You will spot French tourists trekking the Wild Atlantic Way thanks to their Quechua backpacks and wind-breakers – the ubiquitous own hiking brand owned by the sports retailing giant Decathlon.

Those visitors form part of the crowds that throng the company’s stores, most of which are in the suburban retail parks dotted throughout France, and in some prime Parisian central locations too.

The stores are tightly packed, almost morphing into a war zone in the lead up to Christmas or during the sales. Aisles are organised by sport, each sub-divided between men’s and women’s wear. Products are presented in ascending order of price, with an extremely cheap entry-level range always shown first under Decathlon’s own-brand blue colour.

Most shelves display technical sheets intended to help shoppers match a product to the way they practice their sport, comparing levels of grip or waterproofness and advising on the number of hours and performance level achievable with each item.

It might not be fashionable, but it is functional, cheap and extremely successful. And now, Decathlon, with its chain of 1,500 stores spanning the globe, is coming to Ireland.

In a country already well stocked with sports retailers, will the $13 billion French giant be able to conquer the market as it has done in many of the other 52 countries it operates in?

Or will the incumbents be able to hold off the French invasion, and maintain both market share and profits?

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Given its status as the self-styled “IKEA of sports retailing”, it was perhaps the obvious choice to set up camp right next to the Swedish furniture giant’s flagship store in Ballymun in north Dublin. The sod has just been turned, and all going to plan, the store, christened Decathlon Baile Munna after a public vote, will open its doors in April.

It could be the first of many. Kieran O’Shea, opening project manager for Decathlon Ireland, said the company was looking for other opportunities to open more stores around Ireland.

Indeed, the group had identified a location in south Dublin, although this has morphed into a messy planning spat with the owners of Liffey Valley Shopping Centre. The planning disruption has led to some suggestions it will abandon the south Dublin play.

“I’m not saying that we’re not going there,” said O’Shea said when asked about the status of the project.

Either way, Decathlon is here to stay. “Decathlon’s business model is very similar to IKEA,” O’Shea says, adding they will “offer high quality at low prices.”

According to O’Shea, Decathlon’s main unique selling proposition is the wide range of products at affordable prices.

“In Ireland you have different competitors per sport. The customer goes to one cycling shop that doesn’t have 69 other sports. Our offering of 70 sports in one shop is what really makes us different,” O’Shea told The Currency.

All employees at Decathlon are required to take part in the sporting area that they are working in, said O’Shea. For example, you can’t sell scuba diving equipment in the store unless you are a scuba diver. The store in Ballymun alone aims to employ around 100 people.

In an effort to make an impact in their new home, Decathlon is creating own-brand GAA gear with its in-house designers. Ballymun Kickhams GAA club has already expressed interest in helping Decathlon with this project.

The company certainly has the financial heft to expand. What began in 1976, when Michel Leclercq set up a small sporting supplies and equipment shop in Lille, has expanded into a global phenomenon with 87,000 employees and profits of close to €500 million.

Leclercq is part of the Mulliez dynasty, one of the richest families in France. They own the popular supermarket chain in Europe, Auchan. Association Familiale Mulliez also has a 40 per cent share in Decathlon.

However, if the incumbents are worried about the arrival of the French behemoth, they are not letting it show.

Running scared? Absolutely not. 

Two weeks ago, Mark Stafford, the chief executive of Lifestyle Sports, cut the ribbon on the chain’s new flagship store in Limerick. With its digital technology, breakout rooms and various bespoke concepts, the store is designed to be a destination shopping experience.

All told, Lifestyle Sports now has more than 50 outlets both north and south of the border, and many of them are getting the same high-aesthetic interactive treatment as the new store in Limerick. To separate itself from its existing rivals, the company has focused on what Stafford describes as the “premium stylized athlete”.

This strategy has worked. Revenues have continued to climb solidly – inching from €103.1 million in the Republic in 2017 to €107 million last year (accounts for the group’s operations in the North show 2018 revenues of €6.5 million).

Profits have remained robust at around €5 million, as the company continues to invest in store refurbishments. It is a strategy that has helped them retain market share in the face of heavyweight entrants such as JD Sports and Sports Direct.

“We’ve even seen when other competitors come into the market, like when JD Sports opened up on Jervis Street – instead of knocking our sales, we found our growth in our adjacent store actually accelerated,” said Stafford, who owns the retailer along with members of his family.

Retail gurus point to three ingredients in the recipe for success in sports retail: branding and style, affordability and athletic knowledge. By its own admission, Decathlon focus on two, paying little heed to branding and style, with most of their stock own-brand labels.

According to Stafford, this runs contrary to a very style-conscious consumer.

“One of the traits of the Irish market is they are a very brand-loyal market.”

“One of the traits of the Irish market is they are a very brand-loyal market. Own-brand labels are not something that works that well in this marketplace, and this is one of the challenges our friends in Decathlon are going to have,” said Stafford, whose family also own the Stafford Fuel business.

The other main indigenous Irish retailer, Elverys, is also remaining upbeat. Having flirted with insolvency during the downturn, the firm emerged from examinership and returned to profitability and growth.

Like Lifestyle, it does not expect Decathlon to upset its business. Anne-Marie Hanly, senior marketing manager at Elverys, said the French chain’s impact on the Irish market will depend on how they “penetrate the market and grow”.

“But we feel the Irish consumer consciously looks to shop with Irish-owned businesses,” she said. “Our strategy is constantly evolving but our positioning has always remained rooted in sport.”

The company’s network of 54 stores had revenues of €79.8 million in 2017, up from €76.9 million the year before, according to accounts for its ultimate parent vehicle, West Roxbury. Pre-tax profits at the chain, once known as Staunton Sports, dipped slightly from €1.2 million to €1.01 million.

The positive view is echoed by Eoin McGettigan, a veteran retailer who has worked at a senior level with the Musgrave Group, Dunnes Stores and also Lifestyle Sports.

“For 4.5 million people, I think we’ve got a lot of sport shops and I think the reason why is we’ve a strong culture in sports participation in Ireland,” says McGettigan, who is now a valued retail consultant and chairman of 2rn, the RTÉ-owned communication network operator.

He believes the chain will not have a huge impact on Irish sport retailers. He added that he thinks there will be more of a consumer focus on the equipment side of sales in Decathlon rather than sports clothing.

Latest in a line of entrants

The Irish players have been here before. JD Sports, the British giant, has been operating here for some time. Financial returns for its Irish wing show 2018 revenues of €95 million and pre-tax profits of €12.6 million. This company operates more at the fashion end of sports retailer, with a focus on branded footwear.

The biggest disruptor could potentially come from Mike Ashley and his Sports Direct operation. Having held a stake in the Irish department store Heaton’s for several years, he took full control in 2016 for €48 million. Since then, he has rebranded many of the outlets as Sports Direct.  

In addition, the chain has opened a number of standalone outlets in new locations across Ireland, including a mammoth store on the site of the old Boyers department store in the heart of Dublin city. Between Heatons and Sports Direct, Ashley operates from more than 30 locations in Ireland.

Further outlets are coming, and the company has made no secret of its desire to close the gap on market leaders Elverys and Lifestyle.

Meanwhile, out in Ballymun, in the shadows of IKEA, workers continue to lay the foundations on what Decathlon hopes will be the start of a profitable Irish venture. The French newcomer has operated a website here for some time, but its focus is now on bricks and mortar.