Attractive goes virtual

Attractive, the sportswear store dedicated exclusively to women and located on the rue de Rennes in Paris, has closed its doors for good. The store was the single flagship for the concept launched in 2006 by the Deconinck brothers. However, the closure does not signal the end of Attractive but a turning point in its development as it continues to operate on the Internet.

"We launched the Attractive concept in 2006, opening a store at the Forum des Halles (Parisian shopping centre) where we benefitted from a lease with favorable terms. After we found our customer base, we left the Forum in 2009 to concentrate on the Rue de Rennes in Paris," said Nicolas Deconinck. During this phase, Attractive merged with Sheactive, British specialist in women's sportswear, which ran two stores in Britain at the time. Both companies are taking advantage of their synergy, namely with the acquisition of half of the capital of the women's sportswear brand Zoca. The label functions as an in-house brand and is currently available in over twenty retail locations in France and one hundred in England.

"In July 2011, Sheactive founder and manager Julie Fawcett wanted to embark on a new adventure and sold us her shares. Since then, I've been going back and forth between France and England, so I had to decide," said Nicolas Deconinck. The decision to stay in England, where only one store remains, has now been made and the company's growth will be handled through its online stores.

The decision was ultimately somewhat surprising, since during the merger-takeover with Sheactive in November 2010, Nicolas Deconinck had already explained that he wanted to strengthen the company through the web: "Sheactive has inventories in London for its site and we will benefit from their expertise."

Attractive now has two websites, Attractive.fr and Sheactive.co.uk, both sharing the same brand catalog. The two sites will soon be folded into Sheactive.com, which will be operated from Great Britain.

Attractive goes virtual

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