Retail Forecasts Signal Slight Growth for 2025 Holiday Season
The overall sentiment from the retail holiday forecasts released thus far is slight growth expected for the upcoming season with the largest gains still being driven by e-commerce.
“Category: NSGA News”
NSGA Advocacy in Action – FTC and Noncompete Agreements
NSGA, consistent with its 2023 position, filed a 2025 statement with the FTC supporting a ban on noncompetes indicating that these anticompetitive agreements are harmful to growth of businesses while causing economic harm to valued members of the sporting goods industry.
US Census Monthly Retail Trade Report – July 2025
According to the US Census Bureau’s Monthly Retail Trade Report, sales for sporting goods stores during the month of July reached $5.08 billion, representing no change (+0.1%) compared to the prior year.
Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame in Class of 2026 to Honor Four Iconic Figures
The Class of 2026 of the Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame includes
Sam Barcelona Jr. (Barcelona Sporting Goods), Tim Boyle (Columbia Sportswear), Mort Finkelstein (MC Sporting Goods) and Scott Hedrick (Pro Athlete, Inc.).
US Census Monthly Retail Trade Report – June 2025
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Monthly Retail Trade Report, sales for sporting goods stores during the month of June reached $4.96 billion, representing a decrease of 5.7 percent compared to the prior year.
John Davenport of Winmark Corporation/Play It Again Sports Joins NSGA Board of Directors
The National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) made a change to its Board of Directors with the appointment of John Davenport of Winmark Corporation/Play It Again Sports.
NSSRA Makes Change to Board of Directors
The National Ski & Snowboard Retailers Association (NSSRA) named Stefan Hausberger of Zimmermanns Skis Boards & More (Nashua, New Hampshire) the new NSSRA Vice Chair as Jon Morrill of Kittery Trading Post (Kittery, Maine) retires and leaves the NSSRA Board of Directors. Morrill was previously the Vice Chair.
Former TAG Buying Group Leader, Owner Trevor Swangard Passes Away
Trevor Swangard, who was a leader and owner in the Team Athletic Goods (TAG) buying group, passed away on June 27 at 85.
Coats Acquires OrthoLite
Coats, the world’s leading manufacturer in thread and structural components for apparel and footwear, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire OrthoLite, the global market leader of premium insoles.
The One Big Beautiful Bill – What it Means for NSGA Small Businesses
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) became law on July 4, 2025 after narrowly passing through Congress. The following is an in-depth summary of the OBBBA and how it may affect NSGA small business members.