With all
The increase in indoor activity has turned beneficial for personal fitness equipment manufacturers as fitness buffs have ensured there is no lull in the market. The demand for personal fitness gear like resistance bands and dumbbells rose exponentially since the government allowed the opening of sports shops in June. However, the hottest selling product has been the humble carrom board, long confined to the corners, making a comeback with people investing in indoor games.
“Carrom boards are tough to get these days,” Narendra Kankaria, owner of Sports Solutions in Vastrapur, told Mirror. “To give you an idea, we have been selling carrom boards at 25 to 30 per cent discount in normal times. But now, we are selling it on its MRP,” Kankaria, a tennis enthusiast himself, said.
“Dumbbells, personal fitness bands, home fitness equipment are the other things that have seen a rise in demand. Even bicycles saw a huge jump in sales,” he said, while acknowledging that carrom board sales had increased five times while the sales of home fitness equipment saw 400 to 500 per cent jump. However, sales of outdoor sports equipment like cricket bats, badminton and tennis racquets have taken a beating. “Outdoor sports equipment sales are down to 30 per cent with cricket, which constitutes a major part, down to almost zero now,” he said.
Prakash Dhanwani, who owns
Echoing the sentiments,
People have started to look at fitness as permanent health solutions. They have started to look at it as an investment and they are investing heavily in good quality equipment
Ravina Maken, COO, Grand Slam Fitness
It is not only the home fitness equipment, but even the sale of bicycles has increased post lockdown. “There is an increase in demand for a certain type of cycle as people are more concerned about their health and there is a general awareness too,”
For Shiraz Avari, owner of Gujarat Sports that has shops in Ambawadi and in
Putting things into perspective, Ravina Maken, COO of Delhi-based Grand Slam Fitness that caters to some of the top sportspersons in the country, said, “People have started to look at fitness as permanent health solutions now. They have started to look at it as an investment and they are investing heavily in good quality equipment.”
“Keeping the hygiene factor in mind, residential fitness is an area that is consolidating now. More and more people will move to residential fitness and setting up a small corner in their house for their fitness regime,” Maken, whose company is the largest manufacturer and the only exporter of outdoor fitness equipment in India, said.