Figure Skates Market Size, Share, Growth, and Industry Analysis, By Type (Recreational, Professional), By Application (Men, Women, Boys, Girls) and Regional Forecast to 2032

Last Updated: 04 January 2025

FIGURE SKATES MARKET OVERVIEW

The global figure skates market size was USD 54.64 million in 2023 and is projected to touch USD 72.48  million by the end of 2032, exhibiting a CAGR of 3.7 % during the forecast period.

The figure skate’s market is growing now because more and more people engage in ice sports such as figure skating and ice hockey, as well as recreational ice skating. The main variety of skates is recreational, professional, and customized according to the customer’s desires. Technological advancement in materials and design like those light boot and highly accurate blade are improving performance, comfort, and sturdiness of the product to help professional skaters or those enthusiast casual users. There are now more indoor ice rinks, and in areas where there is little natural ice now there is a demand created by this expansion. In the same regard, a rise in female and the youthful participation in figure skating is well enhancing market expansion. Manufacturers are also aiming at the sustainability factor and coming up with green products that meet the consumer’s demands of products that are durable and should sustainable. Such tendencies, along with the rising popularity of this sport in the international sport events, such as Winter Olympics, stimulate the growth of the figure skate’s market.

GLOBAL CRISES IMPACTING FIGURE SKATES MARKETCOVID-19 IMPACT

Figure Skates Market Had a Negative Effect Due to Supply Chain Disruption during COVID-19 Pandemic

The global COVID-19 pandemic has been unprecedented and staggering, with the market experiencing lower-than-anticipated demand across all regions compared to pre-pandemic levels. The sudden market growth reflected by the rise in CAGR is attributable to the market’s growth and demand returning to pre-pandemic levels.

There were some challenges in the market for figure skates market share owing to COVID-19 pandemic such as restrictions of gathering, shutdown in sporting events and shut down of production plants. Some ice rinks, clubs and training facilities therefore shut down for long periods making both recreational and professional skate activities reduce. Such situation decreased demand for figure skates as consumers were cutting their expenses on figure skating equipment as they could no longer access the necessary environment. In the same way, most of the major figure skating competition and events got either canceled or postponed affecting the rate of this market. Constraints here were pushed around supply chain and it impacted manufacturing and distribution of figure skates due to problems always associated with raw materials and distribution networks. The outlay fell significantly in the second quarter, albeit from higher levels a year earlier, led by a decline in store retailers, which was nearly halved by lockdowns, and in which a shift to online could only partially make up for lost ground. The overall …consequence was moderate and led to stagnation of the market growth during the pandemic.

LATEST TREND

"Rise of Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Materials Drives Market Growth"

One driving factor that one can decode from the figure skates’ market is sustainable and environmentally friendly material usage in making skates. As consumers become more aware of climate change, they demand products with environmentally friendly values; in turn, manufactures must expand their production of eco-friendly products. How? This includes using recycled and biodegradable material when designing the skate boots, laces and packing the product. To decrease dependency on animal skin, brands are also trying out plant and vegan leather. These materials are sustainable and are intended to have and retain or improve the performance, durability, and comfort of figure skates. Businesses are selling these skates as a method of responding to their environmental responsibilities to maintain their environmentally-sound image and fulfill the requests of green performers and recreational inline skaters. This trend also correlates with the overall shift towards sustainable sporting goods within the whole industry and brings to market new customers as well as more environmentally-conscious employees.

FIGURE SKATES MARKETSEGMENTATION

BY TYPE

Based on type, the global market can be categorized into recreational, professional

• Recreational: They are light and easy to maneuver for the easy to intermediate riders, and come with a budget friendly price. Usually, they have more basic and straightforward systems with less stress on performance characteristics.
• Professional: Since these skates are for the younger and more competitive figure skater, they offer higher end materials as well as blade placement and customizable sizes. Support greater control, stability and durability which makes it suitable for tough sequences and competitions.

BY APPLICATION

Based on application, the global market can be categorized into men, women, boys, girls

• Men: Built specifically for men and strong construction as men skaters require more solidity and different blade width and often wear skates that are heavier and robust.
• Women: Built primarily for moms, these skates target the female skater and come fitted with extra flex, lightweight build, and comparatively slim sizes for enhanced performance during stunts.
• Boys: Designed for young male skaters with enhanced support together with the comfort needed in skates targeting the youth and skaters as they progress from one level to the next level.
• Girls: Introduced as skates for young females, these skates offer optimal comfort, ankle support and maneuverability, enabling the beginner as well as young athletes, achieve better results safe.

MARKET DYNAMICS

Market dynamics include driving and restraining factors, opportunities and challenges stating the market conditions.

DRIVING FACTORS

"Rising Popularity of Ice Sports Boost the Market"

As figure skating and other ice sports gain popularity in the world market, for instance figure skates the demand has been boosted greatly. International aesthetics events like Winter Olympics, world championships and regional championships encourage the youth and other people, to take to figure skating. With many people taking to ice skating as a sport or merely for leisure, more users are being produced in all categories and these brands have benefited greatly. Descend of ice hockey and recreational skating is also contributing to the figure skate’s market growth because many users prefer multipurpose skates for different ice sports.

"Technological Advancements in Skate Design Expand the Market"

This industry’s market demand for figure skater technology is due to its innovations in its development. They are using new material, stylish blade and comfortable nxg engineering boots that increases performance and safety of the skier. Such aspects as the heat-moldable boots that allow creating individual slipper-like fits, carbon for minimizing product weight, and higher-precision blades that allow for better steering at high speed are making the offerings appealing to both sheer sports athletes and casual skaters. Such advancements are creating demand for better quality skates to be purchased to provide consumers with improved performance levels and increase overall turnover for the demand mainly stems from individuals who want the best quality and durability for skateboard use.

RESTRAINING FACTOR

"High Cost of Professional Skates Potentially Impede Market Growth"

This high cost can prove to be a hindrance especially for many of the intended target because of the high cost that comes with professional figure skates. High-end skates designed with the latest technology and tailored to specific specifications are costly and thus out of reach for the average client worldwide but much more so in the developing world. This restrains market development since consumers who cut expenditure will resort to acquiring inferior goods or used ones. Manufacturers work hard to achieve a balance between performance and costs in a bid to expand their market base and therefore increase on their sales.

OPPORTUNITY

"Expanding Ice Sports in Emerging Markets Create Opportunity for The Product in The Market"

The up-and-coming markets they have seen for more ice sports, especially figure skating, include Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions. Popularization of ice sports can also be explained by opening new ice arenas and broadcasting more often competitions of the corresponding type from different countries. With performance enhancing gear for figure skating increasing and particularly among the young, manufacturers get a window of opportunity to take new entrants into the market that targets lower end and mid-range figure skates.

CHALLENGE

"Supply Chain Disruptions and Material Costs Could Be a Potential Challenge for Consumers"

One of the biggest issues within the figure skate’s market is the issue of sustainability of supplies, particularly during crises across the world such as a pandemic or geopolitics. This poses a significant threat in that changes in raw material prices for instance leather for the body of the knife and metal for the blades will always exert pressure on the Company’s costs and time when sourcing for these raw materials. These challenges mean that manufacturers need to find ways of obtaining supplies from different sources, and they also need to find efficient ways of getting their supplies to the demand point in order to ensure that customers always get the products that they need without making it too expensive so as to discourage demand.

FIGURE SKATES MARKET REGIONAL INSIGHTS

• NORTH AMERICA

North American leads the Figure Skates market mainly because of the growing influence of ice sports such as figure skating and ice hockey especially in U.S figure skates market. There is many ice rinks places and skating clubs situated in the region where people enjoy recreational and competitive skating. Other similar activities include major figure skating events such as the US Figure Skating Championship, and Winter Olympic activities. Also, innovation of skate manufacturing technology in North America reinforces diversification in the market extending across different skill levels and practices leading to market growth.

• EUROPE

Europe will remain an important market for figure skates for several reasons; several of the world’s leading figure skaters; and countries with a long-standing tradition of figure skating like Russia, France, and Germany among others. There is interest to participate and heightened interest in competitions such as the European Figure Skating Championships and the World Figure Skating Championships that are part of the continent. For European consumer, quality and design come first and hence manufacturers have developed superior technology and quality to meet this demand. In addition, growth of ice rinks and training programs across Europe is an indicator to market growth making the region a significant market for figure skates.

• ASIA

More demand is being reported for figure skates across Asia because of the growing trend in ice sports in the East Indies countries or Japan, China, South Korea, etc. There has been an established increased participation at the recreational –level as well as at the competitive level with influences such as the Winter Olympics and many ice-skating facilities. Investment by Chinese firms in capacities for winter sports due to the Beijing 2022 has also given the market more impetus. First, with youth programs being developed the recent media coverage of figure skating competitions is bringing in more athletes towards figure skating as Asia remains a key region for the future growth of the figure skate’s market.

KEY INDUSTRY PLAYERS

"Key Industry Players Shaping the Market Through Innovation and Market Expansion"

Key enterprise players that have established their presence in figure skate’s market are Jackson Ultima- A popular brand for recreational and professional figure skater Riedell-A brand having a reputation of custom figure skates GRAF-An industry with excellent precision and craftsmanship for figure skates. Bauer and CCM, both famous for the equipment for ice hockey, also provide figure skates for the other types of ice sports. Another Mizuno and Edea are new brand which are being appreciated for their creativity in design as well as fabrications. These firms have been investing in research and development for improvement of performance, comfort, sustainability, and this defines the competitiveness of the figure skate’s market.

List Of Top Figure Skates Market Companies

• Jackson Ultima (Canada)
• Edea (Italy)
• Risport Skates (Italy)
• Graf Skate (Switzerland)

KEY INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT

September 2023: Jackson Ultima came up with an environmentally friendly figure skater whom they produced fully from environment friendly materials a policy they adopted serious in environmental conservation without compromising the ISU rules performance standards.

REPORT COVERAGE

The figure skate’s market has all the potential to grow in the future due to contribution from the following aspects such as the increasing interest in the ice sports, development in the features of skate, development in the numbers of interested people in this game across the demographic divide, etc. North America, Europe and Asia are more significant due to factors like different market indices and available scope of the business. Some of the main manufacturers of figure skates include Jackson Ultima, Edea, Risport Skates, and Graf Skate ordinarily aiming at pleasing the consumers while incorporating elements of sustainability on their products. However, more issues like the high costs and the disrupted supply chain must be dealt with, so that the pace is sustained. Moving into more mature markets and as the popularity of the sport increases, the need for better, more performance figure skates should also increase. In total, figure skate’s market is filled with potential for growth due to various innovations and increasing number of fans all over the world.