combination of factors — from winter being a quieter time, to the tough economic climate, which has left the consumer with less disposable income.

Wentzel says events like the hosting of the Davis Cup and SA Open in SA, and the events being televised, will help to spark an interest. But, ultimately the country needs a Wayne Ferreira or Amanda Coetzer compe-ting successfully in Grand Slams to act as role models, as that will have an impact on creating tennis growth. This will help to create greater junior involvement, which will help grow the tennis market.

In order to help ensure the development of young players, W.E.T. Sports sponsor the Boland Tennis Union’s RoxPro junior tournaments.

“Looking at the medium term, we believe that there will be an upturn in the SA economy with the World Cup around the corner, and hopefully this will create a knock-on effect that will boost tennis racket sales,” adds Wentzel.

“With 2008 proving to be a tough year for the retail industry, and consequently the wholesale sector as well, we have decided not to cut back on the marketing budget. We have just launched our catalogue and our agents will keep calling on our customers across the country on a regular basis.” The building of new tennis courts is usually a good indication of growth and interest in the tennis market. This industry has been on the wane since the 1990’s when most schools had to pay for their own tennis courts, instead of the education department providing the finances, says Harry Greenberg, owner of Plasto Top Barret’s.

After municipalities became responsible for the provision of local community sporting facilities, the building of municipal tennis courts also practically came to a standstill — a situation that SRSA hopes to address by making the provision of sports facilities a function of central government again.

Currently, Plasto Top Barret’s only provide court structures to a few clubs, while 80% or more of their income comes from private industries, courts at golf estates, or private families in the higher income group requiring private courts. Many private schools are also building new tennis courts.