The Golfalot.com Price Index rose +0.2% in September as new entrants into the Golf Clubs Sector contributed to drive growth that has totalled +0.8% over the last 12 months.
The Golf Clubs Sector grew by +0.5% this month with positive results in the Drivers, Utility Clubs and Iron categories offsetting small falls in the Fairway Woods, Wedge and Putter markets.
Drivers turned around the losses of the previous two months ending up +0.7% with the high profile entrant of the new Ping Anser driver, the first adjustable driver from the company, managing to offset some eye catching discounts across a number of other brands as retailers prepared for further new releases throughout the remainder of the year.
Utility Clubs were the outstanding Golf Club performer as the new Anser hybrid was joined by Ping’s offering for Women in this category, the Serene, resulting in growth of +2.3% pushing the average price in the category to the highest level since June 2011.
The 2012 Anser Iron replaces the original forged Anser in the Index and resultant growth of +0.9% represents a six month high for the Golf Irons category. Fairway Woods fell by -1.1% despite the debut of the Ping Anser Fairway as the category experienced aggressive price competition on several high profile brands.
Putters (-0.5%) and Wedges (-0.1%) both recorded small falls as a result of both competition and discounting ahead of the new 2013 releases.
The Golf Accessories Sector also fell marginally this month, registering a drop of -0.6%, however this has made little inroads into the overall growth experienced since the beginning of the year.
Golf Balls (0.4%) Golf Bags (-1.0%), Golf Shoes (-1.9%) and Golf Trolleys (-0.1%), all fell as the Accessories Sector witnessed price competition across the board that offset some notable new entrants to the Golf Shoes market such as the innovative new Crossflex and Puremotion models from Adidas.
Looking forward the Golfalot Price Index is expected to continue moving forward in the coming months as the 2013 equipment begins to hit the shop floors.
Titleist, Mizuno, Odyssey and Footjoy are just some of the major brands that have recently launched new products, many of which will debut at The Golf Show inHarrogate, which should provide a boost to the industry towards the end of a challenging year.
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