Sunbears participated in Japan’s largest sports exhibition, SPORTEC2024, held at Tokyo Big Sight from July 16 to 18! This was our second time exhibiting, following last year.
We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who visited our booth during the event. We take this opportunity to express our sincere gratitude.
This year, Amrita and Naoto from our Tokyo headquarters’ marketing team, along with intern Tetsuya, participated for the first time. Additionally, two more members joined to support the event. We will share the details of the exhibition based on their report.
An exhibition of real scale
First and foremost, SPORTEC is an exhibition where companies, local governments, universities, and research institutes involved in the sports and health industries come together. It boasts approximately 600 exhibitors from Japan and abroad, attracts around 40,000 visitors, and features about 90 lectures and seminars. It is one of the largest sports-related exhibitions in Japan.
SPORTEC2024
Dates: July 16–18, 2024
Location: Tokyo Big Sight, East Exhibition Hall
Number of visitors: 37,611
Number of exhibitors: Approximately 630 companies
URL: sports-st.com
Source: SPORTEC
The scope of the sports and health industry is broad. For example, in sports, it encompasses equipment, apparel, facilities, services, food and beverages, as well as medical care, sports science, sports technology, events, tourism, and facility management. SPORTEC serves as an ideal platform for gathering the latest information, trends, and cutting-edge technologies in this expanding industry. It also offers excellent opportunities for business expansion, networking, and negotiations.
Amrita, who participated for the first time, shared her impressions, saying, “The scale of SPORTEC was overwhelming, with various companies, ideas, and products all showcased under one roof”. She also noted that there were country-specific sections, such as the China and Taiwan areas, making it a highly international event.
Similarly, Naoto, also a first-time participant, mentioned that the event booths were bustling with unique SPORTEC events like physique competitions and dance contests, adding, “The atmosphere at the venue was very energetic”.
According to Naoto, not only sports professionals but also engineers from other fields, such as communication technology and camera technology, were exploring interesting ways to combine their expertise with sports-related products. This suggests a strong demand for cross-industry collaborations, co-creation, and partnerships.
The exhibition didn’t seem to have a specific theme, but it was noticeable that many companies were showcasing products like commercial fitness machines, equipment for trainers, and supplements. Additionally, there were booths featuring products for gym membership management, reservation systems, and fitness management software for individuals.
The sports industry is also experiencing an AI boom
Amrita noted that many booths and exhibiting companies emphasised “automation and motion tracking through cameras”, indicating a strong focus on these technologies. This is further evidenced by numerous inquiries we received from coaches of sports like soccer and basketball, asking about features for automatically tracking player movements during games and generating practice drills.
In the sports industry, there is no doubt that the demand for digital tracking and AI will grow, leading to continuous advancements in technology on the supply side.
These trends provide us with significant insights. Currently, our cloud-based “training drills” feature allows for the automatic generation of 2D/3D animations. The next step we are considering involves using digital tracking technology for data measurement and storage. Specifically, we aim to digitise player movements, capturing data such as acceleration, the timing of movements, and the player’s perspective of the surroundings in different situations. By training AI models using these simulations, we could develop AI advisors.
The application of digital tracking and AI will make previously impossible tasks achievable. It seems only a matter of time before these ideals become a reality.
A big thank you to all who visited our booth!
Our booth was relatively small compared to others, but we are grateful to everyone who stopped by and learned about Sunbears. Here are the Sunbears features that particularly caught the interest of visitors, along with their feedback and potential uses.
Sunbears software
General features
- Grant Support for Sports Promotion: Municipal officials expressed interest in exploring whether the software could be adopted with grant support for activities like sports promotion.
- For Sports Team Management: University administration staff showed interest in potentially implementing the product for managers like coaches and directors. They appreciated that Sunbears allows an unlimited number of player registrations, which makes it cost-effective.
- Cost Concerns Due to Large Team Sizes: University representatives noted they were searching for alternative software due to high costs associated with managing large teams.
Injury assessment features
- Electronic Medical Records Compatibility: A clinic practitioner mentioned they wouldn’t use the injury assessment feature since they already have electronic medical records.
- Convenience vs. Practicality: A trainer acknowledged the feature’s convenience but noted that recording injuries might be challenging in busy environments.
Scheduling and training plan features
- Quick Planning and Visualisation: Teams, including tennis and marathon runners, found the ability to quickly create training plans and visualise schedules very useful.
- Usability Across Different Sports: Athletes from non-team sports, like boxing and tennis, suggested it would be beneficial if the software could be tailored for individual sports.
Additionally, we were thrilled that nearly everyone praised the accuracy and ease of use of the drill drawing feature. Many visitors also appreciated the sRPE/Conditioning Chart feature. The team was delighted to hear that many found the package pricing very reasonable, especially for large teams.
While Sunbears is primarily designed as a practice support platform for team sports like soccer, basketball, futsal, rugby, ice hockey, and American football, we received numerous inquiries from individuals involved in sports like tennis, baseball, and marathon running. They asked if the platform could be customised to meet the specific needs of their sports. We plan to share this feedback with our development team and discuss the feasibility of such customisations in the future.
What we learned from SPORTEC2024
Despite the limited budget and booth space, there were many aspects of this year’s exhibition, but there were also many more learning experiences. Feedback from participating members is summarised below.
Booth design
Improvements needed:
There was room for improvement in the layout and pop-up design of the booth.
Targeted design:
Designing the booth to more clearly target specific users, such as “coaches” or “soccer team managers” would be effective.
Development
Future enhancements:
There is a desire to further discuss with the development team about enhancing digital tracking and AI solutions, including the digitalisation and automation of drill drawing.
Marketing
High demand for certain sports:
Soccer and basketball attracted significant interest, with many attendees requesting demos.
Market research:
Conducting market research to identify popular sports in different regions is crucial.
Expanding connections:
It is important to establish connections not only with university coaches and trainers but also with local governments, regional sports departments, physical therapists, and orthopedic doctors working with sports teams.
Product features
Add-on packages:
The team reaffirmed the value of offering various add-on packages.
Trainer interest:
The positive feedback on the “Injury Assessment Sheet” and “sRPE/Conditioning Chart” reassured the team that improving the features in the Trainer Omni Package is the right direction.
Conclusion
The exhibition was an incredibly positive and enlightening experience for us. We were thrilled to hear from many attendees that our product ideas were “very unique and unlike anything seen before”.
At the same time, the feedback highlighted areas for improvement. We are eager to address these user pain points and improve our offerings.
We are committed to refining the unique aspects of Sunbears and enhancing its value, aiming to make it an indispensable practice support platform for university clubs and teams.
Thank you, SPORTEC2024!!
