According to a study conducted by the NPD Group in 2009, the swimwear and beachwear market represented 8.6 million euros at the time, making up 4% of the global sportswear market which turned over up to 213 billion euros in sales. Broadly speaking, over the last three years, the swimwear market had an equal if not better performance to that of the global sports market. In fiscal 2008/2009, for example, the two markets saw their sales decrease by 2%.

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More specifically, sales in the global beachwear market split into the following categories: products more directed at sport represent 45% of the market with 3.82 million euros, while those for leisure consist of the other 55%, with 4.74 million euros in sales.

In the next coming years, beachwear sales linked to leisure activities could grow in Asia, Middle East, North Africa and Brazil, said the NPD Group, while the sports section in beachwear has a bright future ahead in Western countries where life expectancy is growing and people are giving more and more value to keeping fit in order to avoid health problems. The study group also noted that performance sports is dominated by a handful of brands, while the beachwear market is filled with a multitude of brands, suggesting that there is a growing interest from performance sports brands in this niche.

Finally, the global swimwear market is turning its attention to more cutting-edge technology products, especially in sunscreen for children and also a new generation of thermal swimming costumes that allow you to swim in any type of water.