Decathlon scales European logistics with multi-site automation

THIS PROGRAMME covers a total of seven warehouse sites across five European countries: France, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Italy, and Germany, enabling Decathlon to standardise and manage supply chain flows across Europe, while also providing a better working environment for its operators.

Decathlon’s Skyfleet represents a new step in Exotec’s positioning as both an OEM and integrator, delivering a full inbound to outbound solution within a unified architecture. The goal of this program is to accelerate multi-site deployments on an international scale by simplifying processes.

After deploying its first Skypod robotic system in its Tilburg warehouse in 2021, Decathlon looked to expand this partnership with an ambitious project: standardising store replenishment across the European continent. To accomplish this goal, Exotec designed a warehouse based on a replicable and scalable architecture to deploy across seven of Decathlon’s European sites.

Each Skyfleet warehouse is based on a typical configuration:

• A fleet of 150 to 200 Skypod robots
• 100,000 to 125,000 storage locations
• Capacity of 3,000 to 4,000 lines per hour
• 150,000 to 200,000 items per day
• 7 to 13 picking stations (single stations and stations with order movers)
• Parcel buffering before shipping within the same storage system
• Full automation of inbound and outbound flows
• Standardised end-to-end integration

At each Decathlon site, additional automated equipment is systematically integrated by Exotec to maximize warehouse intralogistics automation: automatic depalletisers, automatic carton opening machines, RFID tunnels, automatic palletisers, etc. For these specialised machines—whose selection during the design phase can be costly and time-consuming– standardising across multiple sites has generated substantial efficiencies and cost savings.

Beyond the design phase, shared learnings and mutualisation within the program have accelerated deployment phases—particularly system ramp-up.

As with all Exotec projects, flow orchestration and equipment coordination are handled by Deepsky, Exotec’s proprietary Warehouse Execution System (WES). This software layer unifies interfaces and ensures end-to-end operational continuity across the warehouse. Site standardisation enabled Exotec to develop a single software codebase shared across all seven warehouses, simplifying deployment.

Collaborative technology serving teammates

Standardisation makes it easier to support and train teams in adopting these new technologies. By eliminating much of the heavy lifting, teammates can train in other activities, enriching their skills while continuing to support company growth.

The Skyfleet program significantly improved working conditions for Decathlon warehouse teams. For example, at the Northampton site (UK), a picker now walks only 1 kilometre per day, compared to 10km previously. At the same site, workplace incidents related to order picking have significantly decreased, dropping from 1 in 5,000 to 1 in 10,000.

Significant performance improvement

The new operating model has enabled Skyfleet sites to expand the number of Decathlon stores they serve, driving more efficient store replenishment across Europe.

For example, Ferrières (France) now serves 73 stores, up from 37, while Setúbal (Portugal) has increased from 41 to 73 stores.

Throughput has also significantly improved. The Setúbal site now prepares 114,000 orders per day—double its previous capacity of 57,000 prior to the Skyfleet program.

Standardisation has further streamlined operations and long-term maintenance. While each site remains locally managed, Decathlon benefits from harmonised tools and dashboards that enable teams to benchmark performance, share best practices, and continuously optimise warehouse operations.

The systems are also designed for flexibility and scalability. During peak demand periods, robots can be redeployed between sites, ensuring resources are aligned with operational needs. The Ferrières site, for instance, has already expanded its fleet with 13 additional robots.

“We were looking for a partner to support us in rationalising our logistics network. We chose Exotec because they were able to deploy many sites in a short time and integrate scalable solutions that adapt to our evolution. In five years, we have profoundly transformed the experience of our warehouse employees and written the next chapter of logistics for Decathlon,” explains Jérôme Saillour, head of logistics automation at Decathlon.