Lukáš Lesovský: how Czech Sportega plans to conquer Europe

The Czech online sports retailer Sportega, led by CEO Lukáš Lesovský, posted record revenue this year and, after a pause of several years, has resumed acquisitions. The Brno-based company plans to expand across the entire European market within five years, so that shoppers in any country on the continent can buy sports gear through Sportega.

Lesovský says the company’s most profitable sport is ice hockey: Sportega is the largest player in Europe when it comes to selling hockey equipment. Interestingly, the company links its business growth directly to the success of “underdog” national teams at international tournaments. For example, Norway’s bronze medal at the latest world ice hockey championship is a good sign for future sales, since it is typically a few years after such successes that parents start signing their children up for hockey in large numbers.

During major tournaments, the company runs a kind of shopping gamification: the discount on products grows depending on how the buyer’s national team performs. According to Lesovský, these promotions drive year-on-year sales growth of 30–40%, though he does not disclose exact figures.

Sportega was founded in 2002 and today operates in 16 European countries besides Czechia. Lesovský’s goal is to cover the whole of Europe within five years. The company chooses new markets based on four criteria: the popularity of various sports in the country, the fit with the company’s product range, the cost of logistics and marketing (all products are shipped from Czechia), and the local price level.

Sometimes one factor outweighs the others, as happened with the company’s recent entry into the Spanish and British markets. Despite expensive logistics and the hassle of handling returns in Britain, the size and strength of that market — the third-largest e-commerce market in the world — proved to be the decisive argument.

Lesovský does not see competition from the Decathlon chain as a threat — in his view, the two companies complement each other rather than compete: newcomers to sport buy their first gear from the French giant, and once they get hooked and want more professional equipment, they turn to Sportega. The company is also betting on niche sports that are growing in popularity, such as padel, aiming to be present in every segment of the European sports market.