2. 1
Executive Summary
The aim of this document is an undertaking of an Industry Analysis Report to assess SLH’s
current business environment. This is done with the intention to bring a new product to the UK
market; the VR Fitness Assistant.
Throughout this report, the Sport Equipment industry, Health & Fitness industry, and Virtual
Reality industry, have been considered in the products market assessment to help identify key
opportunities and threats that are essential to take into consideration when choosing a suitable
targeting and segmentation strategy and for assessing the product’s predicted product life-
cycle.
4. 3
1 Introduction
SLH is a global conglomerate company that engages in the design, marketing and distribution
of sports and fitness apparel and accessories. SLH is headquartered in the UK and parents
its various Strategic Business Units (SBUs) from its local head office. Like its two main rivals,
Adidas and Nike, SLH has already expanded its product portfolio into the wearable technology
industry; this includes the design of fitness bands, smart watches and wearable technology
footwear. However, in order to gain significant market share over their two main rivals, SLH
are looking to develop a new and innovate wearable technology product not currently available
in the market that also incorporates the use of Virtual Reality (VR) technologies and software;
a growing trend both within the fitness and technology industries. Competition is fierce
between these three market leaders, leading SLH to seek out a diverse and unique product
that will act to set apart the brand from its competitors and provide them with a strong
competitive advantage. Before the company can expand and develop a new product to add
to its wearable technology SBU, an in-depth industry analysis must be undertaken to establish
whether this market is a positive strategic decision for the company.
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2 Industry Analysis
An industry analysis has been conducted to analyse SLH’s current internal and external
environment. In order to fully assess the introduction of SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant into the
UK market, the global industry analysis must consider the Sport Equipment industry, Health &
Fitness industry, and Virtual Reality industry, in its assessment.
This analysis will create a thorough understanding of the company’s current Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats to help develop and introduce a new consumer
product that has the potential to enable SLH to gain a strong competitive advantage over their
direct, and indirect, competitors. The following research has been conducted to help develop
a detailed SWOT analysis:
2.1 Internal Environment: Company Profile
2.2 Microenvironment: Five Forces Analysis
2.3 Macroenvironment: PESTEL Analysis
2.1 Internal Environment
Figure 1 – SLH’s Internal Environment
SLH is the world’s third leading manufacturer and retailer of sport and fitness apparel and
accessories and the second leading in the UK. In order to gain a competitive advantage over
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its main rival, Adidas, the company is pursuing the development of a unique product into the
market which combines sports and fitness with VR technology.
The company imports most of its goods internationally, however, manufacturing is done right
here in the UK in one of SLH’s numerous manufacturing plants.
2.2 Macroenvironment
The macroenvironment concerns the global environment in which the company operates in.
The macroenvironment is constantly changing and includes factors outside of a company’s
control which means an up-to-date analysis of the environment is essential, especially with
the introduction of a new product to the market (Kotler et al., 2005: p. 93).
In 2017, the global sports equipment industry had total revenues of over £118,622,272.92 and
is predicted to continue growing over the 2018-24 forecast period (MarketLine, 2018;
Euromonitor International, 2019). Even larger, globally the Health & Fitness industry generates
more than $80 billion in annual revenue (Gough, 2019). Although the VR industry is relatively
small, by combining VR technology into these two larger global industries, a fruitful opportunity
for SLH has arose. According to Kotler et al. (2005), there are six key areas that make up the
macroenvironment (p. 95).
Figure 2 – SLH’s Macroenvironment
Information obtained from: Euromonitor International, 2019; Gough, 2019; HM Government, 2018; ICO, 2019; MarketLine,
2018; Mintel, 2017a; Mintel, 2017b; Richards, 2019.
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2.3 Microenvironment
The UK was chosen to launch SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant product. This was mainly down to
SLH’s strong competitive advantage in the UK economy and a growing consumer interest in
sport, health and fitness (see Figure 2 – SLH’s Macroenvironment). As the company
manufacturers in the UK, the company has an excellent understanding of their supply chain
requirements so this should avoid a delay in production. After a successful UK launch, SLH
will be planning to roll the product out to its international subsidiaries.
Figure 3 below, provides an overview of the key factors in SLH’s current microenvironment.
Figure 3 – SLH’s Microenvironment
Information obtained from: Mintel, 2017a; Mintel, 2017b; Mintel, 2018a; Mintel, 2018b; Phil, 2006.
2.4 SWOT Analysis
From the SWOT analysis developed from the research of SLH’s external and internal
environment, the company does have numerous weaknesses and threats that they may
encounter when bringing this new product to market. However, as the VR industry is still
relatively new, the opportunities for growth are substantial (Mintel, 2017b). SLH is taking an
environmental management perspective to the marketing strategy (Kotler et al., 2005: p. 115).
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The company is willing to take “aggressive actions to affect the publics and forces in their
marketing environment” (Kotler et al., 2005: p. 115); to help grow the VR market and expand
the technology currently available.
An in-depth description of the company’s current Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and
Threats is provided below. Recommendations and justifications are contained throughout the
analysis.
Figure 4 – SLH’s SWOT Analysis
Information obtained from: Euromonitor International, 2019; Gough, 2019; HM Government, 2018; ICO, 2019; MarketLine,
2018; Mintel, 2017a; Mintel, 2017b; Mintel, 2018a; Mintel, 2018b; Phil, 2006; Richards, 2019.
2.4.1 Strengths
SLH has a very strong brand identity and reputation in the UK. SLH imports materials
internationally from global suppliers to reduce costs but it does not outsource the
manufacturing of their products to third world countries. Although UK manufacturing is a
greater expense, it is one of SLH’s competitive advantages over their main competitors,
Adidas and Nike, as both competitors received a significant number of allegations regarding
child labour in third world countries in the early 2000s (Burke, 2000; Wazir, 2001). UK
manufacturing also ideally positions SLH’s Fitness Assistant for a UK launch.
SLH is the third most popular sport and fitness brand globally and the second in the UK. This
puts them in a favourable position to develop a unique product as their strong customer base
and financial and supply chain resources will work in their favour.
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SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant is a unique product not currently available in the global market.
After investing and acquiring the VR technology company, Your Virtual Reality, they became
a specialist in VR technology. SLH’s advanced and patented technology ensures their product
is protected against copyright.
Unlike VR technology that has come before, SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant is compatible with all
smartphone devices, giving it a strong competitive advantage over alternative products in the
market (Mintel, 2017b). Even if a substitute was to develop a simpler fitness app on already
produced hardware, the lack of universality in current VR technology suggests it will not pose
a huge threat.
2.4.2 Weaknesses
The sports equipment industry is a heavily diluted and competitive global environment (Phil,
2006: p. 4). SLH will be competing against tried and tested technology substitutes already
available in the market; for example, Nike’s wearable technology portfolio (Draper, 2019).
However, because of the competitiveness of the environment, bringing a unique and
innovative new product to market could help provide SLH with the competitive edge it desires.
The production costs of SLH’s new technology is very high. The company may therefore not
see a profit within the first year of sales. However, SLH’s Corporate Board have made it clear
that they intend to expand the VR market and generate more consumer interest in the
technology, before concentrating on making a profit on VR Fitness Assistant.
Out of all of SLH’s competitors, Adidas is the most likely brand to be recommended by UK
consumers (Mintel, 2017a). “Adidas has had a strong 2016, with a sales increase of 14% and
operating profits increasing 36% for the year to 31 December 2016” (Mintel, 2017a). This is a
weakness, however, in 2017 Adidas announced their plans to divest their wearable technology
SBU (Gartenberg, 2017), suggesting that they may not be interested in developing advanced
products that could directly compete with VR Fitness Assistant.
Out of the UK population, only 8% currently own VR headsets (Mintel, 2017b). According to
Mintel (2017b), “limited advertising has left awareness relatively low”. This is currently a
weakness for SLH’s new product but is also an opportunity for the company to increase
awareness of VR technology. In addition, there are not many VR customers in comparison to
those who attend gyms or fitness centres, however, in 2017 VR “volume sales rose 138% to
1.9 million units” (Mintel, 2017b). The market potential for this product is very high, this will be
discussed in the 2.4.3 Opportunities section.
The older generation are not particularly favourable of new technology, resulting in the majority
of VR headsets been marketed towards a younger demographic. However, Mintel (2018b),
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recommends that “with an ageing population, operators should not exclude older consumers
from their marketing”. Therefore, SLH’s segmentation and targeting strategy requires strong
consideration.
According to a UK Mintel report (2017b), significantly high prices of VR technology has
affected VR sales in the past. SLH must consider this factor in their pricing strategy.
2.4.3 Opportunities
UK GDP is currently on the rise, which suggests an increase in consumer spending (Richards,
2019). Combined with UK consumers’ willingness to spend more of their time and money on
active health pursuits and activities (Mintel, 2018a) – and the health and wellness trend
continuing to gain momentum through sports participation increasing by 9% in just one year
(Mintel, 2018a) – this creates a favorable opportunity for the sales of SLH’s VR Fitness
Assistant.
Although only 8% of the UK population own VR headsets and VR awareness is currently
relatively low, the VR industry is a rapidly growing global market with volume sales rising by
138% to 1.9 million units in 2017 alone (Mintel, 2017b). From Mintel’s consumer research
(2017b), a significant interest was found in VR exercise classes which indicates significant
market potential for SLH’s product. People are becoming more interested in technology,
especially for the use of health and fitness activities (Mintel, 2018). It was also highlighted that
the home is the leading location of VR use (Mintel, 2017b), which is a good opportunity for
SLH’s product to be developed with this in mind.
Out of the people surveyed in Mintel’s Health & Fitness report (2018a), it was found that
consumers are beginning to prefer online workouts to gyms and fitness centres. Currently, the
Health & Fitness industry generates more than $80 billion in annual revenue and the UK is the
fifth largest market in the world (Gough, 2019). Although current VR awareness is low (Mintel,
2017b), this indicates a potentially large target market for SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant.
The majority of VR technology that has already been brought out does not support all
smartphones. The lack of universality has hindered VR sales and growth in the past but this
should not be an issue with the VR Fitness Assistant being compatible with all smartphone
devices. There is the opportunity for SLH to capitalise on this and actually change the VR
industry environment.
Out of the 8% of the UK population who currently own VR headsets, this makes up 11% of
men but only 5% of women (Mintel, 2017b). However, Mintel (2018a) found that “14% of UK
adults have taken part in an online workout in the last 12 months” which “makes them more
likely to be done than a class at a private health and fitness club (9%) or boutique studio (6%)”.
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In addition, “taking part in online workouts is far more common amongst women than men at
18% versus 11%” (Mintel, 2018a). This suggests an opportunity to not only grow the VR
market alone, but increase women’s purchasing of VR products. If expanding the VR market
and reaching out to the female demographic is something the company would be interested
in pursuing, it is recommended for SLH to consider women in their segmentation, targeting
and marketing strategies.
2.4.4 Threats
There is a political threat with the impending ‘Brexit’ deal or no-deal scenario affecting the UK
economy. Brexit creates uncertainty and may affect SLH’s current policy on importing goods
internationally which may result in higher costs or a need to switch suppliers.
According to Mintel’s 2018(b) report on VR technology, some UK gyms are already beginning
to incorporate VR classes. This poses a potential threat to SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant as
although the interest in online and at-home workouts is increasing (Mintel, 2018a), this may
deter some potential customers from buying the product if they can essentially use a similar
substitute of the technology in a gym at a much lesser cost.
In addition, SLH’s main competitors currently hold a larger proportion of the sports and fitness
market and VR market and could potentially develop a competitor product in response to
SLH’s release of VR Fitness Assistant.
SLH’s sales will not be driven by necessity but by sports and fitness buyer trends and
preferences. Currently, the outlook of VR Fitness Assistant’s potential sales looks favourable,
with the VR industry and VR interest growing rapidly (Mintel, 2017b) and consumer sports and
fitness trends (Mintel, 2018a). However, SLH will need to ensure they are constantly reviewing
the market and changing buyer trends and preferences with the introduction of their new
product.
One of the biggest threats facing SLH is fellow VR companies who already have the technical
VR expertise. The sports and fitness market is already fiercely competitive. With the
production of this new product, SLH is increasing their competitors and further diluting their
own competitive environment. One of their main competitors, US start-up, Black Box VR, have
recently began developing a product that incorporates VR into the strength training market
(Mintel, 2018b). Black Box VR unveiled their VR exercise equipment at the CES 2018 tech
show in Las Vegas but is not currently available for consumer purchasing or launched in the
UK (Black Box, 2019). “The training equipment includes an HTC Vive VR headset and a
specially developed resistance machine, with the whole set up said to be about the size of a
family bathroom. Putting on the headset transports users to one of a range of different arenas,
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allowing them to train in competition with an avatar or with others also using the Black Box VR
equipment” (Mintel, 2018b). Although a different design to SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant, this
product – and Black Box VR as a company – is SLH’s most direct competitor of their VR SBU.
SLH will need to ensure frequent and in-depth competitor research into this company and any
other potential VR companies and products that may come into the market in the coming years
that pose a threat.
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3 VR Fitness Assistant
Before SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant can be introduced into the market, it is essential to fully
understand the marketing environment and the products target market. A marketing mix
assessment has been conducted on SLH’s product to help define the products target market
for the development of the company’s marketing strategies:
3.1 Marketing Mix
Figure 5 – SLH’s Marketing Mix
The rationale and justification for SLH’s product will be embedded throughout the discussion
of the marketing mix elements.
3.1.1 Product
The market research that was conducted found that there is a growing interest in VR
technology (see Appendix 1), especially VR exercise equipment (Mintel, 2018b). Some gyms
are already beginning to incorporate VR technology into classes (Mintel, 2018b), however, VR
users – and potential users – have said they most likely use the equipment in the home (Mintel,
2017b). This creates an ideal opportunity to release VR Fitness Assistant into the UK market.
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VR Fitness Assistant is an innovative and advanced technology that incorporates VR
technology into the health, fitness and sport market. The product will help to differentiate SLH
from its competitors. According to Michaux & Cadiat (2015), “since all companies evolve in a
competitive environment, differentiation has become paramount and sometimes vital” (p. 1).
The product will become a brand extension of SLH’s existing portfolio. “A brand extension
strategy is any effort to use a successful brand name to launch new or modified products in a
new category” (Kotler et al., 2005: p. 565). This will work in favour of the product as SLH
already has a strong global brand and reputation.
By utilizing smartphone-based VR and offering a free VR Fitness Assistant accessory app,
the cost of the hardware is significantly reduced, allowing for a reduction in price and larger
customer base.
In effect, the product offering is: PT knowledge and training without having to visit the gym.
The product is compatible with all smartphone devices; its universality gives it a strong
competitive advantage.
Figure 6 – SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant: Product Description
3.1.2 Pricing
SLH have a competitive advantage with their product which should ensure sales. However,
research suggests that over half of potential VR consumers are not purchasing VR technology
due to the high price-tag of the devices in the past (see Appendix 2). The VR Fitness Assistant
is elastic in terms of price (see Appendix 6). However, establishing a low price from the
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beginning could create the negative impression that the product is not of a high quality as
other VR technology devices in the market.
A price skimming strategy will ensure the product is portrayed as ‘premium’ with its premium
and advanced technology, but by skimming the price, it will allow SLH to maximise profits on
early adopters of the product, before dropping its price to attract the majority of price-sensitive
consumers (Scott, 2019).
Out of Painter’s (2019) list of the most recommended VR headsets currently on the market
(see Appendix 3), it is clear that the more premium headsets – and most recommended – start
from £349.99. As VR Fitness Assistant is using new technology, production costs are high
until the initial development stages and the product starts being more in demand to decrease
costs with economies of scale. It is recommended that the VR headset start at £549 – below
HTC’s Hive but high enough to cover production costs and create a premium brand image.
The product should be reduced in line with its price skimming strategy every six months. The
‘skimmed’ price should be chosen after assessing consumer interest and buying trends.
3.1.3 Promotion
Special offers: Due to opting for a price skimming strategy, special offers are not
recommended—excluding seasonal promotions i.e. Christmas and Black Friday—as it may
affect the chosen pricing strategy’s impact.
One of the main criticisms of the VR industry is in the lack of advertising and consumer
awareness (Mintel, 2017b). “Interest in VR is strong given the lack of advertising spend”,
however, utilising mass TV advertising could increase this interest significantly (Mintel,
2017b).
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Figure 7 – UK Television Advertising Prices
(Information obtained from Stewart, 2017).
SLH should utilise appropriate social media channels depending on their chosen
segmentation and marketing strategy of VR Fitness Assistant. The UK usage and
demographic statistics of social media channels is provided for this consideration:
Figure 8 – The Most Popular Social Media Platforms in the UK
(Information obtained from Statista, 2018; YouGov, 2018; Hootsuite, 2019).
According to Mintel (2017b), “awareness and direct experience” should be the priority for VR.
Therefore, the promotion will include attendance at tech conferences and expos (see
consumer feedback in Appendix 4) – both in the UK and internationally as a product launch
with SLH’s international subsidiaries will follow shortly after the UK launch.
3.1.4 Process, Place, Physical Evidence, People
The process, place, physical evidence and people elements of the product’s marketing mix
are outlined in the Marketing Mix diagram at the beginning of this chapter.
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4 Segmentation & Targeting Strategy
Strategic marketing is “the process of aligning the strengths of an organization with groups of
customers it can serve” (Kotler et al., 2005: p. 31). The research already covered in this report
will inform the process.
Figure 9 – Marketing Segmentation for VR Fitness Assistant
As already mentioned, the UK is SLH’s ideal geographical segment. Mintel (2017b),
recommends that UK millennials are the most attractive target market for VR products.
According to the Office for National Statistics (2018), millennials currently account for 28.7%
of the UK population. Of this, there are 9,859,327 males and 9,625,878 females (see Appendix
6). However, due to an aging population and overall cultural shift towards more health and
fitness activities (Mintel, 2018a), the report also warns against ignoring the older demographic
as a key target segment (Mintel, 2017b). The male and female population aged between 47-
55 make up 12.6% of the total UK population (Office for National Statistics, 2018). Although
this demographic does not generally account for a large amount of VR sales, they are
increasingly interested in health fitness pursuits (Mintel, 2018a). A lack of marketing and
awareness has hindered the growth of the VR market (Mintel, 2017b), with Mintel’s
recommendation and SLH’s desire to alter the marketing environment and increase VR
participation, this demographic has also chosen to be targeted.
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In addition, due to the large millennial population and males and females have differing
consumer needs when it comes to both VR and fitness (Mintel, 2018a; Mintel, 2017a; Mintel,
2017b), SLH’s millennial market segment has been split into two segments.
SLH has opted for a market-coverage strategy (Kotler et al., 2005: p. 420). As VR Fitness
Assistant is a uniform product and will remain the same for each chosen marketing segment,
SLH will adopt an undifferentiated marketing strategy in the Introduction Stage of VR Fitness
Assistant’s product life cycle (Kotler et al., 2005: p. 420). This decision has been made due to
the UK population’s growing appeal of health and fitness activities that is not restricted to any
market segment (Mintel, 2018a). In addition, VR awareness is still relatively low due to a lack
of advertising (Mintel, 2017b), therefore, it could be potentially harmful to segment the
audience of this product in the early stages when the market remains rather unknown and
misunderstood.
However, during the mature stage of the product’s life cycle, SLH will begin adopting a
differentiated marketing strategy. SLH predict that the successful market segments will consist
of male and female millennials and individuals aged 44-57 years old (see Figure 9 – Marketing
Segmentation for VR Fitness Assistant). SLH will differentiate their marketing strategies and
product offering to these different groups of customers. According to Kotler et al. (2005),
“differentiated marketing typically creates more total sales”, which could work in SLH’s favour
during product maturity and of raising the awareness of the VR market as a whole. However,
the company understand that their market segments may change once data on the product’s
actual sales is collected after the introduction and during the growth stages of the product life-
cycle.
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5 Marketing Strategy
VR Fitness Assistant’s predicted product life-cycle is available below, along with a detailed
table outlining each individual stage of the cycle.
Figure 10 – VR Fitness Assistant Product Life-cycle
(Adapted from Kotler et al., 2005: p. 604).
Figure 11 – VR Fitness Assistant Product Lifecycle 2
5.1 Introduction
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In reference to Bowman’s Strategy Clock (see Appendix 8), it is advised for SLH to adopt a
differentiation competitive strategy during the introduction stage of the product lifecycle. This
is because the VR Fitness Assistant is a unique product not currently available on the market.
The only similar product which has not yet been released is Black Box VR’s product. However,
this product does not have the convenience that SLH’s does; in-all, it is the size of a small
bathroom and it does not appear to have foldaway or easy-storage features (Mintel, 2018b).
In addition, VR Fitness Assistant’s innovative body suit technology allows for weight workouts
without the physical weights; giving is a strong competitive advantage from anything else
currently available on the market.
To keep in line with the competitive strategy, during the introduction stage, the product will
only be available to purchase from SLH’s stores and UK online website.
SLH’s high initial price from their skimming pricing strategy will help recover the costs incurred
during the product development stage, promotion and distribution.
5.2 Growth
During the growth stage, the VR Fitness Assistant will be
available to purchase from SLH’s partnered third party
retailers.
An update will be made to the packaging and product
offering as the device and its accessories begin to be
available in a range of different colours. The VR Fitness App
will also be updated to include a wider variation of work-out
classes focusing on individual muscle groups.
In addition, VR Fitness Assistant foldaway and easy-storable
accessories will become available; for example, adjusting
weighted dumbbells, work out bench, sit-up bench etc.
Figure 12 – VR Fitness Assistant App Update
5.3 Maturity
As VR Fitness Assistant has grown and not reached a stage of maturity, SLH will skim the
original cost of the product (implemented from the company’s chosen price skimming strategy)
to help ensure continued sales and interest.
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SLH will begin targeting their key market segments (see Figure 9 – Marketing Segmentation
for VR Fitness Assistant) with differentiated promotions and product offerings. One example
of this could be that the majority of women have a keen interest in ab and glute workouts so a
variation of the VR Fitness Assistant will come with a sit-up bench to help attract the female
millennial market.
5.4 Decline
If declining occurs, a full market assessment and competitor analysis should be conducted to
try and improve the product offering and bring sales back up to extend the product lifecycle.
Perhaps a competing product has been introduced to the market? If so, this may indicate a
requirement to upgrade the VR Fitness Assistant with a product relaunch of – perhaps – VR
Fitness Assistant 2nd Edition. The options should be discussed after a full marketing
assessment has been completed.
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6 Conclusion
This report has been able to identify the opportunities and threats that are essential to take
into consideration when launching SLH’s VR Fitness Assistant into the UK market.
Justifications and recommendations were provided throughout the suggestions made for the
product’s chosen marketing and segmentation strategy and predicted product life-cycle.
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8 Appendices
Appendix 1 – Virtual Reality UK Market (2016-2017)
(Mintel, 2017b).
Appendix 2 – 1,216 internet users aged 16+ who have used VR headsets or are
interested in using them, excluding owners of VR headsets
(Mintel, 2017b).
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Appendix 3 – Current recommended VR headsets and their prices
#1 HTC Hive, £599 #6 Samsung Gear VR, £150
#2 Oculus Rift, £499 #7 Google Cardboard, £15
#3 PlayStation VR, £349.99 #8 Homide VR, £47.76
#4 Oculus Go, £199 #9 Moggles, €66.24
#5 Google Daydream, £49
(Painter, 2019).
Appendix 4 – 1,347 internet users aged 16+ who are interested in using VR headsets
(Mintel, 2017b).
28. 27
Appendix 5 – Leading Retailers’ Share of Online Sales (2017)
(Mintel, 2018c).
Appendix 6 – UK Population
(Office for National Statistics, 2018).