Running continues to be fashionable. Running is positioned as the preferred sporting activity for Spaniards, who after the 2020 pandemic saw how it gained new followers not so much focused on participating in popular races but in incorporating running into their lifestyle. A healthier lifestyle in which keeping fit, losing weight or clearing the head gained strength, as opposed to the more traditional model of runner who participates in races. This was seen in 2021, when many races lost participants, mainly long-distance races.
But 2022 has meant the return to the races of popular runners and at the same time the presence of women has been consolidated and is gaining presence both in asphalt and trail. However, the sum of people who run to keep fit or to clear their heads represents 66% of the total number of runners, compared to 34% who run to prepare for popular races, according to RUNNEA data.
The sum of people who run for fitness or to clear their heads accounts for 66% of all runners.
Faced with this new paradigm of different types of runners, we wanted to focus the RUNNEA 2022 report on getting to know a little better the tastes and preferences of runners in Spain. Their favorite brands and models depending on whether they consider themselves beginners, intermediate or advanced runners. And delve into the way they like to run.
More than 3300 people have participated in a survey with the idea of trying to help understand the behavior of popular Spanish runners when choosing their favorite shoes.
In this report we wanted to analyze in depth the more commercial side of running, and the study delves into consumer preferences in terms of the preferred brands in the sector, the qualities for which sports equipment is valued, as well as annual spending on running.
Preferred running surface
In Spain, the majority of popular runners continue to run on asphalt. The number of people who prefer running in the mountains is growing, but is still a long way from running on asphalt. Some 77% of those surveyed say they run on asphalt compared with 23% who run in natural environments.
Popular runners' habits
Popular runners in Spain go running an average of 3 days a week. A total of 369 of those surveyed corroborate this. Some 28% run 4 days a week, and 139 run up to 5 times a week.
In terms of the time spent running, the majority option is 50 to 90 minutes with a total of 56.5 of the votes. This was followed by 30 to 50 minutes with 315 and more than 90 minutes with 8.4% of the total.
Motivations for going to run
As we explained in the introduction to the RUNNEA 2022 Report, in Spain we run mainly as a lifestyle goal. Despite this, the majority option is to prepare for a race. A total of 337 of those surveyed selected this option as the main motivation for going running.
With 317 of the total is the option running to get fit and 26.8% running to clear the head. The fourth option, at a considerable distance from the rest, was running to lose weight, with 2.4% of the total number of respondents.
Running alone or in company
Another trend that is gaining popularity is that of running in company. Ten percent of runners always run in the company of other runners. And 43.8% do so on occasion, running both alone and with other people. However, the majority of runners still run alone , with 46.4% of the total number of runners.
Consumer habits in running shoes
Popular runners' favorite stores
In this annual report we wanted to find out more about the consumer habits of popular runners in Spain, so we asked the participants in the study about their favorite stores and brands.
As for the stores where popular runners prefer to buy their running products, more than 50% of those surveyed buy in official brand stores, i.e. in the official Nike, Adidas, Asics or New Balance stores among others, as opposed to specialized or multi-product stores such as Forum Sport, El Corte Inglés, Amazon, Zalando, Decathlon, Sprinter, Bikila or Deporvillage among others.
And as for the preference of the purchase if in physical store or online, 43.5 do it both ways, compared to 30.1% who prefer the physical store or 26.4% who prefer to do it through the Internet.
Spending on running shoes
The average spend in Spain on a running shoe is between 100 and 150€. It was the majority option for 45.1% of the runners surveyed, followed by the 80 to 100€ option with a total of 323. 11% between €50 and €80 and 8.8% between 200 and 200 per shoe.
And there is a great equality between those who buy two pairs of shoes a year (41% of the total) and those who buy only one pair (40.3). And 115 buy running shoes every 3 months.
The quality of the product is the option that most people take into account when deciding which shoe to buy. A total of 38.8% said so. A total of 22.3, however, gave priority to the comfort of the shoe, and 12.3 to the discount or promotion of the shoe. Other options, such as the specific model or the brand, were also ranked behind. In short, the perception of quality and comfort together with the discount are the reasons that motivate the purchase of one running shoe or another in Spain.
Preferred brands and models of running shoes
Before knowing the brands and models most recognized by popular runners in Spain, we wanted to make a distinction between types of runners, forming 3 archetypes of runners: beginners, intermediate and advanced.
Types of popular runners
- Beginner runners: Runners who have been running for less than a year and run a maximum of 2 days a week with the aim of keeping fit.
- Intermediate/amateur: Runners who run an average of 2 to 3 days per week, have been running for more than 12 months. They run mainly for fitness but have participated in some popular races.
- Advanced and experts: Runners who run a minimum of 3 days a week, have been running for more than 3 years and participate regularly in popular races.
shoes PREFERENCES IF YOU ARE A BEGINNER ROAD RUNNER
What is your favorite brand of shoes?
Among those who consider themselves beginner asphalt runners, ASICS is the favorite brand with a total of 26.8% of the votes. Adidas is close behind with 19.9 of the votes, followed closely by Nike with 19% and New Balance in fourth place with 8.9. Further behind are Brooks, Mizuno and Saucony with around 5 of the votes.
Most popular Shoes for beginner asphalt runners
The Nike Pegasus 39 is the most popular shoes for popular beginner asphalt runners. A total of 64.6% of voters recognized this shoe as the one they like the most (survey participants could select a maximum of 3 shoes). It is followed by the Adidas Ultraboost 22, ASICS Gel Nimbus 24, New Balance Fresh Foam 1080v12, Brooks Glycerin 20, Mizuno Wave Rider 26 and Saucony Triumph 20.
Respondents could name up to 3 different running shoes.
SHOES PREFERENCES IF YOU ARE AN INTERMEDIATE ROAD RUNNER
What is your favorite brand of shoes?
For those who consider themselves intermediate asphalt runners, Nike ranks as their favorite brand with 25.8% of the votes. In second and third place are ASICS and Adidas but with only one vote difference and 185 of the total votes. Fourth place goes to New Balance with 10.1%, Saucony 7.4% and Brooks with a 72.
Most popularShoes for intermediate asphalt runners.
The Nike Pegasus 39 repeats in this category as the most recognized shoes for intermediate asphalt runners with 74.1% of the votes.
In second place are the Adidas Ultraboost 22, followed by the ASICS Gel Nimbus 24 and the New Balance 1080v12. Further behind are the Brooks Glycerin 20 and the Mizuno Wave Rider 26on only one vote between them.
PREFERENCES IN SHOES IF YOU ARE AN ADVANCED ASPHALT RUNNER
What is your favorite brand of shoes?
The most advanced runners also select Nike as their favorite brand with a total of 319 of the total votes. Adidas is in second place with 233 of the votes, and ASICS loses some steam in this segment of runners although it maintains the third position97) but closely followed by New Balance with a 95 of the total. Fifth place goes to Saucony followed by Hoka.
Most popularShoes for advanced asphalt runners
There is one characteristic that is repeated in the 10 most popular shoes for advanced runners according to the RUNNEA survey. And that is that they are all carbon plate shoes.
The favorite shoe for popular advanced runners is the Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Netx% 2 followed by the adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3 and with another adidas in third place, the adidas Adizero Boston 11 The fourth place also goes to ASICS with the ASICS Metaspeed Sky. And then we find the Nike Zoom Fly 5, HOKA Carbon X3, Saucony Endorphin Pro 3 and New Balance FuelCell SC Elite v3
PREFERENCES IN SHOES IF YOU ARE A BEGINNER TRAIL RUNNER
What is your favorite brand of trail running shoes?
This is one of the most evenly matched categories when it comes to choosing the favorite brand for trail runners who consider themselves beginners. First place goes to ASICS with 16.8% of the total votes. This is followed by Salomon with 12.6% of the votes. Nike with 11.4, Hoka with 10.8%, Adidas with a 9,6%, the same percentage as New Balance, and behind Merrell with 87 and Brooks with a 72.
Most popularShoes for beginner trail runners
And the most popular shoes are the Nike Pegasus Trail 4, followed by the Adidas Terrex Trailrider, third place for the Salomon Sense Ride 4
Behind them are the HOKA Challenger ATR 6, ASICS Gel Sonoma 6 and New Balance Nitrel v5.
PREFERENCES IN SHOES IF YOU ARE AN INTERMEDIATE TRAIL RUNNING
What is your favorite trail running shoes brand?
This is undoubtedly the most evenly matched of all the categories in this report. There are no major differences between the most recognized brands for this profile of trail runner. Despite this, Hoka takes first place in the ranking of brands with 15.8% of the total votes. Second place goes to ASICS with 133 and third place goes to Salomon with 122. The top five positions are completed by Salomon with 11.4% and New Balance with 10.8%.
Most popular Shoes among intermediate trail runners
Second place goes to ASICS Gel Trabuco 10 and the New Balance Fresh Foam X Hierro v7 completes the podium.
The Adidas Terrex Agravic Flow 2.0 is in fourth place and fifth place goes to the Salomon Ultra Glide with the same number of votes as the Brooks Cascadia 16
PREFERENCES IN SHOES IF YOU ARE AN ADVANCED TRAIL RUNNING
What is your favorite brand of shoes?
We come to the category of those who consider themselves advanced trail runners. Here there is a clear winner brand. We are talking about Hoka, which gets the recognition of 25.2 of the votes. La Sportiva is in second place (163) and Salomon is in third place (10.6%).
Most popularShoes for advanced trail runners
The most recognized trail shoes by advanced trail runners are the HOKA Mafate Speed 4. followed by the ASICS Gel Trabuco 10 and the Salomon S/Lab Genesis. Fourth place goes to the Adidas Terrex Speed Pro and in fifth place comes for the first time a shoe from Kilian Jornet's brand, NNormal. They are the NNormal Kjerag.
Conclusion
If we take into account the Runnómetro report we conducted in 2017 we can see that some things have changed in the world of the popular runner. The number of people who practice running with the aim of clearing the mind is growing. The percentage of runners who run to get fit is maintained and the percentage of runners who run to prepare for races is growing. This is mainly driven by the increasingpresence of women in popular races.
As for the choice of running shoes, quality and comfort continue to be the main characteristics sought by buyers.
In terms of brands, there are significant variations between asphalt and trail shoes. There are brands that are growing strongly, such as Hoka, and we see that the more veteran brands are holding their own in asphalt, such as Nike, Asics, adidas and New Balance. But they suffer in trail running, mainly Nike and Adidas.
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