Inside the 38,000 sq ft Decathlon Vancouver flagship store at Metrotown mall

Six months after it opened a small temporary store at Metropolis at Metrotown mall, Decathlon is set to establish a much bigger footprint.

This Saturday, April 27, 2024, Decathlon will open its first permanent store in British Columbia, which will also serve as the brand’s Metro Vancouver flagship location. As part of its grand opening celebrations, expect special programming by community groups all weekend long.

Decathlon has taken over a two-storey, 38,000 sq ft unit at Metropolis at Metrotown — just kitty corner from Uniqlo in the mall’s Grand Court atrium — that was previously the longtime location of Forever 21.

The opening of the flagship store location in Burnaby comes almost exactly a month after the French international sports goods retailer announced a major rebranding of its retail identity and in-store experience. Moreover, the rebranding is timed just before the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics, with Decathlon being one of the official sponsors of the Games.

Plans are now underway to update over 1,700 existing stores worldwide with the latest identity and experiences. Moreover, the Metropolis at Metrotown store, the chain’s newest store, is the first location in the world to feature these new concepts — and right from the get-go.

While the 1976-founded chain is amongst the largest retailers in the world in the market of being a one-stop destination for all things sports clothing, apparel, and equipment, it only recently began making inroads into the Canadian and American markets. Decathlon opened its first Canadian store in Quebec in 2018, and following a progressive westward expansion over the subsequent years, it now has 20 stores.

“This flagship basically seals the whole coast-to-coast mission, so we are now the westernmost store location,” Rehmatullah Sheikh, a spokesperson for Decathlon Canada, told Daily Hive Urbanized during an interview and store tour during the final merchandise set-up process.

The temporary Decathlon store that first opened at the mall in October 2023 has provided the local team with some valuable insights on regional preferences and interests, which enables a more curated selection of the wide range of goods available at the new flagship.

This has prompted the team to zero in on running, cycling, hiking, and camping, with large areas of the store dedicated to these categories.

“The feedback we’ve got since opening the temporary store was really positive, and it performed really well — much more than our expectations, so that’s really good news,” Guillaume Baldy, a previous longtime store operations manager of Decathlon in France, who moved to Vancouver last year to take on a leading role at the new Metrotown store, told Daily Hive Urbanized.

“At the temporary store, we decided to have a little bit of everything — displayed as many sports as possible. That confirmed that winter sports was a big one, water sports as well, and definitely hiking and running, too. We were even able to display a few bikes inside that store, and customers were excited to see that.”

Baldy suggests that they already benefit from some strong brand awareness in Metro Vancouver, given that the region has large and diverse populations of immigrants from Europe, Asia, and South America — where Decathlon already has a major presence and brand recognition.

And that specifically includes the recognition of Decathlon’s in-house brands. The store does not sell any third-party brands — do not expect any products made by Nike, Adidas, Under Armour, or The North Face. This is how Decathlon differentiates itself from the more familiar Canadian retailer of Sport Chek and the other new international entrant of JD Sports, which is also opening a location at Metrotown mall later this year.

Decathlon currently has nine in-house brands, including “Quechua” for mountain apparel, “Tribord” for water sports, “Rockrider” for cycling, “Kuikma” for racket sports, “Kipsta” for team sports, and “Caperlan” for wildlife.

Within each sport category, Decathlon offers a range of products that cater to an individual’s varying experience level in the sport. And that also enables the retailer to offer products at a range of prices, including some highly affordable prices for individuals who may be just trying out a sport.

There are also higher price points for products with a higher degree of technical design, such as the ultra-light and springier carbon plate running shoes.

“I can think of two main categories of people when it comes to the response to our temporary store. One group is shocked because they didn’t expect a store to have such affordable products, like high-quality and affordable products. And the other category was shocked because they have been waiting for a decathlon to come to Canada because they know it from their home country,” said Sheikh.

Sheikh notes that Decathlon’s in-house products are all created through the company’s internal research and development process, which is performed in close proximity to the environment. For example, hiking and other mountain-related apparel and equipment are created at the company’s global design centre at the foot of Mont Blanc.

The opening of the Metrotown store also coincides with Decathlon’s launch of e-bike products for the Canadian market.

The Metrotown store offers specific products for bike repair, camping, golfing, swimwear, surfing, snorkelling, kayaking, weight training, yoga, climbing, hiking, archery, spikeball (also known as roundnet), roller sports, racket sports, and other team sports. There is a wide assortment of jackets and bags, as well as footwear for a wide range of activities (e.g., hiking, running, biking, basketball, tennis).

This store has just about everything you can think of, and its products are available for men, women, and children.

The mix of available products can change with the seasons, but customers can expect year-round staples for hiking and camping, which features tents, gear, and accessories, as well as cycling, which features a test space for bikes, scooters, and roller skates. There is a workshop for the tune-up and repair of bikes, kayaks, and paddle boards.

A particularly striking art feature that spans a wall next to the bank of escalators is a Vancouver-inspired mural designed by local artist Andrew McGuire. The mural celebrates athletes from all walks of life interacting with iconic Vancouver landmarks.

When asked whether Decathlon has plans to open more stores in Metro Vancouver, Sheikh said the company’s focus is currently on opening and optimizing the flagship store at Metrotown, but such an expansion approach could be under consideration if this new permanent Metrotown store proves to be a strong performer.

The retailer already has multiple store locations in some major Canadian markets, including two stores in Calgary, two stores in Quebec City, two stores in Montreal, and five stores in and near Toronto, including a small urban fitness-oriented store within the recently built retail expansion of Union Station in downtown Toronto.

Source