Outlet operator

Sporting goods crisis even opens up new opportunities

The urge to exercise discovered by many during the coronavirus pandemic continues.(Bild: Uwe Grinzinger)

Get out into nature! During the coronavirus pandemic, many Austrians followed their urge to exercise and discovered a passion for outdoor sports. Hiking, skiing, running or cycling - exercise is still very much in vogue, especially as a way to balance out the digital world. Mountain sports outlet founders Christoph Krahwinkler and Jürgen Scheidlberger are also benefiting from this.

Sattledt, Vöcklabruck, Schlüßlberg, Steyregg and Gmunden - Bergsport-Outlet, which was founded in 2015 by Jürgen Scheidlberger and Christoph Krahwinkler, operates five branches. Since then, the two sports retail experts have been doing everything they can to keep their company stable. And they have succeeded.

"We've done a lot right over the last ten years"
"In the current financial year, we will once again be able to increase both our turnover and our earnings in the high single-digit range," the two reveal, "for us, this is a clear confirmation of our strategy and proof that we have done a lot right over the last ten years."

Jürgen Scheidlberger (left) and Christoph Krahwinkler (right) opened their first store in 2015 and have since opened four more.(Bild: Markus Wenzel)

From functional shirts to trail running shoes, socks and jackets - the range is clearly geared towards the outdoor, hiking, running, skiing and biking sectors. "We stock clothing, shoes and accessories such as rucksacks, snowshoes, ski and bike helmets," says Scheidlberger. They score points with a good price-performance ratio among customers "who don't want to miss out on good advice and a solid range of brands," says Krahwinkler.

In general, we have noticed that customers' purchasing behavior in the sporting goods sector has shifted once again in favor of our positioning in the years since Corona: Companies with credible price positioning that can also reconcile brands and advice are clear winners in the crisis.

Christoph Krahwinkler und Jürgen Scheidlberger, Gründer Bergsport-Outlet

Highly positioned brands are looking for new sales channels
How is the challenging situation on the sporting goods market affecting the mountain sports outlet? There are repeated reports of a slowdown in consumer sentiment and full warehouses at manufacturers and retailers. "The sporting goods market is in a state of upheaval. Of course, we also recognize the large amount of goods on the market, which leads to high pressure on sales prices and a price war. However, changes in the industry's sales channels give us the opportunity to add new brands to our range," says Krahwinkler. "It is also becoming increasingly difficult for highly positioned and therefore also high-priced brands to implement a selective sales strategy," adds Scheidlberger.

The fact that the demand for bicycles did not continue in the same way after the extreme corona boom and at the same time manufacturers continued to produce at a high level due to optimistic planning - including dealers - does not affect the Bergsport outlet makers. "We realized ten years ago that we would leave skis and bikes to the rental business or the specialists in these areas," they say.