By Ashley Reyes
The specialty-equipment market showed positive results in 2022 with an overall market growth of 2% and reaching $51.8 billion in sales, according to the new "2023 SEMA Market Report." This continues a decade of growth for the industry, even among recent economic turmoil created by the pandemic.
While the growth percentage was slightly down from the industry's typical annual rate of 4% to 5%, the slowing was expected given current economic challenges. SEMA estimates that sales growth will remain fairly flat in 2023, before ramping back up towards the industry's historical growth trend in 2024.
"Even as economic uncertainty looms, particularly around inflation, consumers are passionate about customizing and continue to buy from our industry," said SEMA Director of Market Research Gavin Knapp. "This report provides new and relevant findings that businesses can use to better connect with their customers, find areas of opportunity and drive their business."
Available for download at sema.org/research, the "2023 SEMA Market Report" provides a comprehensive review of the automotive specialty-equipment market in 2022 and includes new data on the U.S. market size, consumer profiling and industry trends that can help companies make more informed business decisions.
Key findings from the report include:
- Pickup accessorization remains the biggest segment for the industry, topping $15 billion in sales.
- The CUV accessory market continues to grow, reaching 14% of specialty-equipment sales in 2022.
- Younger people continue to be the most likely to accessorize and perform more upgrades; 50% of those modifying their vehicles are under the age of 40.
- 50% of accessorizers own a powersports or recreational vehicle, opening up cross-selling opportunities.
- More than 80% of companies expect their sales to stay the same or grow in 2023.
SEMA members can download the report for free at sema.org/research. Discover key findings in the report during the upcoming "SEMA Market Update" webinar on Wednesday, June 21. Register for the webinar here.