High performance tactical gear includes military personnel’s footwear coverings, protective body armor, helmets, and gloves. High-performance tactical gear also protects military personnel from biological and chemical hazards encountered during their missions.
High-Performance Tactical Equipment Market
The high-performance tactical equipment market is divided by product type, including gloves, body armor, boots, knives, helmets, glasses, and others. In 2016, body armor led all other product categories, and this trend is expected to continue from 2017 through 2025. The rising importance of ground forces is the main driver of the market during this period.
Tactical Gear Market Statistics
The tactical and outdoor apparel industry is massive and is expected to reach $4.26 billion in 2022. By comparison, the winter sports apparel sector, the parent industry of 5.11 Tactical, is projected to hit $3.5 billion by 2025.
According to Compass Diversified Holdings, which acquired 5.11 Tactical in 2016 for $401 million, approximately 64% of 5.11 Tactical’s revenue comes from military, police, and EMS clients, the original target audience of the brand. The remaining revenue comes from civilians.
5.11 Tactical expanded its product line in response to market trends. Consumers wanted the durability and technical features of tactical pants applied to other areas of their lives. This demand fueled the brand’s popularity and led to a broader product range.
Rising Popularity Among Consumers
The market for tactical and outdoor gear continues to grow, with everyone buying tactical products. While the general trend is clear, pinpointing the exact reason for the renewed consumer interest is more challenging. Many factors, such as durability, functionality, and lifestyle appeal, have contributed to the movement’s growth. .
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Tactical claims that their designs are merely satisfying market demand.
Consumers’ expectations for long-lasting items with technological features are rising as technology develops… That appears to be a role in the rising need for tactical and technological equipment-Although some are raising the alarm, they could be. The National Book Award-winning graphic novelist Nate Powell was one of the first to notice this increase in public attention. He described what he saw in About Face, a sprawling illustrated essay he produced for the journalist-owned, journalist-run magazine Popula in 2019.
Many businesses jumped at the chance to assist the new generations of military personnel and veterans reintegrating into civilian society as well as the average citizens who now more than ever before valued the achievements of troops, police, and first-responders. Even 20 years later, they are still there.
Moving Targets and Markets
More Americans than ever before are actively seeking for tactical equipment, according to statistics. Searches for 5.11 Tactical’s Apex Pant? 1,500 percent. Under Armour’s Stellar Tactical Boots? 4,750 percent.
Though there is little question that some aspects of the phenomena reflect tendencies found in almost every other product area. When consumers are seeking for the best-in-class items, products utilized by specialists in any field can have a distinct aura. However, when it comes to tactical equipment, the typical consumer’s cultural perception of what military certification means may ironically not match the meaning of the phrase.
Factions to Functionality
Distinguishing between effective and misleading marketing in tactical equipment can be challenging. Like many industries influenced by perception, it requires both analysis and intuition. Brands must balance communications aimed at professionals with genuine tactical needs against efforts to expand their civilian customer base for financial gain.
Civilian and Military Overlap
Many consumer brands avoid direct associations with the military, even though they produce adaptive, durable, and technically advanced products similar to tactical gear. Examples include technology-focused companies like Ministry of Supply and Outlier, durable workwear brands like Best American Duffel and Carhartt, and major outdoor gear producers.
Some brands, such as Alpha Industries, Randolph Engineering, G-Shock, Bell & Ross, and Triple Aught Design, sell products heavily influenced by the military or originally designed for military use, but they avoid marketing them as tools for war readiness.
Other popular tactical gear brands include Nike, Under Armour, Oakley, Camelbak, Condor, Tru-Spec, Blue Force Gear, 5.11 Tactical, Garmont, Arc’teryx, and Grunt Style.
Ethical Marketing
Brands in the tactical space are careful not to target extremists or encourage civilians to act as such. They also avoid knowingly supplying militias. Their focus remains on producing durable, functional, and technically sound gear for practical use.
