Companies news
Decathlon launches its new branding
"People need sport today more than ever.
The world around us is changing rapidly with innovation and technology evolving at lightspeed. It can be unsettling, creating stress and pressure. We have also become more unhealthy as a global population, with sedentarism and overconsumption on the rise. There’s a particular issue amongst children, where obesity has risen in Europe by 150% since 1980.
At Decathlon, we believe that sport has a vital role to play in helping societies to be healthier and happier. Sport helps us to reconnect with our humanity, with the planet, and with our physical selves. So, we took a moment to ask ourselves who we really want to be, and why we exist as an organisation…
From this, we wrote our North Star. This is our long-term ambition, and our guiding light to have all the positive impact we can have in the world. Guided by the North Star, a new purpose was born, to Move People Through the Wonders of Sport.
Anchored to this purpose, we created a new strategy to concretely evolve many aspects of our business. This includes recreating our customer experience, accelerating the movement towards sustainability, and modernising our company end-to-end.
Core to the evolution of the customer’s experience through all its touchpoints, is the introduction of our new brand.
We are all incredibly excited and proud to share with you the new chapter of Decathlon. One that will help many people around the world experience the wonders of sport."
Barbara Martin Coppola, Decathlon Global CEO
In 1976, Decathlon was created out of friendship between sports lovers who wanted everyone to enjoy the benefits and fun of being active. Many people have a story to tell with Decathlon, whether it is about a trusty piece of gear or learning to ride a bike.
And so what started as a dream of friends is now a global company with more than 100,000 teammates and more than 1,700 stores across 70 countries and regions, offering sporting equipment for 80 sports. A sports brand catering to beginners and experts alike.
Today, the world around us is changing faster than ever creating stress, pressure and a lack of a sense of belonging. In addition, as much as 70% of the world population is inactive according to the World Health Organization.
For our mental and physical well being, the world needs sport more than ever right now.
For decades, Decathlon has been democratising sport, but today, they feel that they must go much further and faster, to have an even greater impact. So they started to ask themselves, why are they really here? Who do they want to be? What is the reason why Decathlon exists?
From this, they came together and wrote their North Star which is their ambition, their guiding light for building a better future for people, society and the planet.
Within their North Star, they have a beautiful purpose, to Move People Through the Wonders of Sport.
These words have multiple, important meanings.
Move: physically by helping people to live active lifestyles, emotionally by bringing joy into people’s lives and fostering connections, and behaviourally so that people adopt more sustainable behaviours.
People: accessible to all people, at all levels. From beginners right up to expert elites. Today they have the technicity that enables them to produce world-class competitive products.
Wonders of Sport: The magic of doing it your way, it can be the joy of participation or the thrill of performance, they help make sport yours in an inclusive way.
So their purpose can be interpreted by people in many different ways according to what matters most to them, and that’s what makes it so special.
During this process, they asked their customers why they played sports and they actually found that health and fun were the two main reasons, followed by performance in third place. In the world of sport, far more focus has been placed on performance and being the best, but at Decathlon we are here for you whatever ‘wonder’ you want to get out of your activity.
So, the North Star was built and their purpose defined. Next, they put them into concrete action. A strategy designed to totally transform their business model was written and they’ve been acting on it for the last few years. This strategy revolves around 3 key domains.
The first is Customer experience, which must go beyond the product and involve customers in an immersive and complete experience. They will be evolving every single touchpoint, while creating entirely new ones, to take their customers on a memorable journey. In order to do this, they have created an evolved brand. This, together with their ambition and new strategy, is what they will be unveiling to the world on Tuesday 12th March.
The next is Sustainability. They are creating new circular business models, redesigning every single product with its environmental impact in mind, innovating their production process and using exciting new renewable materials. All of this comes back to their unwavering commitment to reduce their impact on their shared playground, so that people can enjoy sports long into the future.
The third is the modernisation, rationalisation and digitalisation of our entire model. They are an end-to-end business - this makes them unique. They are transforming everything from the ideation process and production, right the way through to use and re-use of their products. This will help them to become more flexible, agile and reactive to the needs of the world around them.
None of this is possible without their key priority - their people. They want their teammates to contribute to their shared purpose to make the world a happier, healthier place.
This will be Decathlon’s legacy: opening the wonders of sport to everyone through the generosity, ingenuity and passion of our teammates.
The new logo consists of two elements, their wordmark and their new symbol, known as the Orbit.
The Orbit is an expression of their North Star, building from their past to project us towards their future.
Its movement conveys their commitment to circularity while drawing on Decathlon’s design heritage with their iconic tilted “A”.
Representing a mountain, a sail, a wave, or even a heartbeat, the peak at the end of the Orbit closes the movement towards new heights.
A symbol of openness, Decathlon’s new logo lets everyone embrace it for what it means to them: whether it is accessibility, high-performance, innovation, or a positive impact on the environment.
Their new shade of blue is vibrant and full of energy, representing Decathlon’s credibility as a sports brand.
But their new brand identity goes beyond their new logo.
Built on modularity, their brand identity will reflect their multi-specialisation, reaching out to more people, from beginners to experts. It will bring joy, emotions and convey strong values of inclusivity.
Decathlon’s new identity has been in the making for the past two years. Teams have been hard at work to create a brand which truly represents Decathlon for what it is: a global multi-specialist sports brand, moving all people, from beginners to top athletes, through the wonders of sport.
Decathlon is bringing its new positioning and identity to life by:
- connecting product to a larger emotion or activity leading with expressive and relatable imagery and captivating content,
- introducing New merchandising and storytelling,
- bringing moments of delight through motion, content, and much more….
They are launching a whole new digital shopping experience for their customers, with new and improved features on their eCommerce platforms (both on the front-end and back-end) that enhance the overall customer experience, and align closely with Decathlon’s new brand positioning and modern omnichannel strategy.
With this new experience, they will put customers at the center of the shopping journey and make sure they discover the stories behind their products in a way that is meaningful to them.
The UK is the first country to unveil its 100% revamped eCommerce site. Other countries to follow as part of a phased rollout.
Stores, all over the world, will also benefit from the new identity, whether it is on their signage or in their setup. They will propose a new and immersive experience to all customers, whatever their goal or level in their sporting journey.
As soon as they enter a Decathlon store, customers will step into a world of possibilities. Stores will adopt a circular mass plan, offering their customers intuitive navigation, increased product visibility, engaging displays, and an aesthetically pleasing atmosphere. This layout will promote efficient browsing, easy comparison, and a memorable shopping experience, creating a positive and enjoyable journey.
In addition, stores will offer new features such as showrooms, discovery stations seamlessly integrating physical and digital elements to facilitate the exploration, analysis, and comparison of products. Services will include circular hubs dedicated to repairing, second-life products and renting services as well as lockers for customers to pick up their orders, benefitting from flexible and contactless access, 24/7 availability, reduced wait times, and enhanced privacy.
A fusion of style and functionality, their new teammates’ vest will embody their new brand identity.
This sleek, unisex gilet has a modern silhouette and practical pockets. Customizable by their teammates, it is a symbol of innovation and technicity, ensuring a confident stride into the future.
Because they want to bring joy and happy emotions to people, and empower them to practise sport on their own terms, the new brand identity will be accompanied by a new brand platform with a new tagline.
Ready to play?
The question Decathlon is asking today is, are you ready to play?
This is an invitation to colleagues, customers and the world, to embrace that thing we all have within us,
That feel since the day we were born.
That doesn’t care how old you are, how rich you are, how strong or fit you are.
That moves you through sport, and life, with more energy and enjoyment.
Nothing should hold you back
And together with Decathlon and our commitment to making sport for everyone, nothing will.
So are you
Ready to play?
SOURCE: Decathlon
