Fitness Aspirations at Home Drive Pre-Workout Category Growth

The pre-workout supplement category on Amazon is proof that gut instincts and ad-hoc analysis are insufficient for companies to predict sales outcomes. Facing a global pandemic, pre-workout supplement brands may have been bracing for a contraction in the market. However, from our analysis, we can see that pre-workout supplements, even with gyms closed around the country, still grew in revenue by almost 19% from Q1 to Q2, as well as from Q2 to Q3 of 2020. 

Fitness is usually a cyclical affair. We have strong goals that we set on New Year’s, and those goals become more important as summer comes around. The sales of pre-workout supplements actually follow this trendline rather well. There is a routine and steadiness to this category, which led to a robust $126MM marketplace on Amazon in 2019. But 2020 brought an unprecedented global pandemic that has completely altered the way we live. This raises the question – do people still work out and take supplements in a global pandemic?

If we looked at the early onset of the pandemic, the answer would have been a resounding no.  Comparing March sales in the category in 2019 versus 2020, revenue in the category dropped by 11%. While at first glance drastic, this may be reasonable. This was when lockdowns were first being implemented, and there was still significant uncertainty around the virus and its effects. At least initially, the thought that the market would contract had been somewhat validated.

However, now that people have become accustomed to the fact that Covid-19 will be with us for the foreseeable future, it seems that their fitness aspirations have actually grown! The Amazon market for pre-workout supplements overtook its 2019 revenue numbers in April 2020. The category has continued to see revenue growth in every month since. 

The top-selling flavors in 2019 were Fruit Punch with 13% of the market, followed by Natural Flavor, Watermelon, and Cherry Limeade, each with around 5% market share. These flavors also saw growth from Q1 2020 to Q2 2020, with Fruit Punch growing by 4.82%, Watermelon by 5.25%, Cherry Limeade by 10.48%, and Blue Raspberry by 10.48%. Natural flavors overall saw a slight contraction at -0.93%.

So why are pre-workout supplements still growing while gym memberships are slowing? Well, consumers are now bringing the gym to their homes. Popular fitness brands are seeing a large uptick in sale of home fitness products. Those range from dumbbells to treadmills, ellipticals, and stationary bikes.

We currently see that more consumers are purchasing pre-workout supplements than before. However, it will be important to continue to refer back to analytics to see if this trend continues. We may see the number of people who work out and take pre-workouts increase. More companies are providing gym-equipment for home use. This may mean a new segment of consumers who leverage a home-gym is up for grabs. Additionally, traditional pre-workout takers may be headed back to their old gyms as new safety protocols enable them to do so safely. For businesses that want to get their pre-workout supplements out to consumers, it is important that they stay up to date with the latest trends. This way, they offer the right products and make sure those products stay in stock and available for purchase.

If you’d like to learn more about these category insights, contact us today for a walkthrough of our Market Intelligence platform.

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