Four years after the opening of its first store in San Francisco, the Decathlon stores in San Francisco and Emeryville will soon close their doors. They employ about thirty people. Christian Ollier, CEO of Decathlon USA since June 2021, announced these closures on the brand’s website on January 14: ” We are changing our business model to adapt to current market conditions and to better meet the needs of our customers. Our products are clearly popular in the US market, and we have experienced record growth in recent years. However, to grow as it should, we must adapt and pave the way for the Decathlon of the future. »
Change of strategy
It is therefore not a farewell to the American market, but a change of strategy: We stay in the United States confirms Jennifer Tetrick, communications director for Decathlon USA. ” We are making a change in strategy to focus on online sales, as well as in partner stores such as Walmart or Target. In fact, you can now find a selection of the brand’s products in these supermarket chains present throughout the United States, while the Decathlon.com site offers a much larger catalog of around 10,000 products. Discussions are underway with other brands to distribute the brand.
If the pandemic has accelerated the decline of traditional commerce in favor of online sales, Decathlon hopes to continue to position its brand as a guarantee of quality products at affordable prices: “ Our commitment to making sport and the outdoors more accessible through our quality and affordable products remains intact. This changeover will further increase the accessibility of our products across the country. “, explains Christian Ollier.
Failed reconquest
In the San Francisco area, the European community had warmly welcomed the brand’s return to the United States, with the establishment of a first store on Market Street in San Francisco in 2017 (closed at the start of the pandemic), then a second in Emeryville in April 2019, and finally a third in November of the same year, in the Potrero Center in San Francisco. After a false start in the early 2000s in the suburbs of Boston following the takeover of the MVP Sports stores, Decathlon relied heavily on this second American adventure. It remains to be seen whether the new strategy of everything online and sales through third-party brands will pay off in the longer term.
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