André Weinert, who was previously the CEO of Decathlon in Germany, will now assume this role for Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe.
Weinert is taking over responsibility for 17 stores of the French sporting goods retailer with immediate effect, Decathlon announced on Wednesday. Who will succeed him for the German market should be announced “in the coming weeks”.
“I am very happy about the trust placed in me and about the new task,” says Weinert. “In view of the complexity and the differences in the markets of Poland, Romania, Turkey or Israel, for example, exciting challenges await me.”
Weinert has been with the company since 2003 and has held various positions as branch and regional manager in Germany. As a product manager in France, he was also responsible for the swimming range. In 2017 he returned to Germany, where he took on the role of Commercial Director. For the past four years he has managed the business in Germany as CEO.
development in Germany
“André and his team have put Decathlon in the fast lane in Germany,” says Steve Dykes, Chief Retail & Countries Officer at Decathlon. “The digital business has been greatly expanded and the location portfolio has not only been expanded, but also optimized. Today Decathlon is one of the largest sporting goods retailers in Germany.
During his time at the helm of Decathlon-Germany, Weinert led the company through the pandemic. Gross sales in 2022 were 70 percent higher than in 2018, increasing from EUR 622 million to EUR 1.06 billion.
In addition, 36 new locations were opened in Germany and 14 stores were closed because they no longer fit into the company’s portfolio in Germany in terms of location, area size and product range. Decathlon currently operates 85 stores in Germany.