Female purchases of weight training equipment increased by 64 percent, while sales of chin-up bars and kettlebells increased 198 percent and 142 percent respectively. (image: Kobiz Media / Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, May 14 (Korea Bizwire) — Korean women are increasingly buying weights and other muscle-building exercise equipment.
According to a statement from online shopping mall G-Market on May 13, sales of such items among female customers between April 12 and May 11 increased threefold compared to the same period last year.
Female purchases of weight training equipment increased by 64 percent, while sales of chin-up bars and kettlebells increased 198 percent and 142 percent respectively. Sales of abdominal exercise equipment also increased 112 percent among female customers, while sales of dumbbells and bench press machines increased by 69 percent and 48 percent.
Sales of health and energy supplements increased 44 percent among female customers, while sales of such products only increased 22 percent among male customers. However, sales of conventional diet products, which were previously popular among women, have been decreasing.
Kim Yoon-sang, director of the sporting goods department at G-Market, said that Korean women are more interested in athletic and well-shaped bodies these days, rather than skinny, flat bodies, and some women trainers are becoming extremely popular on internet communities.
By J. W. Choi (summerchoi@koreabizwire.com)
