ISPO Beijing 2024 Final Report: Diversification and Cross-Border Collaborations Shaping a New Era of Sports Lifestyle
From January 12 to 14, 2024, ISPO Beijing 2024 made its triumphant return to the National Convention Center, hosting over 700 domestic and international brands from nearly 500 exhibitors. The brand count soared by over 100% compared to 2023, drawing over 30,000 industry visitors and sports enthusiasts.
The exhibition showcased diverse facets of sports lifestyles, spanning Winter sports, Outdoor, Camping, Urban sports, Extreme sports, Cycling, Car travel, Skateboarding, Pickleball and more. This extensive display highlighted cutting-edge trends, innovative products and emerging technologies within the sports and outdoor industry, by integrating the supply chain, functional textile and accessories, and related industrial clusters, the exhibition provided fresh ideas and directions for the industry's future development.
Ms. Xu Jia, General Manager, Chief Executive Officer–Greater China of Messe Muenchen Shanghai Co., Ltd., expressed her satisfaction with the event's evolution, stating, "After the restart and rebirth of our exhibitions in 2023, I am very happy to see many old friends again showing their achievements from the past year, and I am even more impressed by the presence of new faces, fostering exchanges and collaborations. Accelerating sports revolution is the philosophy that ISPO has always adhered to since entering China 20 years ago. ISPO will further promote the integration of sports with culture, tourism, and commerce, staying attuned to industry trends and providing a communication platform for industry updates, brand/product iterations, and practitioner and enthusiast communication."
Pursuing innovation and change to create an industry value chain with longer-term vitality
ISPO took a proactive stance in strengthening multi-category positioning and promoting inter-industry integration, with a focus on the "outdoor +" ecology. This approach broadened the exhibition's categories, fostering multi-industry collaborations and serving as a pivotal communication platform to open up new tracks and opportunities.
Addressing sustainable innovative development, ISPO collaborated with the China Fashion & Color Association to outline the future path of the international sustainable fashion and sports industry. Based on the idea of integrated and concerted development of the fashion and sports industries, they released the 2025 S/S Asian Sustainable Fashion Sports Trends, providing a comprehensive reference model for the industry, including the definition, range and evaluation system of “sustainable fashion” that offers a universal gauge for enterprises and a healthy path for the industry. Additionally, the release of ISPO Textrends and 2025/26 F/A Color Palette showcased functional textile fashion trends and color cards and their application scenarios and functions, offering vital inspiration for long-term developments in sports fashion and sustainability.
As classic outdoor brands underwent upgrade iterations, young outdoor trends are quietly emerging. The ISPO New brand hub highlighted market opportunities and challenges for emerging outdoor brands, showcasing growth in areas such as lightweight design, new materials, and sustainability. This area also provided industry partners with inspiration for expanding into segments like outdoor clothing, shoes, protective gear, and children's outdoor products.
The enthusiasm of outdoor people to expand the boundaries of their lives inspired ISPO to focus on the car and travel circuit. By integrating segmented scenarios like RVs, off-road vehicles, motorcycles, and bicycles, ISPO created three major exhibition areas: ISPO Road trip lifestyle, ISPO Motolife, and ISPO Cycling lifestyle hub. ISPO provided core sports and outdoor players with opportunities for in-depth interaction and diverse options, unlocking new marketing avenues for automobile brands, outdoor equipment manufacturers, and clubs.
Mr. Tobias Gröber, Executive Director of Business Unit Consumer Goods of Messe München presented, "Being the platform for everybody who has or needs a sport strategy, ISPO focus on the complete industry value chain and the long-term impact of sports. In line with our motto 'New Perspectives on Sports', we look at sport in all its facets. It touches people in many different ways, it supports physical and mental health, and it has an integrative effect and ensures that we behave more sustainably. "
Culture-Led Diversified Development of Sports Lifestyle
As the sports and outdoor lifestyle continues to expand its influence, and more categories are joining in to stimulate consumption and promote urban economic growth, ISPO directed its focus towards urban sports, introducing pickleball and skateboarding events. The exhibition provided a rich array of urban sports options, including rock climbing, yoga, Frisbee, and skateboarding, catering to enthusiasts with varying experience levels and promoting the diversified development of urban sports culture.
Sports and outdoor activities have entered an era of sustainable practice for all. The ISPO Sustainability hub centered around the theme "Living with Nature." It concentrated on urban biodiversity observation, recycling technology, and sustainable outdoor lifestyles, encouraging brands to prioritize sustainable consumption and production, especially sustainable materials, regenerated material and zero waste life.
The Extreme sports carnival and the Undersea photography exhibition also captivated numerous experts and sports enthusiasts, sparking engaging conversations. Centered around skiing, extreme climbing, flying, diving, and other ventures, it served as a platform for enthusiasts, athletes, equipment manufacturers, and sports industry professionals. It offered a holistic communication experience, unveiling the cultural allure beneath the exhilaration of extreme sports, and illustrating a future vision for the commercialization and widespread embrace of these thrilling activities.
The rapid integration of sports lifestyles into public life owes much to the widespread influence of social media across various platforms.
To coincide with the 20th anniversary of ISPO in China, the ISPO Beijing Outdoor Circle Citywalk Program collaborated with nearly 40 outdoor-friendly stores in Beijing, attracting over 30,000 sports enthusiasts to explore the city.
ISPO also joined forces with Tmall, Douyin, Weibo, RED, Dewu, Zhihu, and other platforms for the first time, to disseminate thematic content. This collaborative effort aimed to conduct in-depth discussions on vertical topics, cultivate content in the public domain, gain insights into sports trends, and reach a broader audience, breaking barriers in sports lifestyle circles.
Gathering of Useful Information Provides Insightful New Perspective on the Industry
This year's ISPO Beijing hosted ten forums, delving into the pain points, difficulties, and development trends of the sports and outdoor industry.
Industry leaders engaged in in-depth analyses, exploring new ideas and promoting industrial optimization and innovative development. Their discussion explored investments and operations in both indoor and outdoor ski resorts in the post-Winter Olympics era; delved into emerging consumption scenarios and trends; scrutinized fashion trends, outdoor travel, marketing strategies, sports rehabilitation, and the fusion of sports, culture, tourism, and business.
Acknowledgments to Exhibitors, Partners, and Visitors
The highly anticipated ISPO Beijing 2024 has concluded, marking the beginning of new challenges for ISPO in 2024.
From hosting ISPO Beijing and ISPO Shanghai each year, to having more innovative and rich carnival-like conferences, events, interactions and options in Nanjing and Xiamen, ISPO's growth and success are attributed to the support and trust of numerous exhibitors, partners, and visitors. We are grateful to them for their attention, companionship, encouragement, and supervision. ISPO remains committed to its original aspirations and strives to evolve into a more diversified communication platform, providing enhanced support and assurance for industrial transformation and business innovation.
ISPO Shanghai 2024 looks forward to meeting you again at the Shanghai New International Expo Center from June 28 to 30, 2024, presenting a diverse, cross-border, inclusive, and integrated perspective.
The Nanjing Sports Carnival 2024 is scheduled to arrive at the Nanjing International Exhibition Center on September 6-8, 2024, continuing its mission to promote the integration of sports, culture, and tourism resources, commercial operations, and sustainable development.
The Xiamen Sports Carnival 2024 will be held at the Xiamen International Convention and Exhibition Center from November 22 to 24, 2024, contributing to the upgrading of sports industry in coastal city clusters and fostering the integrated development of sports fashion, outdoor, leisure, and culture sectors.
Statements of exhibitors and visitors (Sorted by the family name)
Mr. Akasawa Yohei, Deputy Director of JETRO Qingdao Representative Office
ISPO stands out as an excellent exhibition platform. At the exhibition, we set up a Japanese pavilion themed around winter sports and winter camping, showcasing the products of 14 Japanese companies. The keen interest from buyers and consumers is encouraging. We hope to attract more visitors to experience Japanese outdoor and winter sports products firsthand to understand the charm of Japan.
Mr. Bao Gang, General Manager and Director of Dometic Group
I believe that ISPO, recognized as the most influential outdoor sports exhibition in Asia, has consistently upholded its high standards. It's truly gratifying for us to be a part of it. At Dometic, we aim to leverage the ISPO platform show how seamlessly we can integrate family, mobile living, and camping, offering novel life experiences to a broader customer population through the show.
Ms. Deng Shuli, Brand Manager of Guangzhou Panda Adventure Technology Co., Ltd.
This year's ISPO Beijing is exceptionally vibrant. We integrated functional technology and advanced AI into functional outdoor clothing fabrics, and have received excellent feedback. The event provided us with valuable insights through informative sharing and exchanges, and we have learned a lot.
Mr. Gao Feng, Founder of Beijing Buff Hooway Trading Co., Ltd.
I firmly believe that China's sports and outdoor market holds immense potential, poised for even greater development in the future. Bringing some new brands to ISPO Beijing this time, our on-site experience is notably different from previous years. The growing participation of influencers, capturing, introducing, and experiencing products, showcases the impressive communicative power and influence of ISPO.
Ms. Han Yanli, Vice President of Montane China
Participating in ISPO marks Montane's official debut in the Chinese market. We're pleasantly surprised by the growing popularity of outdoor activities and the diversified understanding of consumers. The on-site brands and activities are enriching, complemented by professional forums sharing valuable industry information. Such information is a valuable reference for our brand's future development.
Ms. Huang Xiaoli, brand Operation Manager of Shanghai Flextail Technology Co., LTD
There are more exhibitors in ISPO Beijing this year, and more niche brands have been added, which shows that ISPO continues to pay attention to the real needs of users. The on-site visitors flow is very large, which represents the growing number of outdoor sports in China, and we are more confident that we will take the east wind in the future to bring better outdoor electronic equipment products to Chinese users.
Mr. Liu Haoyu, Marketing Director of Camel Clothing
ISPO Beijing this year showcased a diverse array of exhibitors, bringing together numerous brands and industry partners on the supply chain. The interactive areas, including the urban sports area, sustainable outdoor area, and rock climbing area, created a vibrant atmosphere. I'm optimistic that China's outdoor sports industry will flourish, and I look forward to the continuous growth of ISPO. I look forward to the smooth convening of ISPO Shanghai 2024.
Ms. Liu Lili, China Marketing Manager of eVent Textile (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
ISPO Beijing 2024 presented a more diversified content, with increased participation from domestic brands. It's wonderful to see a growing number of people embracing the outdoors and developing more rational consumption concepts. The demand for professional, high-quality outdoor products has surged, and environmental awareness is on the rise.
Mr. Mo Shi, Brand & Marketing Director of Pelliot Outdoor Sports Group Co., Ltd.
Our experience at ISPO Beijing was outstanding. We showcased our core products, engaged with numerous professional visitors and media, and saw the popularity of the present outdoor market. We're delighted that ISPO provides increasing opportunities for Chinese outdoor brands. We also hope for more opportunities to cooperate with ISPO and drive the robust development of China's outdoor market.
Ms. Qiao Ying, Agent of Zamboni in China, General Manager of Maxyplus *Representative of Canadian Pavilion
ISPO stands as the industry benchmark, and our aim is to enhance our brand's influence in the ice and snow industry through ISPO. I have seen numerous new technologies at the exhibition, and I found the event highly enjoyable.
Mr. She Liang, Chief Human Resources Officer of Zhejiang Mobi Garden Outdoor Products Co., Ltd.
The overall atmosphere at the venue resembled a lively party for outdoor sports enthusiasts. ISPO is a great platform to reinforce our brand proposition of "returning to hiking and mountaineering." As ISPO celebrates its 20 anniversary in China, I extend warm birthday wishes. Looking forward to continued collaboration with ISPO and meeting again at ISPO Shanghai 2024!
Mr. Franckie Tamisier, General Manager of Poma Beijing
It's becoming more and more mature on ski resorts in China and also there is activity not only in winter but also in summer in ski resorts. ISPO is a good platform to meet people and to provide goods for ski. It is good for the business to have such opportunity there, we see a lot of people coming here to save innovation and to meet different companies.
Mr. Dieter Vyls, Global Sales Director, Cortina China Limited (Dongguan)
There's a big trend on outdoor as well that's also why we do a lot of investment on the outdoor and sport at leisure range. ISPO Beijing has already made a massive success, we've seen a lot of new contacts, a lot of people. Chinese people who come in here which are enthusiast about Safety Jogger so for us ISPO Beijing is very successful.
Mr. Xiao Jianbo, Brand Manager of Extrek&Gronell
We firmly believe that ISPO is currently the most representative and professional outdoor platform, so it is our first choice. Our optimism extends to China's future professional outdoor products market, and with the rise of new young consumer groups and the upgrading of related industries, we anticipate even greater prospects for the outdoor market in China.
Mr. Xu Jianfeng, Director of Planning Department, Toray Sakai Weaving & Dyeing (Nantong) Co., Ltd. (TSD)
ISPO and Toray share a longstanding partnership, spanning over a decade. Celebrating ISPO's 20th year in China, this ISPO Beijing rekindled my experience with outdoor sports. It's evident that outdoor sports are making a comeback, consumer demand is resurging, and brand collaboration is expanding. The bustling scene in the halls, filled with brands, partners, and enthusiasts, reaffirms our belief in the promising future of the outdoor sports industry. We anticipate continued promising cooperation with ISPO.
Ms. Xu Zan, Head of Sorona Marketing in Asia Pacific, Covation Biomaterials
ISPO stands out as a highly professional exhibition. This year's ISPO Beijing drew an impressive crowd, attracting industry elites and professional visitors alike. Their enthusiasm and professionalism exceeded our expectations. ISPO serves as an invaluable platform for communication, learning, and enhancing our brand image. We can establish excellent partnerships through this outstanding opportunity.
Ms. Zeng Hua, Founder and General Manager of Beijing Scaler Outdoor Products Co., Ltd.
Scaler maintains a positive outlook on the future of the outdoor sports market. With increased emphasis on health and extended holidays, we anticipate a surge in people exploring the outdoors. Our confidence in the future is unwavering. Scaler has participated in the ISPO exhibition for several consecutive years, and we appreciate the seriousness with which ISPO approaches its work. As an outdoor brand, we believe it is our responsibility to support ISPO's efforts to break through industry boundaries and attract more exhibitors, media coverage, and promotion of outdoor sports. Therefore, Scaler will continue its participation next year!
Mr. Zhang Heng, Chairman of Sanfo Group
In the past couple of years, Sanfo has transitioned into a dual strategic model of “channel + brand”. In 2024, our focus remains on delving deeper into the outdoor industry. The impact of participating in ISPO Beijing surpassed expectations, marking a resounding success. We look forward to more international brands joining ISPO in the future.
Mr. Zhang Honglei, General Agent of doubledeck China, and General Manager of Ruiyin (Beijing) Trading Co., Ltd.
Uncle Qiu, Senior Ski and Outdoor Influencer, COO of Beijing Yutong Boye Technology Co., Ltd.
ISPO is an excellent platform and opportunity for new brands like ours entering China. The presence of industry professionals and ski sports enthusiasts was overwhelming. Our aim is to bring the latest snowboard technology to China through ISPO, providing firsthand experience to domestic snow sports practitioners and enthusiasts.
Ms. Zhao Xingmei, Section chief of Maxsun Trading (Dalian) Co.
Ms. Sun Xiao, Director of KOVEA China
The increasing participation in the sports and outdoor market brings us immense joy. Our booth garnered attention from numerous visitors and influencers who appreciated our products. ISPO has surprised us with rich opportunities. Many thanks, ISPO!
Mr. Jason Zhou, General Manager of Dongguan Coopeak Sports Goods Co., Ltd.
The Chinese sports market is on a trajectory of continuous development, with domestic brands steadily catching up with international counterparts. I anticipate even more significant opportunities for the market in the coming years. Our experience at ISPO Beijing this time was exceptionally positive, connecting us with both old friends and new customers. Wishing ISPO continuous success.
Mr. Hai Yuan, head of Tiantan Joy Run, General Manager of Joy Run World
I think ISPO has always been the benchmark of the industry. We can see the development trend of the industry and the latest brand trends, and can also have direct contact with brands and negotiate cooperation. I am very excited to see the grand event of ISPO Beijing.
Mr. Mars Zhang, ISPO's old friend and Chief Experience Officer, Manager of AdrenalineGuild
As an old friend of ISPO, it is a great honor for me to co-build the Extreme Sports Carnival at ISPO Beijing. Together, we have witnessed the vigorous development of outdoor sports in China, and seen more and more young people join the ranks and bravely pursue freedom and passion. ISPO has been expanding fresh sports categories and scenes, and this joint creation of the exhibition area has also made more people feel the unique charm and unlimited possibilities of extreme sports. Extreme sports are not only a challenge to human potential, but also an exploration and conquest of the unknown. We showed the development of extreme sports equipment and technology, and invited many domestic and foreign professional athletes and enthusiasts to share their experiences. I believe that with the passage of time, extreme sports will be more widely recognized and loved in China and around the world.