The Swedish retailer has come out of its bankruptcy proceedings. The Gothenburg District Court, which had placed Team Sportia in insolvency last May, lifted it after 82 percent of creditors voted to write down a large portion of their claims. Over the next four months, Team Sportia will pay back 25 percent of the original debt of 62 million Swedish kronor (€6.9m-$9.5m) owed them.
Anders Edvardsson, who was appointed chief executive of Team Sportia in July, indicated that a new strategy will be enacted afterwards to better face the new realities of the Swedish market. As previously reported, the market has become very competitive, especially after the entry of big foreign players such as XXL from Norway and Décathlon from France.
Team Sportia has already downsized significantly in an effort to cut costs. Since last year, 30 employees have been laid off at the company's head office in Mölnlycke, which has since moved to smaller premises. The company also closed its eight corporate stores.
Recently, a rumor has spread that Cycleurope's president, Salvatore Grimaldi, had offered to become a shareholder of Team Sportia, providing fresh capital. This is a credible scenario as Cycleurope, with brands such as Crescent, Monarch, Bianchi and others, is a large and important supplier of bicycles to Team Sportia. The rumor could not be confirmed.
With retail sales of SEK2.7 billion (€301.8m-$414.1m) in 2012, Team Sportia is the third-largest sporting goods retailer in Sweden, with more than 100 franchised stores and about 30 other affiliated retailers who purchase goods through its buying group. It became the largest bicycle retailer in the country after its acquisition in 2010 of Sportex, after it split from Sport 2000 International.
