Decathlon secures green light for Liffey Valley retail outlet
By Maurice Garvey
FRENCH sports retailing group Decathlon has secured planning permission for a large-scale outlet at Liffey Valley retail park, as part of its expansion plans into the Republic of Ireland.
South Dublin County Council approved plans for the retailer to revamp a retail warehouse last July despite opposition from Liffey Valley Management Ltd, which claimed the proposal breached retail planning guidelines.
Liffey Valley Retail Park
Liffey Valley Management Ltd appealed the decision to An Bord Pleanála (abp).
However, abp inspectors approved the plans and found the development “would complement the existing retail offer and is an ideal location for such a store.”
Conditions attached to the planning permission include the order that no more than 20 per cent of net retail sales be dedicated to ancillary items associated with bulky goods.
Decathlon lodged plans for an internal mezzanine at unit 14 of the Liffey Valley retail park that would result in almost doubling in the gross floor area to 3,252 sq m to bring the store in line with the average Decathlon stores overseas.
The company, which has more than 1,500 stores around the world, are currently building a flagship store in Ballymun.
Their aim is to have “three retail touchpoints” in Dublin and nine stores across Ireland.
The company said they require a sizeable unit to show their full range of sports products.
Decathlon sells low-cost sports gear and stock their own-brand clothes and equipment for 70 sports.
Currently, Decathlon has a store in Belfast and sells online in the Republic.
It has annual sales of more than €11bn. The company has operated an ecommerce platform in Ireland since November 2017.
