The specialty-equipment market showed positive results in 2022 with an overall market growth of 2% and reaching $51.8 billion in sales, according the new 2023 SEMA Market Report. This continues a decade of growth for the industry, even among recent economic turmoil created by the COVID-19 pandemic, SEMA said.

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, according to SEMA. The association estimates that sales growth will remain fairly flat in 2023, before ramping back up toward 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 www.sema.org/research, the 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.

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% percent of those modifying their vehicles are under the age of 40.
• 50% of accessorizors own a powersports or recreational vehicle, opening up cross-selling opportunities.
• Over 80% of companies expect their sales to stay the same or grow in 2023.