While Greece is still in economic and political turmoil, some sports companies are continuing to thrive in the country. One of them is the Greek-based Intersport chain of sporting goods stores that belongs to the large Furlis retail group.
Furlis' Intersport operation raised its sales by 12.0 percent to €90.75 million in 2011, and it grew by a further 33.4 percent in the first quarter of this year to €26.08 million. However, losses outside Greece and Cyprus and expenses related to its expansion into Turkey led to small losses in both periods.
At the end of last March, Furlis managed a total of 80 Intersport stores - 38 in Greece, 20 in Romania, 5 in Bulgaria, 15 in Turkey and 2 in Cyprus - as compared to 57 one year earlier.
Overall, the Furlis group made a small profit in 2011 on flat sales of €436.0 million, but reported a net loss of €5.2 million on sales of €90.6 million for the first quarter of 2012.
Another exception in the country has been Bodytalk, the Greek fitness apparel brand, lifted its sales by 14.6 percent to €14.7 million in 2011. It achieved an operating profit margin of 16 percent, up by 3 percentage points compared with the previous year. Bodytalk's net profit soared by more than 40 percent to just over €1.4 million.
The performance was aided by the opening of five more Bodytalk stores in Greece last year, building up to a network of 33 doors. Meanwhile, its international sales jumped by about 48 percent to just over €3.2 million, making up for 22 percent of the total turnover, compared with 17 percent in 2010.
The company is upbeat about its start in France last year and is preparing to open a showroom in Aix-en-Provence, with a sales team and customer service. Bodytalk's international business has also been buoyed by abundant sales in the United Arab Emirates, in partnership with some of the largest retailers in Kuwait, Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Based on sales and orders so far, the Greek brand's turnover should continue to grow this year, with 27 percent of it coming from abroad. Bodytalk already opened another store at the Athens Mall in April, but the overall door count should remain at 33 until the end of the year, because the latest opening was accompanied with the closure of a nearby store.
