# Possibly good news for cyclists on a budget in the South West of England.



## Glover Fan (21 Apr 2011)

I've been quite annoyed living in bristol that the nearest Decathlon store to me is in Walsall. So I shot off an email to the property director of Decathlon to see if there are any plans for a Decathlon in the south west of England. Here is his response: -

"Dear Jonathon,

Thank you very much for your positive feed back and your interest in the Company.
I do share your views on the opportunity to open in the South.
You will probably interested to hear that we are looking forward to opening stores in the main cities in the south and Bristol is our top priority.
We are currently working on a couple of projects but they prove to be difficult to deliver.
Nevertheless, we will continue our efforts and bring a store as soon as we can.
In the meantime, do you know that the Decathlon range is available online at Decathlon.co.uk?
I hope this can satisfy your needs at short term, waiting for the bigger openings.

Kind Regards,

Stephan VEYRET 
UK & Ireland Property Director"


----------



## david1701 (21 Apr 2011)

thats frackin awesome, I go through Bristol every now and again and decathlon stuff is good for all the sports we do


----------



## corshamjim (21 Apr 2011)

+1 I like the look of Decathlon stuff, but would like to look before I buy.  If you hear any more, please post again.


----------



## ThePainInSpain (22 Apr 2011)

We have 2 Decathlon stores within 20 miles of us, one on the outskirts of Malaga, the other in Fuengirola.

The one in Malaga is particularly busy, but that's because they offer a great range of goods and clothing for ALL sports at reasonable prices.

I buy loads of stuff from there, the camo' trousers in their hunting section are really good value.


----------



## summerdays (22 Apr 2011)

It's a bit like going back 10/15 years and waiting for Ikea to open when you had to make a trip to Birmingham if you wanted something ... though lets hope it wouldn't be quite so popular to completely grid lock an area or be in a better location. I still only ever go to IKEA in the quiet hours.


----------



## youngoldbloke (22 Apr 2011)

Excellent news. Their website is hopeless. Recently I have found that it is not so much the cycling kit and bits that I have been interested in, (I have a good selection - probably too many - of their jerseys, shorts etc.) but the choice of clothing in the other sections. By the way Glover Fan - isn't the Reading store closer than Walsall?


----------



## summerdays (22 Apr 2011)

I didn't know about the Reading store but it's about just over an hour to Reading Jnt 12, or more than an hour to Birmingham so you are probably right (don't know the exact times as that isn't the end point on our most frequent family journeys.


----------



## youngoldbloke (22 Apr 2011)

summerdays said:


> I didn't know about the Reading store but it's about just over an hour to Reading Jnt 12, or more than an hour to Birmingham so you are probably right (don't know the exact times as that isn't the end point on our most frequent family journeys.



Yes - bit silly to drive for a total of 2 hours or so on the M4 just to save a few pounds - which of course you're not saving after all .... 
I tend to use the Nottingham store, although I live in the SW too - but only to break the journey on trips to the far NE of England.


----------



## Arjimlad (2 Apr 2013)

Resurrecting this thread - to suggest another email following this up please !


----------



## Cycleops (2 Apr 2013)

Unless they have particularly strong retail sales I can understand their reluctance to open more retail stores. Most companies would rather sell on line. Everyone has seen what has been happening to the High St lately.


----------



## Arjimlad (2 Apr 2013)

I've emailed.. but I know what you mean.

The situation for retailers is bonkers, commercial landlords need to wake up to what's happening to this sector.


----------



## SpokeyDokey (2 Apr 2013)

Arjimlad said:


> Resurrecting this thread - to suggest another email following this up please !


 
Why - I doubt it'll make any difference.

In the 90's I used to identify and project manage new site purchases through to launch date for a major retailer.

I can assure you that then, and even more so now, it is difficult to get a site to 'stack-up' as it were. Decathlon are probably not a high margin business looking at their range & pricing structure and I doubt whether retail unit sales are massive either. Makes it hard!


----------



## youngoldbloke (2 Apr 2013)

SpokeyDokey said:


> Why - I doubt it'll make any difference.
> 
> In the 90's I used to identify and project manage new site purchases through to launch date for a major retailer.
> 
> I can assure you that then, and even more so now, it is difficult to get a site to 'stack-up' as it were. Decathlon are probably not a high margin business looking at their range & pricing structure and I doubt whether retail unit sales are massive either. Makes it hard!


Admittedly I know little about business and retailing but they look pretty big to me: "In 2007 the group is the worlwide largest sporting goods reseller with a turnover of USD 6,123,000" Wikipedia, Decathlon Group
I still don't understand why they keep opening stores in the north, and neglect the whole of the SW and Wales. There must be lots of retail space available given the downturn. Their website has improved a little, but could be much, much better IMO. It never shows the range of products that are available instore.


----------



## PaulSecteur (2 Apr 2013)

The decathlon in walsall is opposite ikea. Makes popping down on a bank holiday...interesting.

When i say interesting i means a tedious wait in traffic when the only entertainment is looking for overloaded cars with flat pack furniture gaffer taped to the roof


----------



## SpokeyDokey (2 Apr 2013)

youngoldbloke said:


> Admittedly I know little about business and retailing but they look pretty big to me: "In 2007 the group is the worlwide largest sporting goods reseller with a turnover of USD 6,123,000" Wikipedia, Decathlon Group
> I still don't understand why they keep opening stores in the north, and neglect the whole of the SW and Wales. There must be lots of retail space available given the downturn. Their website has improved a little, but could be much, much better IMO. It never shows the range of products that are available instore.


 
No, I didn't say they were small.

All I said was it is hard to make a retail unit stack up in the current climate.

A quick Google search shows that in 2012 Decathlon finally made a profit in the UK after 10 full years of trading here.

Source The Telegraph - today:

Decathlon has already opened a shop on a "sports village" in Orford Park, Warrington, in partnership with the local council, which is building swimming pools and a GP surgery. Decathlon is also looking at a site just off the M1, near Nottingham.
In all, Decathlon hopes to spend £30m investing in these sports villages. It is the biggest sports goods chain in the world, with 535 shops and a turnover of €5.99bn (£4.98bn). It only made its first profit in the UK last year, after 10 years.


----------



## youngoldbloke (2 Apr 2013)

That's interesting and surprising SD, as I say I know little about retailing and business.


----------



## Gravity Aided (3 Apr 2013)

After 15 years in the photo business, I'm glad to be out of it, and driving a bus. That's retail for you.It sounds to me like the Sports Village concept is a great idea. Margins are slim on bikes, but great on accessories, at least in the States. Cameras were the same. But a Sports Village concept, that's ground breakin' genius , on so many levels. With a little luck, could be a great way to go.


----------

