Industry news

On Track?

In recent years there has been concerted efforts to get more schools to participate in sport. All government efforts to bolster athletics as well as five other sports codes (soccer, netball, volleyball, cricket and basketball) form part of its Mass Participation strategy.

The Mass Participation School Sport Programme reaches more than 1 600 schools nationally. These are schools in previously disadvantaged areas where there are high levels of poverty in the community. It includes both primary and secondary schools in rural and urban areas, and is a voluntary programme where schools can choose to participate. The schools are organised in hubs that are coordinated by the education and sports departments of all nine provinces.

There are three main goals behind the Mass Participation School Sport Programme. These are to train and supply coaches and referees, to provide sports equipment for use at events, and to sustain the programme by supporting local sports assistants, local leagues and providing logistical support.

Development Clusters

Athletics is a priority sport, yet sometimes facilities are a major problem i.e. they can often be neglected, and in other areas they are non-existent. It is estimated that only approximately 10 percent of township schools have sports facilities.

Sport and Recreation SA (SRSA) and the Department of Education therefore came up with the idea of forming “clusters” where a few schools get together and share facilities and a coach in order to be able to offer sport. Many former Model C-schools have enough money to buy equipment, while the other school clusters get government funding.

An example of schools congregating on one campus to enjoy athletics is the Yellow Pages Athletics Development Clinic. More children at school level are being encouraged to participate in athletics.

One such initiative aimed at winning over youngsters to the sport is the Yellow Pages Athletics Development Clinic series. Athletics SA (ASA) conducted the sixth, and last one, in Hammanskraal near Tshwane a few months ago. Over 200 school children between 8-14 years old from nearby schools converged at the Prestige College track to learn more about athletics from prominent athletes like Yaw Fosu-Amoah, Geraldine Pillay and Ofentse Mogawane, as well as ASA’s Mehlo Thlabahane. Similar clinics were held in Secunda, Potchefstroom, eThekwini, Ekurhuleni and Oudtshoorn.

Athletics at schools level continues to be promoted in other ways too. Earlier this year Rustenburg played host to the Secondary School Athletics Championship. The event, held each year in a different province, was attended by more than 1 100 of South Africa’s top school-going athletes from all parts of the country. The inter-provincial event attracts participants from thousands of schools, who had participated in local and provincial events during the course of the season. The transportation, accommodation and meals of the participants were funded by SRSA.

Yet, amidst the backdrop of the current economic crunch, despite the efforts to promote athletics among the youth, these efforts and interest in the sport do not seem to correlate with the sales of athletic equipment.

According to Caroline Jack of Sportstuff, there has not been an increase in athletic equipment orders from schools. With regard to sports gear generally, Slayd Watkins of Play! has primarily dealt with the former Model C-schools, while it seems that the ‘poorer’ schools have bought very small quantities.

“I think the current market situation has left individuals, schools and clubs having to be more conservative about their purchasing,” says Jack. “There is far less disposable income around at the moment.”

The question arises as to whether orders are coming from a greater number of schools, or just more orders from the same number of schools?

Jack says that there are a number of new schools requesting quotes but generally they tend to service the same schools.

Buying Power and Choice

What kind of athletic equipment is most in demand — in terms of price point, brand names and type?

“Price point determines the purchase now more than ever and brand names are taking a back seat to price,” explains Jack. “With more competition in the market, buyers have access to cheaper goods that are still of decent quality.”

Watkins is in agreement. “With regard to what I have sold, I have not encountered a single school that is very brand conscious. The primary concern seems to be quality and price.”

Who has got the buying power at the moment — clubs or schools?

“Schools definitely have the bigger budgets and are buying more regularly than clubs, because the clubs are mostly dependent on membership fees to make up their budgets,” says Jack. “The number of club members is dropping rapidly because club membership is becoming a luxury in the current economic climate.”

Where the poorer schools don’t have the necessary budgets for purchasing of ‘luxuries’ like athletics equipment, the role of the parents of the athletes becomes important. “These schools are generally relying on the parents to supply the kids with sports gear,” says Watkins.

The Challenges of Today

Quality and price remain important challenges in the supplying of athletic equipment. “We need good quality equipment at reasonable prices, so that all types of schools and clubs have access to equipment, not just the schools with the larger budgets,” says Jack. “This equipment needs to be available to all schools, so that the children are exposed to the sport and it is able to grow, particularly at a grass roots level.”

Shelf space is a major problem. Watkins finds it impossible to stock all the athletic equipment due to space constraints. “This creates a problem as most people like to see the relevant item and to test its durability,” says Watkins. “Furthermore, the cost of transport is excessive due to the size of the equipment. As a small dealer, it is also very difficult to compete with the big guys in the cities.”

While it is clear that grass roots development in the field of athletics is rife, various external factors such as the current economic climate, are providing obstacles to growth in the sales of athletic equipment. Like any obstacle, once it is removed, one can soar to greater heights. It is only a matter of time for sales to catch up with the positive growth that is indeed taking place in athletics.

Be ready for when that moment comes!