Mom Economy: The Real Growth Driver in Youth Sports
Mom Economy: The Real Growth Driver in Youth Sports
When you’re selling into the B2C sports market…
You’re main target is moms.
They have the buying power, intention to help their kid, and decision-making control.
Let’s explore this deeper 👇
Moms & Youth Sports
Youth sports are interesting for a variety of reasons…
One of them is if you want to play in the pros you can’t ignore the foundational element that builds all of it — without youth sports, we have nothing at the top.
In a future briefing, we’re going dive deeper into how the major North American leagues are starting to look at downstream opportunities…
The goal: control the ecosystem (and profit from it) from 5 years old to retirement.
One of the things that makes youth sports so intriguing…
Is the mom of a child — who has incredible buying power and wants to take care of their kid(s).
Most of the US consumer base is women:
85% of all consumer purchases in the U.S. are made by women.
50% of products typically marketed to men are purchased by women.
75% of women identify themselves as the primary household shopper.
92% of vacations
93% of food purchases
80% of healthcare decisions
And this goes further than you think…
Moms Beyond Youth Sports
While we might think the decision-making power of moms only extends until kids reach college…
Many colleges, federations, and even pro leagues fold moms into the mix.
This is most prevalent in the mental health space…
We’re seeing newsletters, forums, and discussions of athlete-moms in pro leagues to make sure the health of athletes is prime.
For example, the USLPA engages soccer moms of pro players — especially the ones who go overseas and are going through major adjustments.
Team moms have a lot of influence — and that doesn’t always have to come through millions of followers.
This is the same reason you see many athletes trust their moms as agents and financial decision-makers.
And don’t forget, health insurance lasts until athletes are 26 years old.
Youth Sports for Parents
Something we don’t think about enough is the fact that travel sports aren’t just for the kids…
Often the parents use them as social activities.
They go on the road, hang out in the hotel, hit the bars, and get to experience new cities — mini-vacations to some degree.
Some of my parent’s best friends are from my travel basketball days.
The funny thing is…
Yes, I got a full scholarship to Boston University for basketball.
Free?
No.
If you ask my parents they’ll say it was a great discount — meaning they paid a good amount of money for me to get that scholarship via trainers, travel teams, tutors, and more.
Definitely worth it — but I was blessed to be a part of the small percentage of athletes lucky enough to play at the next level.
Fastbreak CEO John Stewart says he spends between $5,000-$25,000/year on each of his kid’s travel sports.
The monetization opportunity is clear — if the market wants all these new products/services is TBD.
What Sports Needs (not wants)
One of the mistakes sports startup founders make is they enter the industry with a passion and try to get an idea to stick.
Many founders end up wasting too much time (and capital) convincing the market that they have an issue that the market isn’t aware of or consumers don’t know about.
This is before they can even get to the level of educating the market/consumers that their product is the absolute best.
We’re now starting to see more business-minded folks enter the space and attack the gaps based on opportunity (not just passion).
Branding 101 🎨
We’ve now uncovered the power of sports, the buying power of females/moms, and solving true sports business issues (not just passion projects).
So how do you educate the market?
Sell EMOTIONS…not services.
Ferrari sells status, not cars.
Apple sells trends, not gadgets.
Amazon sells convenience, not products.
Disney sells memories, not rollercoasters.
Apply this to sports adjacent brands and you see much of the same!
Nike sells stories, not shoes.
Topgolf sells experiences, not golf.
Peloton sells community, not bikes.
Gatorade sells endurance, not drinks.
Lululemon sells comfort, not clothing.
ESPN sells excitement, not broadcasts.
North Face sells adventure, not outerwear.
Red Bull sells adrenaline, not energy drinks.
This section is part of the “Sports Startup Course” which is dropping on September 5th in the Profluence+ Community (free for all members).
Podcasts 🎙
Insightful guests this past week:
Jordan Gazdik - Founder, Benchplayers (listen here)
With ownership in sports assets from grassroots to the pros, Jordan Gazdik breaks down the landscape for us.
John Stewart - Founder, Fastbreak AI (listen here)
We explore their rapid expansion from pro to youth sports, John also drops great knowledge on fundraising, managing company financials, & more.
Profluence+ Community 🌏
Cricket panel tonight (8/15/24) at 5pm EST.
Since you're a subscriber, here's a preview of upcoming community events:
8/20 group chat with Justin Driscoll (Principal LeAD Sports Capital)
8/27 group chat with Lauren Selig, PE Sports Investor
Become a Profluence+ member to attend these amazing sessions!
Appreciate you reading today!
Good luck to everyone going back to school (and parents sending their kids off to school).
Peace,
Andrew 👋