Decathlon now India’s second-largest single-brand retailer after reporting Rs 1,278 crore revenue in FY 18

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Apr 10, 2019

The French sportswear brand Decathlon reported a revenue total of Rs 1,278 crore ($192.1 million) for the 2018 financial year which places it as India’s second largest single brand retailer following Xiaomi.

Decathlon overtook rivals Adidas, Puma, and Nike in revenue in the 2018 financial year. The brand also reported its first ever profit in its decade in the country totalling Rs 33.8 lakh. This was up from a net loss of Rs 53.1 crore and revenue of Rs 925 crore in the 2017 financial year. The financial documents that ET Bureau sourced from Veratech showed a 38 percent increase in sales in the 2018 financial year compared to the 2017 financial year.

“Decathlon has lower-end price positioning and targets consumers who see value-for-money as more important than brand image,” Euromonitor International consultant Alexander Göransson told ET Bureau. “In doing so, it appeals to a wide range of age groups, and more to participants in sporting and outdoor activities, as opposed to consumers buying sportswear as fashion statement.” Göransson valued India’s sports goods market at $2.6 billion in 2018. 

Decathlon has 70 large-scale stores in India and retails over 500 products including running shoes, clothing, mountaineering equipment, and other sports goods. Decathlon entered India in 2009 as a cash-and-carry retailer and was approved for single-brand retail in 2013.