Nielsen data shows NZ retail brands are changing strategies to win over outdoor enthusiasts

Rebel Sport leads ad investment as brands compete for a large, active and quality-focused audience

Auckland, March 31, 2026 - New Nielsen data shows New Zealand outdoor retail brands are reshaping how they advertise as competition increases for one of the country's most commercially valuable lifestyle audiences - outdoor enthusiasts.

New Nielsen Consumer & Media Insights (CMI) data shows around 2.21 million New Zealanders qualify as outdoor enthusiasts through their interest or participation in fishing, hunting, tramping or camping, making them a substantial audience for brands looking to connect with consumers through lifestyle, wellbeing, performance and quality.

This audience is broad, active and highly engaged. 54.3% are male and 45.7% are female, while nearly half are aged 20 to 49. They are also motivated shoppers, with 67.4% comfortable shopping online, almost 50% saying quality matters most when buying clothes, and 37.2% saying they put quality ahead of cost.

Their top activities in the past year included walking or power walking (33.0%), fishing (29.9%), camping (29.6%), swimming or diving (26.0%), and going to the gym or working out (21.7%).

Against that backdrop, Nielsen Ad Intel data shows advertising spend across a selected group of major outdoor retailers in New Zealand remained broadly stable in 2025, rising 0.9% year-on-year to NZ$34.3 million, up from NZ$34.0 million in 2024.

While the overall market was steady, the way brands invested changed noticeably as retailers looked for different ways to stay visible with outdoor enthusiasts.

Rebel Sport was the biggest advertiser in the group in 2025, increasing spend 21.8% year-on-year. It was followed by Hunting & Fishing NZ, Macpac, Kathmandu, Torpedo7, then Bivouac Outdoor Clothing & Equipment.

Across the retailers analysed, radio was the largest channel by spend in 2025, attracting NZ$11.1 million, followed by general display at NZ$7.7 million, TV at NZ$5.6 million, social at NZ$4.7 million, and out of home at NZ$3.5 million.

The figures show brands are taking increasingly different paths to reach outdoor enthusiasts. Rebel Sport lifted investment across digital, radio and out of home, while reducing TV spend. Macpac also shifted strategy, significantly increasing out of home investment. Kathmandu, meanwhile, reduced overall spend sharply year-on-year, but still remained the biggest out of home investor in the group.

Torpedo7 increased ad spend 17% year-on-year, driven largely by social media, while Hunting & Fishing NZ remained heavily focused on radio, which accounted for the vast majority of its 2025 investment.

Nielsen Ad Intel's Pacific Commercial Lead, Rose Lopreiato, said: "Outdoor enthusiasts are a valuable audience because they are not only highly engaged in the category, they are also active shoppers who care about quality, lifestyle and performance. What Nielsen's data shows is that brands are using very different media strategies to connect with them. Some are leaning harder into radio, digital and out of home, while others are rebalancing their mix. Nielsen Ad Intel helps advertisers see where competitors are investing and how to position more effectively with the audiences that matter most."

The data also suggests this audience is not defined by adventure alone. Almost half of outdoor enthusiasts, (48.7%), say they are concerned about the impact of stress on their health, pointing to a broader opportunity for brands to connect around wellbeing, balance and everyday lifestyle, as well as outdoor performance.

About Nielsen Ad Intel

Ad Intel provides the most complete source of cross-platform advertising intelligence available today. With intuitive software, review-and-compare ad activity across media, company, category or brand, plus historical data.

Note: Nielsen monitors gross advertising expenditure in major media at published rate card values. While discounts are made available from some media owners, rates are not openly available. Please also note that the category and brand/product groupings figures are grouped at Nielsen's discretion.

About Nielsen

Nielsen is a global leader in audience measurement, data and analytics. Through our understanding of people and their behaviors across all channels and platforms, we empower our clients with independent and actionable intelligence so they can connect and engage with their global audiences - now and into the future. Learn more at www.nielsen.com and connect with us on social media (X, LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram).

Dan Chapman
Assoc. Director, Communications, Nielsen, APAC
[email protected]
+61 404 088 462