Decathlon poaches new CMO from Google

Decathlon has hired a new senior executive. Following the appointment of Jimena Almendares as head of digital, the French sporting goods retailer founded in 1976 appointed Raphaël Goumain as global chief marketing officer in September 2023. Goumain had been in charge of marketing at Google France since 2015.

A graduate of the HEC business school in Paris, Goumain joined Google 14 years ago, initially as product manager. Previously, he had worked at the BHV department store, at Camif-Maltesom, Capgemini Consulting and Mappy.

At Decathlon, he was also appointed to the board of directors. “Sport has been one of the best educational experiences in my life, helping me to grow individually and with others. In this journey, Decathlon was, and remains today, the most reliable companion I could dream of. When the opportunity to join this extraordinary company – and more importantly, the incredible people who work there – came up, I didn’t hesitate,” wrote Goumain on LinkedIn.

Decathlon has a commercial presence in 72 countries. In 2022, it generated sales worth €15.4 billion, up 12% over 2021, while net income remained stable at €913 million. Decathlon has embarked on a new strategy to reduce the number of its own brands in order to make its product range “more clearly readable and understandable.”