Swimwear market has gained popularity over a period of time both in urban and semi-urban areas. The thought of swimwear has changed with time pertaining to the trends of glamour, majorly due to a more active and healthy lifestyle. Kids are the most popular consumer base that is taking on swimming. With an increase in access to infrastructure via clubs and housing, societies lead to adoption among income groups. A combination of fun and sports along with fitness has attracted more kids to take up swimming as a sport, where many kids love playing with water, swimming in the pool, or splashing in whatever comes their way. For kids, the primary area of interest is to play, and they are least interested in sun protection. On average, kids aren’t worried about drying or swimsuit style at all. Parents are left in charge of sun protection, swimsuit fabric, and all the other things dubbed unimportant by children.
What is swimwear?
Swimwear is a costume to be worn by people involved in water sports, swimming, surfing, water skiing, or sunbathing. Various designs and kinds of modern swimsuits are easily available. Body coverage and materials may vary. Different types of fabrics available worldwide include nylon, spandex, polyester, and other blended fabrics, which stretches the swimwear as required and makes it capable of bearing sun, chlorine, and salt water.
The Swimwear industry has a variety of latest and fashionable swimsuits available, which may differ in size or quality. According to the western culture, men’s swimwear is generally called boardshorts, swim trunks, briefs, jammers, or “speedos”, thongs, and g-strings while the women’s swimwear mainly includes bikinis, one-piece, or thongs. The ultimate customers of swimwear and beachwear industry incorporate men’s wear, women’s wear, and children’s wear.
Going to the pool? Don’t forget to carry your swimwear!
It is essentially important to wear a swimsuit before jumping into the pool. Facts say that the human body absorbs chlorine not only via inhalation but also through the skin. At low levels, chlorine inhalation causes irritation on the skin and eyes, along with a sore throat or a cough. At higher levels, inhalation triggers signs of asthma including tightness and wheezing of the chest. In the indoor pools, where there are no proper ventilation spots, swimmers are under a higher risk of chlorine exposure. Younger swimmers are highly prone to the effects of chlorine as their bodies absorb it more readily, compared to adults. Children who are frequent users of indoor pools are more likely to develop asthma.
In comparison to a swimwear, undergarments are less durable as they can get ruined in the pool water. Regular undergarments absorb a substantial amount of water, which further makes swimming a tough task. On the other hand, swimsuits are made up of such material that is water- based and can withstand pool chemicals like chlorine. They tend to absorb less water and dry out very fast. There is a good variety of swimsuits that can be purchased, specifically to resist the effects of chlorine. These chlorine-resistant suits are made to maintain their color and thickness for a longer period from the regular ones.
Swimwear is available in a wide range of fabrics, some of which are:
• Polyester
For a long period of time now, the polyester fabric has been ruling the competitive swimwear industry. Whether combined with Lycra or with itself, polyester remained the foremost fabric in the competitive swimwear. Novel technologies in polyester have improvised the material, allowing it to beat other fabrics. Polyester maintains its color and is chlorine resistant.
• Nylon
Nylon is a light fabric and gives a comfortable fit. Nylon fabric has its few drawbacks such as it is not chlorine resistant and not considered as long lasting as polyester. Swimwear is prepared from nylon, which offers better resistance to the influence of chlorine, salt, sand, and other minerals inside water, which is also increasing the demand for swimwear made out of nylon. Nylon is a common material used to make swimwear. When swimming is done regularly, one should know what material to wear. As a result of which, top swimmers invest in getting the correct material.
• Lycra
The four-way stretch and high flexibility of Lycra makes it an above-average fabric. Lycra soft sheen is a reflection of light that creates shimmer on the face. With moisture capabilities, soft sheen withdraws heat from the body. This makes a perfect fabric for one-piece suits with a lot of decorations. Lycra soft sheen is not dense but retains color when stretched. Lycra is a stretchy fabric, which gives it comfortable fit into your body for a ‘second skin’ feel.
Conclusion
The Swimwear Market is growing due to a wide range of factors. Some of the major factors are increasing health awareness, growth in population, and innovative products of the swimwear industry across the globe. Utilizing fabrics like neoprene provides adequate surface friction, high thermal insulation, enhanced flexibility, and lightweight properties, along with the introduction of multifunctional cover-up swimwear and beachwear, further increases the demand and popularity for swimwear. Moreover, the Global Swimwear Market is expected to grow at a growth rate of 6.3% over the predicted period.