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Decathlon will open its first full-scale store in the Bay Area at a former Toys R Us property in Emeryville. The 47K SF property at 3938 Horton St. was acquired by Benderson Development earlier in the summer. The Decathlon store is scheduled to open in the spring.
The sporting goods retailer previously opened a small-format lab store in downtown San Francisco at 735 Market St. where customers can try out products.
“We strategically chose to open a smaller-scale store in the city before expanding to this larger retail center in order to better understand the needs of local sports enthusiasts and develop our interconnected retail and online experience,” Decathlon USA CEO Michel d'Humières said in a statement. “Since our launch, we’ve had an enthusiastic response to our store and have developed a thriving relationship with the community.”
The Emeryville store will be six times as large as its San Francisco store and feature products for over 100 sports, including gear for children and adults. Like its lab store, it will allow consumers to test products before they buy them.
The retailer also launched its national e-commerce platform Aug. 1, and its full product line is available nationwide. It previously only offered shipping to California residents.
Decathlon had stores in the U.S. in 1999, but ended up leaving the U.S. market. This is the first time since then it has opened stores in the U.S.
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