Intersport takes it to the Maks
Intersport, the giant Swiss sporting-goods chain, has bought a 25-percent stake in Maks Sport for EUR 2 (zł.8) million. This gives it six percent of the sports-equipment market in Poland, which is worth zł.1.2 billion in total.
This latest move could spell serious difficulties for Intersport's rivals. The market is relatively immature and is dominated by two French firms, Decathlon and Go-Sport. Although they control a large part of the Polish market, they pale in comparison to Intersport's global operation. It is one of the largest companies of its kind in the world, with 5,000 outlets in 30 countries, which last year generated a turnover of more than $7 (zł.24) billion.
Intersport signed an investment and license deal with Maks Sport, which means all existing stores will be rebranded to Maks-Intersport and any new stores will be called Intersport. Maks Sport will have access to Intersport's special offers, promotion programs and own-brand products.
The company plans to build at least five stores in 2006 and 10 in the following year. "We are opening the last Maks sport store at the end of November and then we will start preparing ourselves for the opening of Intersport's store in Łódź," said Agnieszka Wąsik, Maks Sport's marketing director. "Then we will open stores respectively in Kraków, Warsaw, Wrocław and Poznań."
Decathlon, which controls 14 percent of the Polish market, is unperturbed by the new contender. "We are going to continue to act as we have been so far," said Beata Madejczyk, a spokesperson for Decathlon. "We know that Intersport is going to be our main competition but the market in Poland is able to absorb much more and there will be enough space for everyone."
All the market's main players are planning expansions. Go-Sport wants to triple the number of its stores in the next five years, to reach 15, and Decathlon want to open 24 new stores by 2010, giving it 44 outlets in total.
According to Remigiusz Sopel, an analyst from online brokerage firm Internetowy Dom Maklerski, Intersport's entrance will force further investments in the market, which will lead to price cuts. If the existing companies hesitate for too long, they may be left behind quite fast."
