After the Covid-19 pandemic, Indonesians' need to lead healthy lifestyles has grown. Staying healthy through sport has become increasingly popular, boosting the use of increasingly diverse sportswear and sports equipment.
The rising trend of sports activity is a great opportunity for local sportswear and sports equipment brands to compete with imports. “We hope that going forward our young generation will consciously make local brands top of mind when buying sportswear and sports equipment,” Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita said at the opening of ISAW 2023 in Jakarta on Thursday (2/11).
According to data processed by the Ministry of Industry's Data and Information Center (Pusdatin), the textile and apparel industry makes a significant contribution to Indonesia's economy, accounting for 6.05% of non-oil and gas processing industry GDP in Q2-2023, with apparel exports in January–September 2023 reaching USD 6.2 billion. Sports equipment exports reached USD 197 million in the same period. This shows the sportswear and sports equipment industry has good prospects and potential to keep growing.
Seizing this opportunity, the Ministry of Industry, through the Directorate General of Small, Medium and Miscellaneous Industries, initiated a sportswear and sports equipment exhibition titled the Indonesia Sport and Active Wear (ISAW) Exhibition. The exhibition features 33 local sportswear and sports equipment brands in the lifestyle sport, team player sport and extreme sport categories.
The Minister said new sportswear and sports equipment entrepreneurs are growing, supported by digital marketing access and fashion technology developments, leading entrepreneurs to tap the sportswear and sports equipment market in Indonesia.
According to the Minister, the sportswear and sports equipment market in Indonesia has great potential, although it was initially dominated by popular foreign brands and large retailers, especially in Jakarta and other big cities.
“On the other hand, recent developments in digital marketing, along with advances in technology, design trends and strong branding, have enabled local sportswear and sports equipment SMIs to compete and grow,” he continued.
ISAW 2023 aims for collective activation in building an ecosystem, not just branding or selling. ISAW 2023 is held in hybrid form, with the offline exhibition at the Industry Plaza of the Ministry of Industry Building on 2–4 November 2023, and the online exhibition held with marketplace Tokopedia, one of ISAW's partners, via a landing page from 30 October to 4 November 2023.
ISAW began with a series of kick-off events from early October, including talk show series, a digital fashion show workshop, a digital fashion design competition and business meetings in Bandung. The kick-off series was a form of collective activation for the local sportswear and sports equipment ecosystem. The Minister hopes ISAW 2023 tenants can build networks and partnerships, and that visitors become more aware of and interested in buying and using local products.
ISAW also partnered with startup Jubelo, which focuses on converting non-organic waste. The Director General of Small, Medium and Miscellaneous Industries, Reni Yanita, said partnering with Jubelo is a way of promoting and applying green industry and sustainable circular economy principles. Tenants and other local sportswear and sports equipment brands have the opportunity to work with Jubelo as part of their responsibility to the environment.
ISAW was enlivened by various activities, such as a fashion show featuring tenants' products and winners of the digital fashion design competition, and the launch of a book on sportswear technology. Other events included awards for the digital fashion design competition winners, talk shows, workshops, entertainment, door prizes and Pound Fit and Zumba sessions.
Source: Press Release of the Ministry of Industry of the Republic of Indonesia