Look At This Chart: Nobody Wants A Fitness Band
Companies like Jawbone and Fitbit have released many iterations of their bracelet-like products and have even enlisted the help of top name designers to make their bands more attractive.
Unfortunately, it looks like no one actually wants a fitness band.
This week Baird's William Power issued a report that included the following chart, which we first saw on Fortune.
When 3,400 U.S. consumers were asked if they planned to buy a fitness band, 85% said no.
This is not only bad news for fitness band manufacturers, it's bad news for Apple. It means that the forthcoming Apple Watch won't just be up against sub-par competitors, it will be up against non-consumption.
Despite this data, companies are moving forward with their respective fitness bands. Here's Morgan Stanley's Katy Huberty, who issued this report from CES:
Fitness trackers are becoming mainstream products, with one company noting that their marketing is now less about education and introduction and more about helping customers choose the right device in its portfolio. Several leading fitness tracker companies introduced higher end products at CES or in recent months covering the gap between early generation trackers (~$100) and smartwatches (~$250+), aiming to capture potential customers that want more features (e.g., GPS, notifications) while limiting cannibalization of lower-cost solutions.
If this chart translates to sales, however, fitness band makers are in for a brutal wake up call.