Crash test on the biggest sports retailers in Greece

Domestic and international forces share turnover and market shares in the sports goods sales sector in Greece through a wide retail network they have developed to date. Intersport remains the dominant player in the Greek market, but it now faces the rapidly growing Cosmos group, which was acquired by the British giant JD Plc - gaining a majority stake of 80% - two years ago.

This representation does not include the monobrand stores – that is, stores representing only one brand – of companies distributing brands like Nike, Adidas, Puma, and Under Armour, given that Nike Greece has now moved its operations outside Greece and was absorbed by Nike Retail B.V., while the retail network of Nike stores has been transferred to the Italian group Percassi. Moreover, in cases like Puma and Under Armour, which are distributed by the Fais group, there are no separate financial statements for the activity of these brands. Therefore, the depiction concerns companies that distribute all the above trademarks and others through their stores.

Regarding the individual market players, Intersport's turnover in 2022 was €184.3 million (+10.6% compared to 2021). In Greece, sales increased by 10.8%, while in other countries, there was an average increase of 10.4%. The EBITDA amounted to €12.4 million compared to €14.2 million, while this activity closed with pre-tax losses of 400 thousand euros. In the first half of 2023, Intersport had a turnover of €82.8 million from €81.17 million with pre-tax losses of €2.7 million from €2 million respectively. Currently, its network includes a total of 105 stores after the sale of Intersport's activities in Cyprus. Recall also that at the end of 2022, the group invested in and from Athlete’s Foot, selling this specific activity. At the investment level, it has incurred expenses of 12 million euros for the automation of the distribution center in Oinofyta to serve both corporate customers and e-commerce orders for retail customers.

The Cosmos Group is rapidly developing

This year, the turnover of the Cosmos Group, which manages the sports goods stores Cosmos Sport, JD Sports, Sneaker10, Slam Dunk, is set to exceed 150 million euros. The business, in the fiscal year 2022, recorded sales amounting to 110 million euros with EBITDA – before the application of the international accounting standard 16 – at 12 million euros (approximately 11%). It is proceeding with the expansion of its store network, opening on average 1.5 stores every month, relying exclusively on organic growth. It is worth noting that the British sports goods giant, JD Sports, acquired 80% of the Greek Cosmos Sport in 2021.

New stores and the lease in Kallithea

Currently, 6 JD stores are operational, of which 4 are in Greece and the remaining 2 in Cyprus. By the end of January 2023, when the fiscal year concludes, an additional 3 stores will open in Greece and 1 in Cyprus. The upcoming JD stores in Greek territory will be located on Tsimiski Avenue in Thessaloniki, in Piraeus' Tower, and another one in Kallithea with an area of 1,000 sq.m., where the lease was recently signed. The most recent JD Sports store opening was on Metaxa Avenue in Glyfada, where an existing Sneaker 10 store was absorbed into a larger space, also belonging to the group.

Zakcret, a family business owned by the Haikalis family, has also significantly expanded its market footprint in recent years, capitalizing on the trend for athletic apparel and fashion athletic products. In 2022, it had a turnover of 43.57 million euros with net profits after taxes of 413.76 thousand euros, while in 2021, its turnover was 38.66 million euros with net profits after taxes of 3.43 million euros. It's notable that Zakcret had previously engaged in discussions with the Serbia-interest chain, Sport Vision, considering the latter's acquisition of the former (in an effort for faster expansion of Sport Vision after its arrival in Greece), but these discussions did not find common ground and did not progress further.

Zakret Sports maintains 35 physical stores across Greece, 18 of which are in Attica, and also has a presence in cities like Ioannina, Larissa, Volos, Lamia, Patras, and Komotini. Additionally, it operates in the market with its special concept stores, Sneaker Cage, offering differentiated collections of athletic apparel and footwear compared to Zakret Sports.

From Ioannina in 1974 to the gradual expansion in Attica

N. Siontis S.A. is the company of the former Olympiacos and Ioannina football player, Giorgos Siontis, who established the first specialized sports goods store in 1974 in Ioannina. The company has managed to develop over the last years, expanding its network with new stores. Specifically, in 2004 it had a turnover of 900 thousand euros, while in 2021 it closed with a turnover of 9.72 million euros and net profits after taxes of 567.95 thousand euros, based on its balance sheet. Although it has not yet published financial statements for 2022, it is estimated that its turnover for the previous year reached 18 million euros and that by 2026 it will have reached 37 million euros with further investments and development of its store network. The company operates with four different trademarks, which are reflected in the facades of its stores, specifically Hall of Brands, Saint Soles, Sneakerology, and Urban Hall of Brands. One of its most recent investments was the creation of a new "Hall of Brands" store – a multipurpose space in the shopping center that houses the Village cinemas in the area of Renti. The total area of this specific multipurpose space amounts to 4,000 sq.m.

The company's network includes a total of 14 sales points, based on the latest available data from 2022, including stores in Mykonos, Glyfada, Neo Psychiko, and Thessaloniki.

Sport Vision: The new entrant from Serbia

The Serbian group Sport Vision, with its trademarks Sport Vision, Buzz, and “tike!”, is currently in a phase of expanding its activities in Greece. Notably, the exclusive model with special athletic collections represented by the “tike!” label, was recently inaugurated at Syntagma with a new store on Mitropoleos Street 7, owned by the former CEO of Alpha Bank Group, Dimitris Mantzounis, and has a total area of 250 sq.m., spread over two levels.

Sport Vision, which entered the Greek market two years ago, had a turnover of 5.33 million euros in 2022 with losses of 1.26 million euros after taxes, up from a turnover of 466 thousand euros and losses of 316.34 thousand euros in 2021. However, these performances are not considered representative at this stage, as the company is significantly investing in the organic growth of its network and its nationwide expansion, hence the losses incurred so far.

Sport Vision is currently one of the five major sports goods retailers in Europe – among them are Foot Locker and JD Sports, where all three are key partners and distributors of Nike products.

It is indicative that Nike determines the development in the international sports goods market and shapes the dynamics of the businesses that distribute its products, essentially choosing which of them will receive its premium collections, a fact that constitutes a competitive advantage and a differentiation factor against the competition. Internationally, the Sport Vision group employs more than 5,800 people and operates in 13 countries with a turnover of around 1 billion euros.