After graduating from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, most of the classmates and professors of Vladimir and Nikolay Fartushnyak were confident that they would have a brilliant career in aviation. However, the brothers had other plans.
In the early 90s, Vladimir and Nikolay Fartushnyak founded the company ‘Ilyon’. They began importing various goods from abroad and successfully sold them on the domestic market.
The Fartushnyak brothers had a keen interest in fitness and in pursuing an active lifestyle. When they visited a gymnasium in 1993, to their utter surprise, they found that the fitness center lacked modern training equipment. The brothers learned that there was an acute shortage of sports equipment across many regions. Vladimir and Nikolay Fartushnyak decided to take advantage of the opportunity, and they began analyzing the market and foreign companies that sold exercise equipment. They eventually decided to partner with the reputed German brand Kettler to import premium-quality exercise machines on a 100% prepayment basis. In 1995, the first ‘Kettler-Sport’ store was opened.
Expansion and Diversification
Next, the Fartushnyak brothers set their sights on diversification, as they wanted to keep revenues stable in case of reduced demand for fitness equipment. They decided to venture into the sports accessories segment. This was how the rebranding of Kettler-Sport into Sportmaster began.
According to the Fartushnyak brothers, the main concept of Sportmaster was multifunctionality and multi-branding. They wanted to create a store where one could buy everything they needed for any kind of sport, as well as essential items for outdoor activities. Moreover, Vladimir and Nikolay Fartushnyak visualized that Sportmaster must showcase a wide range of time-tested brands, and they worked hard to fulfil that dream.
Today, Sportmaster has over 510 stores spread across 230 cities in five countries, catering to the ‘A-Z’ of sporting goods. At Sportmaster, the brands on sale do not compete with each other for the customer’s attention, but are on equal footing, allowing customers to choose from a wide range of brands based on their preferences for material quality, design, or price.
Fartushnyak Nikolay and Vladimir’s Secret Behind Sportmaster’s Enduring Popularity
What has kept Sportmaster at the top of the popularity list for so many years is its advertising, well-thought-out customer loyalty bonus system, brand-specific customer service standards, and unified branch operation system.
Today, Sportmaster, founded by brothers Fartushnyak Vladimir Alekseevich and Fartushnyak Nikolay Alekseevich, has come a long way indeed – from a small ‘Kettler-Sport’ outlet to one of the world’s most recognizable sports platforms. Early on, the Fartushnyak brothers understood the real needs of the market, innovated constantly, and ensured efficiency in logistics. These factors, combined with the development of their own brands, have led to the creation of a cohesive ecosystem that goes beyond simply selling products. And therein lies the brothers’ greatest success.
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