Winter is the season with the highest sales for the sports and outdoor industry. At the same time, it is difficult to plan given the unpredictable snow conditions. This has always been the case, but it is becoming more and more challenging in the face of climate change. In addition, the outdoor market has changed at least since the Corona pandemic and has reached new target groups who have discovered classic outdoor leisure activities such as hiking, camping or running and want to continue doing them. This target group is looking for collections that also work in everyday life and can be used in a variety of ways.
Christl Haigermoser, Head of Buying at the German online outdoor retailer Bergzeit, explains what priorities she wants to set for the coming winter season, how the current season started and how she implements “grandchildship” in purchasing.
Ms. Haigermoser, when does the FW25 order round start for you? Which segments begin and what comes at the end?
The order phase starts in October and runs until March, depending on the size of the supplier and product range. Clothing and shoes start with the order phase ending with equipment. Large suppliers prefer to complete their orders early in order to block capacity and achieve early delivery dates.
What do the current sales tell you for the upcoming order?
Thanks to the early onset of winter in September, we had a good start to the season. In general, snow conditions are becoming increasingly unpredictable. We remain true to our core sports – mountain sports, touring skiing and cross-country skiing. However, snow-independent sports are also gaining in importance here.
Overall, there is a lot of goods on the market. What impact does this have on your order?
In general, we see that suppliers’ inventories are stabilizing compared to this year (2024). For us, this means that our forecasts have to be even more precise in order to pre-order the right goods and thus prevent poorer availability during the season.
What trends in clothing do you see in the next FW25?
We see that our suppliers want to become more snow-independent by expanding other segments. For example, multi-sport providers are expanding trail running/running and in the bike sector, some suppliers are moving towards urban styles. In the past, more specific sporting goods were sold, but today sportswear is often popular in everyday life and there are more lifestyle products. Jackets, hoodies and backpacks are fashion items that are not only worn when practicing mountain sports. This means that many fashion-conscious customers now often buy outdoor clothing.
Since the trend around outdoor activities has become so big, clothing has also become more popular in everyday life. Many people who play sports also practice several sports and focus less on one discipline – we feel this multi-sport approach. Ski collections tend to get smaller. The focus is on technical products, the looks tend to be cleaner.
Which segments or sports work very well? Are there segments or product groups where you want to increase?
As a specialized mountain sports outfitter, we see the mountain sports, hiking and skiing category as continuing to be strong. We will also expand the bike and running areas in 2025.
The outdoor target group has changed in recent years; it has become younger and more fashionable. How do you react to that?
We see ourselves as mountain sports providers for the whole family, from young to old. However, classic outdoor manufacturers have also started to design collections specifically for younger target groups. This is reflected in more casual cuts and special styles for this generation.
What role do newcomers play in your product range? Is the current situation suitable for trying new things?
We are always open to new brands and trends within our portfolio and see it as our job to source these for our customers and to draw attention to them as part of our consulting work.
Do you see that the topic of sustainability is relevant for your customers when making purchasing decisions?
We are observing that customers are increasingly concerned with the topic and that demand is also increasing in the online shop as well as through our customer service or in the branches. At the same time, it is difficult to even identify sustainable products and detect possible greenwashing. That’s why we installed the MUT filter in the online shop in 2020.
The filter function is based on official seals selected and tested by us – such as Green Button, Fairwear Foundation, Responsible Wool and Responsible Down Standard, but also the indication that recycled materials are used or the product is PFC-free (perfluorinated and polyfluorinated chemicals ) is – and makes the ecological, social or animal welfare-related added value transparent. We cover the most important categories using independent seals and comprehensible criteria.
What exactly is the MUT filter?
MUT is a shop sustainability filter that we implemented in 2020. Using this filter function in the Bergzeit online shop, our customers can filter products under the project name MUT according to the principle of people – environment – animals. The products can be filtered in terms of social (e.g. Fair Wear Foundation), ecological (e.g. Bluesign) and animal welfare-related (e.g. Responsible Wool Standard) properties. In this way, we meet the needs of our customers who consciously choose a sustainable product and for whom tested and certified production and material selection are important.
Even customers who have not yet dealt with the many seals in this area immediately understand the advantages of this product. At the same time, you will of course also receive more in-depth information on the topic on the respective product detail page.
When shopping, are you paying more attention to more sustainable products than before? On what exactly?
In any case – the “grandchildren’s ability” begins to some extent in the product range design and we anchor this as a strategic goal at Bergzeit. With our commitment to the re-use area, which we launched in 2022, we show that resource-friendly management and reuse play a major role for us. Ultimately, we have set ourselves the goal of generating 80 percent of our sales with suppliers who are SBTI (Science Based Targets initiative) – or similar – certified by 2026.
Ultimately, the introduction of the MUT filter also plays a role in purchasing decisions: The MUT filter creates transparency and is intended to increase the demand for sustainable products – because, in our view, increasing demand is the best lever for the corresponding product range design.
Bergzeit is one of the largest online retailers for the outdoor segment in German-speaking countries and, in addition to the online shop, also operates two stationary stores in Bavaria. In the 2023/24 financial year, Bergzeit generated sales of 148 million euros, an increase of twelve percent compared to the previous year. Bergzeit has been part of the South Tyrolean Oberrauch Group since 2012, which also includes the sports retail chain Sporter AG and Oberalp AG with the mountain sports brands Salewa, Dynafit, Evolv, LaMunt, Wild Country and Pomoca.