The French distributor Go Sport, whose main shareholder is the Rallye company (which also owns the Casino group), announced on Wednesday that it had acquired the brand specializing in running Endurance Shop, surfing as well on the mode to “running”.
Founded in 2002, Endurance Shop, which has more than sixty points of sale in France, claims to be the “first retail network equipment for the foot race” (trail, raid, running, athletics, triathlon and hiking), with a turnover of 30 million euros in 2017.
“A part of its network will be labeled as an Endurance Shop by GO Sport master franchise”, said in a press release distributor, which aims 100 stores by the age of 4, “with a business volume of 50 million euros”. “To GO Sport, this integration is in line with the group’s strategy to develop a network of specialists”: Endurance Shop will be added to other brands of the group that are Running, GO Sport, Mountain, Tool, Fitness and Bike+. With a goal, says the group: “to become a hub must-see for all the markets in the sport, both for customers but also for suppliers”.
13 million runners in France
Endurance Shop is “a network of shops that caters to the community of “runners” in that this brand has a strong reputation,” explains the president of Go Sport, André Ségura.
According to him, practitioners of the “running” is valued at approximately 13 million people in France, this is the third amateur sport behind the hike (15.5 million) and cycling (14 million). Better, the number of female practitioners has doubled since 2010, “adds Mr. Ségura, who intends to surf on the health aspects, weight loss and relaxation” that advances the followers of the running to explain their taste for this sport. This acquisition is therefore fully in the “positioning to a sport that focuses on the health and well-being,” put forward by the distributor, stresses the CEO.
With this integration, effective from July, the group GO Sport, which has registered a turnover of € 1 billion in 2017 (+5% year on year), will bring together nearly 600 stores, all banners combined.
(With AFP)
