There’s no doubt that the warmer weather has people itching to get out of their houses and have some quality fun in the sun. This past year has posed quite the challenge to nearly everyone and they are more than ready for some essential Vitamin D. Towels, chairs, umbrellas, sunglasses, robes, sunscreen, and lip balm are tantamount to relaxing *and* riding the waves!
Boca Terry’s Laura Lewis believes the world is suddenly waking up. “People want to be outside—having fun and living life again,” she affirms. Leading trends at Boca Terry are lightweight fabrics for both robes and beach towels, she maintains, with striped solid beach towels top performers in both very bright and very muted colors.
Peerless has seen an uptick in umbrellas as well as chairs, according to Charity Gibson. “Trying to find a Royal Blue or Black beach or camp chair in the industry has been a treasure hunt for people,” she comments. “We've also seen games becoming more and more popular in the last 30 days. After being stuck inside or very close to home for the last year, people are ready to get outside and play. If the promo trends are an indicator of what's to come, it's going to be very busy outside! Demand has been strong and steady.”
Daniel Berkowitz at Oak & Olive/Picnic Plus could not agree more, adding that the “staycation,” local travel, and remaining within your immediate family “pod” are all contributing to people flocking to the beaches. “Consumers can spend more valuable time with their spouse, significant other, and family away from the house,” he elaborates, “taking the family to a local beach, lake, or the newest and most popular resort—'Porta Backyarda.’ Demand has been great, we have been extremely busy with all our beach, picnic, and outdoor products due to everyone home and staying local.”
Rena Ashford at Webb Company-HPG adds that more time spent outside means more requests for items such as sunscreen, lip balms, hand sanitizer, and insect repellant—citing that spending time outdoors still needs to be safe and sanitized.
Tekweld’s Christine Stewart has also noticed that demand for beach items has been picking up as the travel sector of the market is opening up, with sunglasses, beachballs, sunscreen, and the company’s combination sand shovel/ice scraper trending.
The following new and best-selling items are guaranteed to make any beach experience a memorable one! Oak & Olive/Picnic Plus’s exclusive MEGA MAT—an all season, 100 percent waterproof mat—is perfect for “social distancing” at the beach, park, or lake, Berkowitz notes. It is available in 12 fashionable designs.
Peerless has a wide variety of beach and market umbrellas that have been performing well this year. Gibson adds that sales of the company’s chairs and games have really picked up.
Webb Company-HPG’s Ashford shares that the company has introduced new summer kits--#SETSUM (Set for Summer) and #MINISUNKIT (a miniature version of Set for Summer), #SETSUM contains sunglasses in a variety of colors, lotion, aloe vera gel, coconut-scented sunscreen, lip balm/sunscreen kit, DEET-free insect repellant, mask freshening spray, mask with super stretchable elastic ear loops, lunch bag, and sunglasses soft case. Included in the mini-kit are sunglasses, aloe vera gel, sunscreen, and lip balm. Ashford adds that the company’s best sellers are Made in USA Lip Balms and Made in USA Sunscreens.
When it comes to selling beach wares, Berkowitz at Oak & Olive/Picnic Plus recommends considering the big picture. “Think of products that have a longevity for many years of use, rather than just another landfill item,” he emphasizes. “Companies should invest in quality products that can maintain brand recognition for years, not hours or days. Food products are eaten in hours and forgotten, low quality products get thrown out and companies should invest in products that represent their own philosophy of quality over quantity.”
Partnering with a supplier can also help streamline the process, according to Gibson at Peerless. “Most often it's just a matter of mentioning them and getting people thinking about the possibilities!” she comments. “We have flyers specifically built to help market these products and get people talking about ‘getting out to play’ or a ‘backyard vacation.’ Outdoor items in general are higher ticket items, but they have a ton of potential to not only go where people are, but to be seen when they are there. Market umbrellas are great for shade outside of any business or on the beach.
“We also have one umbrella in particular, the 3402USB, that has a solar strip on the top with USB out in the pole,” she continues. “It collects and stores solar power so people can charge their phones and devices outside using solar power. We had one client do 25 sets of a solar umbrella and two chairs to set underneath as an outdoor seating area on the beach, just outside their regular dining area. Not only was it functional and fun, but it was highly visible as well and helped draw people in.”
Gibson concludes that generally chairs and tailgate tables end up out on the beach and/or in campgrounds in plain view of people that are a good distance away from the actual products and act as billboards for brands. Truly, life is better at the beach!