Guiding them through the early stages of their Australian expansion.
01.
THE CLIENT
Decathlon
Sharing passion for sport and making it accessible to everyone is what motivates Decathlon to design and sell technical products at the best prices in over 30 countries.
Ever since their foundation in 1976, Decathlon has been observing sportspeople in action to understand their needs. Decathlon’s product managers, designers and engineers have all stood pitch, court, track and pool-side in order to conceive their innovative products. They master product design, production and distribution, to sell goods at affordable prices from their stores and online.
Founded
1976
HQ
Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France
Company Size
10,000+
Industry
Sporting Goods
Specialties
Sporting Goods Design, Manufacturing and Distribution02.
THE CHALLENGE
Decathlon first reached out to The Polyglot Group in 2015, carrying big ambitions at hand. With over one thousand stores worldwide, Decathlon strived to bring their major retail presence to Australia.
Decathlon’s global presence meant they were accustomed to undertaking international growth. As a result, Decathlon recognised the risks and challenges in going overseas. The company also knew the importance of maintaining their renowned reputation to compete against other major sport retailers in Australia. These are just some of the reasons why Decathlon chose to unite with The Polyglot Group.
Decathlon’s overarching goal was to facilitate smooth progression to Australia’s shores. From here, Decathlon knew it was down to setting up a functional operation for Australia’s market. This entailed duties such as setting up a local office and taking all required steps to becoming a compliant employer in Australia.
As a major retailer, Decathlon’s stores are warehouse-sized. They sell an enormous range of products for over 35 different sports. Bringing this large-scale presence to Australia imposed many demands which meant that this was far from a small project. With this in mind, Decathlon sought a partner with the knowledge and expertise in expanding to Australia in the most efficient way possible.
03.
OUR SOLUTION
Upon visiting our own office, Decathlon could see the potential for it to be their ideal base for entering the Australian market. We thereby hosted Decathlon, allowing them to work from our Glebe-based office without the trouble of sourcing their own commercial lease. This was the ultimate gateway to entering Australia with ease.
As a foreign employer, Decathlon was then well-prepared to bring their team to Australia. We provided the HR & Payroll framework for this to happen in a smooth and fully compliant manner.
Polyglot Group’s HR experts built the ideal HR foundation for Decathlon, which ensured compliance and best practice for the company. Our holistic solution took care of employment contracts, salary benchmarks, as well as the drafting of policies and procedures.
We also supported Decathlon in setting up their time and attendance system from A to Z, and now continue to take care of their ongoing full payroll function.
Finally, after sitting down with Decathlon and discussing their needs, we appreciated that customer service was something very important to them. So, when it came to recruiting a Customer Happiness Officer, The Polyglot Group understood the key skills and traits Decathlon were after in order to source the ideal talent.
04.
THE RESULTS
Our partnership with Decathlon allowed them to smoothly setup an Australian subsidiary without time-consuming setbacks. Decathlon was able to set the right foundations for a successful Australian launch as well as facilitate professionalism and outstanding customer care.
Decathlon’s unique customer culture is created by their two worldwide values: vitality and responsibility. Accordingly, Decathlon wanted to bring their enthusiastic and pioneering spirit to Australia, but also do so in a responsible and compliant manner.
Our expert knowledge on how to best setup in Australia gave Decathlon the confidence of knowing they were implementing best practice. Indeed, Decathlon had full trust in their setup framework, and thereby could enter the Australian market with the professionalism and confidence which is so important to them.
