Retail sales grew by 20.7 percent in 2021 to a new record of €12.2 billion (including VAT) for the retailers affiliated with Intersport International Corp. (IIC). In terms of local currencies, sales went up by 19.4 percent for the year, with growth of 20.4 percent in the second half after an increase of 17.9 percent in the first half.
The positive trends affected “almost all markets” in which Intersport operates. The strong overall progress took place in spite of continued retail lockdowns in some countries, which generally recovered less rapidly than others from the Covid pandemic, especially in the first half, and in spite of supply chain disruptions. According to IIC, a strengthened desire for physical activity, especially in the outdoor sector, contributed to a sales increase of €300 million, or 3 percent, as compared to the pre-Covid year of 2019. The pandemic had led to a drop in retail sales of 13.8 percent to €10.2 billion in 2020 for the Intersport network of independent sports retailers.
Pure online sales – excluding click-and-collect and ship-from-store – rose overproportionately by 25 percent in 2021, representing about 7 percent of total revenues, as more and more retailers and their customers made use of the internet. Adding click-and-collect and ship-from-store service, which became handly during the lockdowns, online penetration was higher than 10 percent.
The number of affiliated stores increased slightly to 5,430 from 5,421 in the course of the year, although Intersport exited the U.K. and the Philippines in 2020, bringing down the number of countries where the group is operating to 42 from 44 in 2019.
All the figures exclude the retail sales of The Athlete’s Foot, the rather successful specialty footwear and lifestyle retail chain, which was sold in July 2021 by IIC to the Arklyz Group.
Steve Evers, CEO of IIC, said he was very optimistic that the Intersport Group “can continue to leverage its hyperlocal presence and its service and advice-based expertise with its customers as we observe a growth optimism based on strong double-digit orders for Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter 2022.”
