Decathlon Lithuanian operates French sports and leisure shops in Lithuania, and it is planning to expand further into the Baltic region and particularly Estonia. The company also plans to focus more on digitalisation.
“In 2023, our business had positive net results in both countries, which is a very good signal for further business development in the Baltic region, especially in Estonia,” the company said in its 2023 annual report, as submitted to the Lithuanian Centre of Registers.
Decathlon Lithuania opened a store in Tallinn last year. It now has five stores in the Baltic States.
“In 2024, we planned to focus on digital transformation, as opposed to opening physical shops,” the company declared. “We are working on new back office tools in Latvia and on increasing spending on marketing.”
The company plans to invest most of its time and revenue in the development of its Omnichannel business strategy.
Decathlon Lithuania posted a net profit of 1.6 million euros last year, up 23% from 1.3 million in 2022. Revenues rose by 38% from EUR 37.9 million to EUR 52.3 million.
Sales in physical stores increased by 37%, while online sales rose by 11%.
The company says that despite these improvements, the operational results last year and this year have been affected negatively by inflation in Europe, which has led to higher product prices.
“In 2023 and probably in 2024, unprecedented inflation levels are leading most companies including Decathlon, to increase product prices as a reflection of significant cost increases,” the company said, adding that its customers are losing purchasing power and that this might slow down sales in the short term and damage Decathlon’s image in the long term.