Smashing the Cannibalization Myth: How Decathlon Proves Circular Models Drive New Customer Revenue

If your leadership team is holding back on sustainability initiatives, it is likely because of one deep-seated fear: will our second-hand options eat into our new product sales?

But what if the data proves the exact opposite?

In this episode of Going Circular Pays Off, hosts Sandra Horlings and Marjolein Oyen sit down with Laurens Nolet, Circular Leader for Decathlon Netherlands, to look past the myths and show how that revenue was achieved.

This is exactly why you need to listen to this episode: Laurens shares the exact customer-centric strategy they used to turn the internal narrative around, dismantle the fear of cannibalization, and demonstrate that focusing on the consumer can make circularity a powerful commercial driver. Both in the boardroom and on the balance sheet.

🎧 3 Key Customer-Centric Breakthroughs From This Episode:

• Data shows that skeptics are wrong: 90% of sales are incremental. Services like buyback and repair create high-value touchpoints, leading to customer acquisition, loyalty, and retention that outweigh any concerns about cannibalization effects.

• Winning "Meters" through Customer Demand: Once commercial leaders saw that customers actively desired circular options, the Second Life range won dedicated linear meters in retail and priority in the online journey, backed by consistent visual merchandising across all stores.

• Engaging the Entire Hierarchy via KPIs: A radical choice in performance management. Discover how Decathlon tied the monthly financial bonus of everyone to circular revenue targets. This strategy shows how integrating circular metrics into daily operations can be practically implemented, turning boardroom strategy into customer-focused, actionable results.

💡 The Takeaway

"When I realized that the customer unites us and that Circular is actually not about the planet, but more about the customer... we turned around the story. Through those customers, we can save the planet in a way that we can change shopping behavior and reduce our footprint."

— Laurens Nolet

Stop letting assumptions dictate your business model. Tune in to arm yourself with the data and arguments needed to shift your company from volume to value.

Listen now on your favorite podcast platform! 👉 Ready to bring a customer-first circular strategy to your business? Share this episode with your network and visit innoboost.com for practical tools to make circularity work for you.

Show notes

Discover more about how Decathlon keeps customers close with circular business models

Follow Laurens Nolet on his journey going circular.

Visit Innoboost.com for more insights, research and tools on going circular. Drop us a note if you want to share your story via sandra.horlings@innoboost.com

Credits

This is a podcast by Innoboost | Creating Profit to be proud of

Hosts: Sandra Horlings & Marjolein Oyen

Production & Edit: Malou van der Starre

Sound: Joris van Grunsven, Studio Takt

What happens when the evidence of recycling becomes the reason to buy?

In this episode, Rose VanHecke, sustainability director at Electrolux for Europe, APAC and MEA, shares how making new fridges from the recycled plastic of old ones helps close the resource loop. And it created a unique selling point.

The result? A distinctive greige color that couldn't be hidden. So instead of hiding it, Electrolux leaned in. When consumers understood where that color came from, something remarkable happened: they didn't just accept it. They wanted it.

Listen to the story of how transparency about materials turned a constraint into a competitive edge, a new industry benchmark, and how closing the loop on fridges became proof that going circular pays off. Literally.

Do you also want to make going circular work and worthwhile? This series explores real-life stories from business leaders who are making the business cleaner, greener, more just and more future-proof. Building resilient value chains, launching new business models with a compelling value proposition at the heart. At Innoboost, we see that a strong business case drives real change in many sectors. Creating profit to be proud of.

Show notes

Discover more about how Electrolux sets a new industry benchmark for the use of recycled plastics.

Follow Rose Vanhecke on her journey going circular.

Visit innoboost.com for more insights, research and tools on going circular. Drop us a note if you want to share your story via sandra.horlings@innoboost.com

Credits

This is a podcast by Innoboost | Creating Profit to be proud of

Hosts: Sandra Horlings & Christiaan Kraaijenhagen

Production & Edit: Malou van der Starre

Sound: Joris van Grunsven, Studio Takt

How Manutan turns Circular Business Models into growth

What if sustainability also drove revenue? In this episode, Mark Lina, for business developer circular economy at Manutan, a leader in office and warehouse supplies, shares how exploring circular business models isn't just good for the planet, but also a game-changer for sales.

Discover:

✅ How circular strategies attract new customers and boost projects per client

✅ Real-world examples of reusable, repairable, and recycled office solutions

✅ Key lessons learned, from pilot projects to scaling impact

✅ Why circularity is becoming a competitive edge in B2B markets

A must-listen for procurement leaders, sustainability managers, and entrepreneurs who want to prove that going circular pays off. Literally. Hit play and rethink your business model!

Do you also want to make going circular work and worthwhile? This series explores real-life stories from business leaders who are making their business cleaner, greener, more just and more future-proof. What does that mean? It's about reducing harm and actively restoring and improving the world around us. And the best part? It pays off. At Innoboost, we see that a strong business case drives real change in many sectors. Creating profit to be proud of.

Shownotes

Discover more about circular services at Manutan

Follow Mark Lina on his journey, Going Circular

Visit innoboost.com for more insights, research and tools. Drop us a note if you want to share your story via sandra.horlings@innoboost.com

Credits

This is a podcast by Innoboost | Creating profit to be proud of

Hosts: Sandra Horlings & Jayden Panetta

Production & Edit: Malou van der Starre

Sound: Studio Takt - Joris van Grunsven