8 | Greenstone shopping august 2017
We believe that every child is a flower waiting to blossom , and we will ensure their seeds of greatness are realised . number of badminton nets and racquets were sold – not a huge sport in South Africa – purely because there was a net set up where people could try their hand at the sport . It really is a hands-on environment where physical activity is promoted .
8 | Greenstone shopping august 2017
Decathlon , the French sport retail brand , is putting down roots in South Africa in the form of a megastore in Alberton . On July 1 , however , they opened a pop-up store in the Greenstone Shopping Centre , and it has already become very popular with locals by offering products at the lowest possible price at the highest possible quality .
Calling all sports fanatics
about decathlon
At Decathlon , all the staff live for a common purpose on a daily basis : “ to make the pleasure and benefits of sport accessible to all ”. In every country where they are present , they share a strong and unique company culture , reinforced by our two values : Vitality and Responsibility .
At Decathlon , they place innovation at the heart of their activities : from research to retail , including design , production and logistics . Their 20 + Passion Brand teams channel all their energy into developing technical , good-looking and simple products , always at the lowest possible prices .
Decathlon is one of the world ’ s largest sporting goods retailers . Decathlon started with a store in Lille , France in 1976 , founded by Michel Leclercq . It started to expand abroad a decade later , to Germany in 1986 , Spain in 1992 , Italy in 1998 , Portugal , the United Kingdom in 1999 , China in 2003 , India in 2009 , Malaysia in 2016 and Southeast Asia in 2012 . Today , there are more than 1100 stores in 38 countries . The company employs more than 78,000 staff from 80 different nationalities .
D ecathlon stocks a wide range of sporting goods , from tennis rackets to advanced scuba diving equipment . The Decathlon Group also owns over 20 brands , with research and development facilities to develop the latest innovative designs , coming up with new innovations every year . Each brand represents a different sport or group of sports , with a dedicated product development and design team .
With more than 1 000 stores across more than 30 countries ,
Decathlon is considered to be amongst the biggest sport retailers in the world – if not the biggest . Founded in Lille , France , more than 40 years ago , Decathlon stores across the world follow the same formula : huge trading spaces filled with products representing more than 50 sports and outdoor codes , sold at low prices . Their popular Kalenji Run One running shoe , for example , sells for just R199 .
Decathlon started testing the South African waters last year when they opened a small 500m 2 pop-up store in Soweto in June , only stocking their own brands , which they call Passion Brands . “ We closed the Soweto pop-up store in order to move to our new pop-up store in Greenstone ,” says Decathlon SA Communications Leader Japie Kruger . “ The main purpose of this was to move into a bigger space where we can offer a wider range of our products .”
And while the term ‘ pop-up ’ seems to indicate a temporary home , Japie confirms that the Greenstone store is in fact a permanent shop ; it is only termed as such due to the fact that the store , at around 1 300m 2 , is around half the size of their usual stores . “ Ten months after launching in Soweto , the opportunity to move to the Greenstone Shopping Centre came about and we jumped at it . It was an area that we were looking at , and although we tend to build our own stores , it was an opportunity inside a well-established shopping centre that we couldn ’ t refuse .”
Once the decision was made , they had just six weeks to get the store up to speed in the large space that used to belong to House & Home . Inside the store , with its fresh , signature light grey floors and dark grey walls , customers are treated to a range of sporting products unheard of under one roof in South Africa . You name it , they have it , and unlike other similar stores , the wide aisles and ‘ playgrounds ’ allow users to test out some of the equipment before they buy it . If your child wants a skateboard or a scooter , they can test it out in the dedicated ‘ riding ’ area . Fancy buying a table tennis table ? Then have a quick game , or play a bit of soccer and basketball and get a better feel for the equipment . Japie notes that during the store ’ s opening weekend , a
Educational Play Group www . jungletots . co . za www . facebook . com / JungleTotsGreenstoneHill
Angie - 084 922 2242 angiecg @ jungletots . co . za
7am - 12 / 3 / 5pm 15 Months - 5 Years
We believe that every child is a flower waiting to blossom , and we will ensure their seeds of greatness are realised . number of badminton nets and racquets were sold – not a huge sport in South Africa – purely because there was a net set up where people could try their hand at the sport . It really is a hands-on environment where physical activity is promoted .
Internationally , they stock products from a vast number of wellknown international brands , in addition to their own Passion Brands covering most sporting codes . In South Africa they will be stocking their own passion brands exclusively , says Japie .
Since 1990 they have been investing in R & D and research projects conducted by