Ceconomy, the parent company of Media Markt and Saturn, is looking for a new CEO for the second time in 12 months and has once again turned to the finance sector. Meanwhile, one of the Media Markt branches in Munich is welcoming a prominent subtenant: Decathlon.
According to both companies, the collaboration between the electronics retailer MediaMarkt and the sports retailer Decathlon marks the start of a strategic partnership. A first joint retail space is set to open at the MediaMarkt in the PEP shopping centre in Munich by the end of March, with Decathlon opening a further shop-in-shop location. The partners state that the space covers 1,000 square metres. For Decathlon, the partnership forms part of its own expansion strategy in Germany. The company aims to grow from its current 105 stores in Germany to 150 by the end of 2027.
Carsten Geilert, Managing Director Sales and COO at MediaMarktSaturn Germany, says: “With Space-as-a-Service, we offer our partners an ideal platform to be close to the customer. We look forward to welcoming Decathlon to our Munich pep store shortly. Together, we are demonstrating what modern retail is capable of – and sending a clear signal: the retail sector stands united.”
MediaMarkt is currently experimenting with what future retail spaces should look like. So far, four different store formats are being considered: Lighthouse, Xpress, Smart, and Core. The trend is moving away from average stores towards either prestigious flagship projects or smaller units with stronger digital connectivity. Particularly with the shift towards smaller units, MediaMarkt is likely to free up space at some locations, which can then be utilised by partners such as Decathlon.
Regardless, MediaMarkt’s journey remains exciting. In mid-2025, Ceconomy, the parent company of MediaMarktSaturn Germany, agreed a takeover with the Chinese retailer JD.com. The news came just a few weeks after the then Ceconomy CEO, Dr Karsten Wildberger, was appointed as the new Federal Minister for Digital Affairs. Wildberger, who himself spent just four years (in German) at the helm of Ceconomy, was succeeded at the time by Dr Kai-Ulrich Deissner, who joined Ceconomy as CFO in 2023 and was appointed CEO in May 2025.
However, Deissner has now announced to the supervisory board that he intends to leave Ceconomy in the course of the year. The renewed search for a new CEO has brought the supervisory board back to the finance department: as of 1 July 2026, the current CFO, Remko Rijnders, will take over the role of CEO. His successor as CFO is to be appointed shortly. Rijnders is an experienced MediaMarkt manager and has held various positions within the group for 17 years, including COO of the MediaMarktSaturn Retail Group, head of the Benelux countries, and General Manager for the markets in Spain, Poland and Turkey.
In his new role, he will also be able to count on Jan Niclas Brandt, who will join the Executive Board as Chief Customer Officer on 1 April, regardless of the change at the top. Brandt was most recently CEO of the national subsidiaries in Austria and Switzerland.
