Decathlon Group

Decathlon Group

Industry	Retail
Founded	1976
Headquarters	Villeneuve d'Ascq, France
Products	Clothing Sportswear Sports equipment
Subsidiaries	Kalenji, Quechua, etc.
Website	www.decathlon.com

Decathlon is a major French sporting good chain store, with stores located throughout the world. It started with a shop near Lille, France in 1976. It expanded to Germany in 1986, Spain in 1992 and the United Kingdom in 1999. It entered the American market by purchasing the New England 20-store MVP Sports chain in 1999, rebranding them as Decathlon USA. A restructuring led to all but four Massachusetts locations closing in 2003. In September 2006, Decathlon announced its decision to exit the US altogether by year's end.

The retailer stocks a wide range of sporting goods, from tennis racquets to advanced scuba diving equipment, usually in large superstores. Decathlon Group also owns the Toboggan and Decat stores, the former sells sporting goods at discount prices, whilst the latter is a smaller high street sized version of the larger Decathlon superstores.

In 2007 the group is the largest sporting goods reseller with a turnover of USD 6,123,000.

Locations

Entrance of İstanbul store

Stores are located globally, in the following countries:^{[citation needed]}

•  Belgium: 9 stores
•  Brazil: 6 stores
•  Czech Republic: 2 stores
•  China: 36 stores
•  France: 240 stores
•  Germany: 12 stores
•  Hungary: 8 stores
•  India: 1 stores
•  Italy: 64 stores
•  Netherlands: 2 stores
•  Poland: 20 stores
•  Portugal: 10 stores
•  Romania: 6 stores
•  Russia: 8 stores
•  Slovakia: 1 store (opening Christmas 2012)
•  Spain: 75 stores
•  Sweden: 1 store
•  Turkey: 2 stores (as of August 2010)
•  United Kingdom: 9 stores
•  United States: (closed 2006)

It is also possible to buy online for delivery in Belgium, France, United Kingdom, Germany, India, Italy and Spain.^{[citation needed]}

Branding

The chain is one of the few sporting chain stores that develops and sells its own brands. Each group of activities has a separate brand name:

• APTONIA - Nutrition and health care
• ARTENGO - Racquet sports
• B'TWIN - Cycle sports
• CAPERLAN - Fishing
• DOMYOS - Fitness, dance, martial arts and contact sports
• FOUGANZA - Horse riding
• GEOLOGIC - Nature sports, archery, darts and pétanque
• GEONAUTE - Nomadic athletism
• INESIS - Golf
• KALENJI - Running
• KIPSTA - Team sports
• NABAIJI - Swimming
• NEWFEEL - Walking
• OXELO - Roller, skate and ice sports
• QUECHUA - Mountain sports
• ROCKRIDER - Mountain bike
• SIMOND - alpinism
• SOLOGNAC - Hunting
• TRIBORD - Water sports
• WED'ZE - Ski, snowboarding
• MYSPORTEEZY - Event organization (birthday, corporate day...)

Decathlon has also developed brands of components which provide a technical support for the products of brands Passion:

• EQUAREA - Active evacuation of sweating
• ESSENSOLE - Shoe soles and insoles
• NOVADRY - Impermeable and breathable clothes
• OUTCHOC - Sport protection
• STRATERMIC - Warm and light clothes
• STRENFIT - Backpacks
• SUPPORTIV - Support and compression

References

External links

• Official website