Decathlon Encourages Canadians to Stand up to Black Friday and “Make Time for Sports” Instead

This Black Friday, Decathlon is launching a brand act that goes against the grain: empowering Canadians to skip the sales and instead – “Make Time for Sports” – by inviting the brand to their calendar booking for the opportunity to be gifted sports gear. 

The Friday after American Thanksgiving is the biggest retail moment of the year – but “add to cart” can have a dark side. In fact, 88% of Black Friday shoppers have previously overspent (TechReport, 2024). That overspending can induce financial and mental stress as well as negative feelings like anxiety and regret. 

Decathlon’s initiative aims to offset the harmful effects of Black Friday and provide shoppers with a healthy alternative. Since being established in 1976, Decathlon has prioritized fair prices all year round – and not just for flash sales like Black Friday.

“We know that sports are proven to improve both mental and physical health. At Decathlon, we’re passionate about positively and meaningfully impacting communities at large,” said Marie-Lou Blais, director of marketing at Decathlon. “That’s why we are standing for something different on a day like Black Friday, when personal health and wellness may not be top of mind.” 

On Black Friday, Canadians are invited to put down their devices, pick up an activity, and book their activity of choice into their calendars, inviting “make.timeforsports@decathlon.com” to play. Participants will then be taken to a website to register for the initiative, and select Canadians will be rewarded with an item from a dedicated list of sports available.  

To bring “Make Time for Sports” to life, Decathlon and Rethink took a literal approach to the brand act’s mechanic by taking over popular sports spaces, like a tennis court and swimming pool. The meeting invitation and calendar overlay illustrates the idea simply and effectively.

Decathlon’s business model based on sustainability acknowledges that sports cannot be at the expense of the planet, a point of view that often falls by the wayside given the overwhelming overconsumption and commercialization that can come with Black Friday. The brand’s initiative is grounded in its values and authentically aligns with the brand’s purpose to “Move People Through the Wonders of Sport.” 

“It might seem crazy for a major sports retailer to take an anti-shopping stance for Black Friday, but because of who they are – and what they stand for – it just works,” said Xavier Blais, executive creative director and partner at Rethink. “The idea to flip Black Friday on its head could not have been done with anyone other than Decathlon, and we’re grateful to have such bold partners.”

Decathlon is committed to becoming Net Zero by 2050, with set decarbonization targets. The company aims to achieve this by working collaboratively with suppliers and partners across the supply chain, prioritizing circularity and longer product life cycles, and enabling customers to reuse, repair and recycle their products.

Beyond caring for the climate, this is not the first time Decathlon has taken a stand for the greater good. The brand has previously launched initiatives like Ability Signs, Stolen Discounts and Outage, advocating for sports, accessibility and inclusion.

The campaign was developed by and executed with creative AORs Rethink and Cossette Media across owned social and DOOH.