Criteria for sportswear preference of Turkish runners

Abstract

Nowadays, while the importance of doing sports for a healthy life is spreading all over the world, consumers expect some performance and functional properties from sports products. It is expected that the sportswear must be in harmony with the body, do not create discomfort and do not affect the performance. The comfort of sportswear is an important criterion that affects the performance and motivates the athlete. There are dynamic and fundamental changes in the preferences of sports people with the change in the context; type of sports, the geography they live in, season, climate, their cultural, demographic and anthropologic characteristics, etc. While offering sportswear products to the market, brands should pay attention not only to quality parameters, but also to these criteria. This article aims to determine Turkish runners' sportswear preference criteria and expectations that are evaluated against past experiences and present desires. For the study, data were collected from 195 runners and statistically analyzed. With the data obtained from the questionnaires, the runner and running habits were analyzed, the perspective of sportswear shopping and purchasing preference criteria, sportswear size and fit issues, evaluation of the fabric properties, and the demands of the runners for sportswear were determined. This research gives resourceful information for sportswear manufacturers and comfort researchers since the compiled consumer feedback from runners provide tools for product improvement to enhance utility.