Behind the Nielsen data: How Shokz stands out in the global sports headphone market

Nielsen, a global market research organization, recently released the Sport 2024 research report during the Paris Marathon. The data shows that 68% of consumers have the habit of listening to music while running, and Apple and Shokz are on the list of the most commonly worn headphone brands when consumers run. Among them, Shokz, which is positioned as a professional sports headphone, is the only brand in the top 5 of the list that focuses on the research and development of open-back headphones, and it is also the only brand from China.

2024年9月获得IRONMAN铁人三项世界锦标赛女子冠军的德国运动员Laura Philipp也证明了这一点。她在最近的采访中提到“因为害怕听不到外界的声音，被突然出现的车辆吓到，所以在之前训练时从未听过音乐，但遇到韶音开放式耳机之后，现在我甚至可以在游泳时使用它们，这对我来说非常棒，因为游泳是我的弱项，而且有时很单调。”

Focusing on the Chinese domestic market, the popularity of marathon events in recent years is obvious to all. Not only has the number of participants reached new highs, the scale of the event has continued to expand, and the number of sponsors has increased year by year. This trend has not only promoted the rapid development of the sports industry, but also brought huge opportunities and challenges to the sports headphone market.

Marathon events create huge demand for sports headphones

According to the official website of China Marathon, there are more than 410 large and small marathon events across the country (excluding Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) in 2024, with a large number of participants. The number of participants in events such as Chengdu Marathon, Beijing Marathon and Xiamen Marathon has reached tens of thousands. These data show that the number of participants and scale of marathon events in China have reached unprecedented heights.

Not only are marathon events popular, but more challenging mountain cross-country running and human-vehicle relay races such as UTMB, Chaigu Downs and Over the Mountains to the Sea have also attracted a large number of enthusiasts due to the beautiful scenery along the way.

Because of this, runners' demands for sports equipment have increased in terms of both category and quality. As one of the important equipment, the market demand for sports headphones has been greatly stimulated.

洛图科技最新发布的研究报告指出，2024年第三季度中国耳机市场的销量与销售额均实现了显著增长。销量达到了2990万副，同比增长了26.8%；销售额攀升至51.6亿元，同比增长了20.8%。其中，运动耳机作为重要的细分市场之一，其市场规模和增长速度均表现出强劲的势头。

According to current market trends and data, the prospects of the sports earphone market are predicted. On the one hand, with the improvement of health awareness and the popularization of fitness exercises, more and more consumers will pay attention to and buy open-type sports earphones represented by Shokz; on the other hand, with the advancement of technology and the popularization of smart wearable devices, sports earphones will achieve more breakthroughs and innovations in sound quality, waterproof performance, wearing comfort, etc. These factors will jointly promote the rapid development of the sports earphone market.

Shokz leads the sports earphone market with professionalism

As shown in the Nielsen Sport 2024 survey data, the reason why Shokz stands out among a number of traditional headphone brands in the world is precisely because of its deep cultivation of "professionalism" in the field of sports headphones.

Looking at the growth history of global headphone brands, most brands started out with basic in-ear headphones. After accumulating a certain market share, they expanded their product categories based on consumer demand.

Shokz is completely different from other brands. It has been determined to develop "professional sports headphones" since its inception. As early as 2021, Kipchoge, the world's first athlete to complete a marathon in two hours, signed a contract with Shokz to become its spokesperson in China. For more than four years, Kipchoge has worked with Shokz to instill the sports spirit of "No human is limited" into every runner who constantly challenges himself, and also allowed more sports enthusiasts to experience the extraordinary feeling brought by open professional sports headphones. At the first Shokz Sports Carnival last year, Kipchoge's China Tour has always been talked about by fans. This year, Shokz once again officially announced that Kipchoge has become its global spokesperson.

This shows that Shaoyin continues to pay attention to the field of running and sports. In the second half of 2024 alone, according to public information, Shaoyin is the official diamond partner and the only designated sports earphone of the 2024 Chaigu Tangs Kuacang Cross-Country Race, the official sponsor of the 2024 Hangzhou Women's Half Marathon, and the only designated sports earphone of the 2024 Chengdu Marathon. At the just-concluded Beijing Marathon Expo, well-known cross-country runner Shen Jiasheng and a large number of marathon participants went to the Shaoyin booth to experience the products, and there was an endless stream of people. It is no exaggeration to say that Shaoyin is the most enthusiastic professional earphone brand in China for various marathons and cross-country running events.

Whether it is the ranking of Nielsen Sport 2024 survey data, the outstanding performance of Shokz elite athlete Laura Philipp, or the runners wearing Shokz sports headphones in various marathon and cross-country running events, it shows that Shokz is continuing to bring more professional and exciting sports listening experience to sports enthusiasts around the world.