Decathlon leaves Russia

Decathlon, a French sports retailer, has decided to sell its Russian assets and is looking for potential buyers, according to the RBC news agency, citing unidentified sources.

The news agency reported that the company wants to sell its Russian business entirely. However, Decathlon hasn’t ruled out that it would just sell its commercial property in Russia.

Decathlon owns at least 135,000 square meters of commercial property in Russia. The company’s hypermarkets account for two-thirds of this property. The retailer also owns various offices, warehouses and empty land parcels, RBC reported.

The total amount of Decathlon’s assets in Russia is estimated at $200 million. However, the Russian government forces companies from so-called «unfriendly countries» to sell their business with a 50% discount.

Decathlon also operates in Kazakhstan. It runs two supermarkets in Almaty, which are open as usual, the company told Kursiv.

In March 2022, Decathlon suspended its operation in Russia to meet international sanctions against the Russian Federation. Also, the company suffered from the disruption of supply chains in Russia, which made it virtually impossible to work there. At the time, Decathlon Russia ran more than 50 shops throughout the country. In June, the company closed all of these shops, including the online one.