Young Chinese show growing interest in outdoor activities

The guideline noted that China plans to build internationally renowned outdoor sports destinations with well-equipped facilities and high-quality services, and China aims to organize different kinds of sporting events and competitions at such venues.

China also plans to organize more national and mass-market sporting competitions and strengthen international cooperation in organizing such events, the guideline said.

"With favorable national policies and the continuous building of outdoor sports facilities, the number of outdoor sports participants is expected to continuously grow and the sector is foreseen to embrace a golden period of growth," Zheng of LeadLeo said.

He added that in the next few years, more domestic outdoor sports brands are expected to gradually enter the mid- to high-end market, and consumers' recognition of domestic brands is foreseen to increase. Besides, the mergers and acquisitions of overseas brands by top Chinese companies will drive further changes in the competitive landscape.

China's outdoor sports sector has been growing rapidly. From 2018 to 2022, the compound annual growth rate of the sector reached 27.1 percent, according to LeadLeo.

In the past few years, the outdoor sports sector has gradually transformed from a niche sector to a sector that covers all kinds of consumers. Participants have shifted from pursuing professionalism and excitement to pursuing socializing and relaxation, and from challenging and conquering nature to enjoying nature, said LeadLeo.

For instance, fishing, traditionally an outdoor sport favored by middle-aged and the elderly, has increasingly attracted the attention of young people, as they regard it as a way of getting close to nature and relaxing.

Shangdao Fishing Line Co Ltd, a Jinhua, Zhejiang province-based fishing line maker, said it has seen growing sales revenue in the past year, fueled by a growing interest in fishing from more people at home and abroad.

During the one-year period until February, sales of Shangdao Fishing Line jumped over 120 percent year-on-year, and it has seen demand from every region of the country, including those in inland areas. In particular, the order volume of fishing lines from coastal areas such as Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Fujian and Guangdong provinces has been higher, it said.

"The market of fishing gear is constantly expanding and becoming more competitive, as more people are venturing outdoors for leisure and entertainment, and the sport has become more popular among young people, driven by the promotion of some online celebrities," said He Yudi, general manager of Shangdao Fishing Line.

"For consumers who purchased fishing line products online, those who were aged between 30 and 45 accounted for 40 percent of the total, and most of them are male. There are also a considerable number of female buyers, while many bought the products as gifts for their fathers and partners," He said.

He added that the company has been upgrading the materials it used, and added sensors to the development of fishing lines to help better discover fishing mines. The company also cooperates with Wenzhou University to apply more new technologies into the development of the products.

In addition, Shangdao Fishing Line has been constantly expanding its overseas markets by exporting products to Southeast Asia, North America and Europe. Sales have been rosy in countries such as Malaysia, South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia and Canada, it said.

The company said it has participated in a number of professional fishing and outdoor sports exhibitions in China and abroad, and netted a large volume of orders at those expos. To further expand its overseas business, it recently established a team that focuses on cross-border e-commerce business, hoping to sell products through e-commerce platforms such as eBay.