Sporting goods giant instead of hardware store: Decathlon opens Switzerland’s largest branch in Spreitenbach
In the “Tivoli Garden”, following the surprising withdrawal of Obi, the French sporting goods manufacturer Decathlon is taking over the 6,000 square meter area on the ground floor. This is probably very convenient for sports-loving customers, as the Migros SportX branch in the Shoppi Tivoli is closing at the end of the year.
After Obi withdrew, a new building application had to be submitted for a concrete roof, as a glass roof was originally intended for the Obi garden department.
Image: Andrea Zahler
Around a year ago it became known that the Obi hardware store would not move into the ground floor of the “Tivoli Garden” in Spreitenbach as planned, a development with two additional high-rise buildings and 445 apartments that is currently being completed. The Obi was at the very beginning of one of the largest building construction projects in Switzerland when the Migros Aare cooperative started planning it 18 years ago. The community of Spreitenbach demanded that not just a hardware store be built, but an entire residential complex.
“For strategic reasons,” Migros decided around a year ago not to build an Obi and was therefore looking for a new tenant for the space. It is now clear who will take over: the French sporting goods giant Decathlon. He is opening the largest branch in Switzerland on 6,000 square meters in Spreitenbach, as he writes in a statement. The opening is planned for early summer 2025.
The “Ikea of Sports” has been in Switzerland since 2017
This year, the company, which entered the Swiss market in 2017 and has been referred to as the “Ikea of sports”, announced that it would expand in Switzerland. Locations have now been added in Geneva, Winterthur and Vevey, and stores in Lausanne Bel-Air, La Chaux-de-Fonds, Zurich Sihlcity and Grancia in Ticino are to follow before the end of the year.
There are currently 38 branches in Switzerland, with the second branch in Spreitenbach being added in Aargau – in addition to the branch in Suhr near Aarau, which has existed since 2019. “The ‘Tivoli Garden’ between Shoppi Tivoli, Ikea, Pathé cinema and Umweltarena is an ideal location to make our range of products and services accessible to the large number of athletes in this important region,” says expansion manager Lutz Mattelson Notice quoted. Thanks to the bus and Limmattalbahn, there are also environmentally friendly alternatives to the car to get to Decathlon in Spreitenbach.
SportX in Shoppi Tivoli is closing at the end of the year
The Shoppi stop of the Limmattalbahn, which has been in operation since December 2022, is located in the basement of the building and will lead directly from there to the future branch. Senior marketer Talimara Ryser also sees Decathlon as a benefit: “The company ensures an attractive mix of services.” The development, which is connected to the Shoppi Tivoli, includes a further 3,000 square meters of commercial space, where, in addition to office space, other shops and a restaurant are planned.
The new Decathlon branch is probably not entirely inconvenient for sports-loving customers: the Migros SportX branch in the Shoppi Tivoli is closing at the end of the year. The retailer has sold its 49 SportX branches, with around half being taken over by Ochsner Sport. However, this is already represented in the shopping center. In the future, certain SportX services will therefore be available in the 2,200 square meter Ochsner branch. The Decathlon branch is almost three times larger. According to Decathlon Switzerland, it comes with a full range and a large service center.
In the announcement, CEO Fabrice Beschu is also looking forward to the opening of the new location and raves about the Limmattal: “With the branch in the middle of one of the most important settlement areas in the country, in addition to our extensive digital offering, we can reach numerous people close to their homes, work and and resorts.” The further development of Decathlon represents its growing popularity among customers and its success “as a leading Swiss player in the sports sector”.
