TSG generates sales of 285 million dollars. Its purchase gives Redcats USA, the American home shopping number three, increased weight within Redcats, as it now represents 32% of the parent company’s total sales compared with 26% in 2005. The American market is in full growth and the TSG group allows us to gain a foothold in the outdoor leisure sector.

 

This acquisition is part of the deep transformation taking place at Redcats: the transition from a mail-order selling company to a multi-brand and multi-channel world leader in fashion and decoration whose growth is bolstered by the web. The Sportsman’s Guide includes, among others, The Golf Warehouse. This company, which specialises in the sale of golf equipment, generates 85% of its 66 million dollars in sales via the Internet. The web is a real asset for our group. This acquisition also presents the advantage of rebalancing Redcats’ activity. Accordingly, apparel now only makes up 61% of our activity, compared with 74% before the acquisition in the United States.

The international strategy for the group – 47% of whose sales were made in France last year – rests on two pillars. First of all, the development of local brands, such as Josefssons in Denmark. Secondly, the expansion of the French brands, which carry out about a quarter of their activity abroad. La Redoute, for example, is present in 21 countries and set up operations in Russia this year. Vertbaudet arrived in Switzerland and Saudi Arabia. Cyrillus is also going to open five new stores in Japan, bringing the total to twelve.