After launching the Buy Back service in autumn 2022, Decathlon Deutschland is now expanding its Circularity Service. The sports retailer has partnered with Reverse.supply, a Recommerce start-up based in Berlin, with a focus on reselling used sportswear and shoes from Decathlon’s own brands.
With Decathlon’s Circularity Services Second Use and Buy Back, customers already have the option to buy used sports products and sell them directly back to the company. The goal is to promote sustainable consumption and extend the lifespan of sports items. While the Buy Back service was previously used for hardware products like bicycles, skis, or SUP, finding the right partner for the buyback of textiles was a missing piece for Decathlon.
The collaboration with Reverse.supply facilitates retailers’ entry into re-commerce of their own products. Reverse.supply will handle all operational and technical tasks related to reselling the used items at its own logistics center in Berlin. Customers can register their items via a trade-in portal and send them to Reverse.supply.
At the logistics center, the textiles and shoes undergo quality evaluation, grading, and preparation before being resold through Decathlon’s online marketplace, decathlon.de. This entirely online process enables customers to use the service even if there is no Decathlon store nearby. Once the products are available online, customers receive email notifications.
During the initial phase, the service will be limited to sportswear from Decathlon’s own brands Forclaz and Quechua, with a minimum purchase value of 35 euros. However, the plan is to gradually expand the service to include more product categories. Items will be offered for sale for twelve months. If they are not sold within this period, customers have the option to recycle or donate them. Some items may be rejected if they have holes, stains, missing accessories, or incomplete sizing information. Decathlon sees this initiative as a milestone in their sustainability journey, giving sports items a second life and providing customers with more sustainable options.
Decathlon also shared the first results of the Buy Back service for hardware products. Over 2500 sports items have been extended, and the average time between buying and selling is only two to three days. Approximately 50% of the products are children’s bicycles, and Decathlon now accepts used children’s bicycles from other brands as well. In addition to the online offering, customers can also drop off their used hardware products for Buy Back at all Decathlon stores in Germany.
Decathlon has set ambitious goals to reduce its ecological footprint. This includes reducing absolute CO2 emissions by 20% by 2026 (from the year 2021) and producing 100% Ecodesign products by 2026. Ecodesign involves environmentally conscious product development using sustainable materials and manufacturing processes. Decathlon operates over 80 stores in Germany and a total of approximately 1700 stores worldwide.
Source: Textilwirtschaft (german)
