SAIL Plein Air SAIL Outdoors

What SAIL Plein Air SAIL Outdoors does

SAIL Plein Air, operating as SAIL Outdoors, is a privately held Canadian outdoor recreation retailer headquartered in Laval, Quebec. Founded in 1981, the company operates 12 physical retail stores concentrated in Quebec and Ontario, alongside an e-commerce platform at sail.ca that supports bilingual (English/French) navigation, account management, and in-store pickup. Its assortment spans camping equipment, footwear, outdoor gear (including nautical, hiking, climbing, running, and winter sports), fishing and hunting equipment, and clothing for men, women, and children, complemented by a curated "SAIL Picks" specialist selection and SAIL's own private label products.

The company's underlying technology stack centers on a standard e-commerce storefront integrated with the Explore+ loyalty program, a multi-tiered rewards structure (Novice free entry, Enthusiast at $300-$899.99 annual spend, Expert at $900+) offering tiered discount coupons (10-15%), anniversary benefits, exclusive events, and free online returns at the top tier. A secondary marketplace, reSAIL (resail.sail.ca), extends the platform into pre-owned gear resale. Distribution is omnichannel: physical retail dominates the experience with in-store expertise, while sail.ca and in-store pickup provide a digital complement.

SAIL's business model is direct-to-consumer retail, generating revenue through one-time transactional sales of physical outdoor goods across its owned stores and e-commerce site. The customer base is individual Canadian outdoor enthusiasts segmented by activity (camping, hiking, fishing, hunting, kayaking, skiing). In March 2026, a management buyout led by three female executives (CEO Isabelle Lemay, CFO Stefania Cella, VP Marketing Catherine Venne), with debt financing from Wells Fargo & Co. and continued equity from Fonds de solidarité FTQ, transferred majority ownership from founding owners Dale Tschritter and Daniel Desmarais. The new leadership has announced plans to open five additional stores over five years and to upgrade the e-commerce platform, signaling an offensive growth posture within Canada.

Name

SAIL Plein Air SAIL Outdoors

Legal name

SAIL Plein Air Inc.

Website

https://sail.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

SAIL Plein Air (SAIL Outdoors) is a privately held Quebec-based outdoor recreation retailer operating 12 stores across Canada and the sail.ca e-commerce platform, selling camping, fishing, hunting, footwear, and outdoor apparel directly to individual Canadian outdoor enthusiasts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outdoor Recreation Retail

NAICS

Sporting Goods Retailers (45911)

akta.pro primary industry

Water Sports & Marine Recreation Retail (Paddle/Surf/Dive/Boat Accessories) (CRAMABAI)

Keywords

• Outdoor recreation retail
• Camping and hiking gear
• Fishing and hunting equipment
• Outdoor apparel and footwear
• Customer loyalty program

Headquarters

HQ city

Laval

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Retail Product Sales: SAIL generates revenue through the sale of outdoor recreational products including clothing, footwear, camping gear, fishing equipment, hunting gear, and outdoor accessories through its physical retail stores and e-commerce website. Revenue is primarily one-time transactional sales of physical goods.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

SAIL is a Canadian outdoor recreation retailer selling apparel, footwear, and equipment for camping, hiking, fishing, hunting, climbing, running, paddling, and winter sports through 12 retail stores in Quebec and Ontario and the sail.ca e-commerce platform. The assortment combines third-party outdoor brands with the company's own SAIL private-label line and SAIL Picks specialist-curated selection, supported by the Explore+ loyalty program and reSAIL second-hand marketplace.

Product overview

SAIL Plein Air is a Quebec-based outdoor recreation retailer operating as both a physical store chain and e-commerce platform. The company offers a single unified retail experience featuring an extensive portfolio of outdoor equipment and apparel across multiple product categories: camping gear, footwear, outdoor gear (including nautical, hiking, climbing, running, and winter sports equipment), fishing equipment, hunting gear, and clothing for men, women, and children. The product ecosystem includes complementary services such as the Explore+ loyalty rewards program and the reSAIL second-hand marketplace. SAIL operates 12 retail stores across Quebec and Ontario, with plans to expand to approximately 17 stores within five years following a 2026 management buyout led by three female executives. The company carries numerous third-party outdoor recreation brands alongside its own SAIL private label products, and features a curated SAIL Picks collection highlighting specialist-recommended products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Camping Equipment Complete range of camping gear sold to individual outdoor enthusiasts, including tents (three-season, winter, shelters), sleeping bags and mats, camping furniture, camp kitchen equipment, hydration systems, and health and safety accessories.
• Outdoor Footwear Wide selection of outdoor footwear for men, women, and kids, including hiking boots and shoes, winter boots, running shoes, sandals, water shoes, casual shoes, and slippers.
• Outdoor Gear Comprehensive outdoor equipment category offering bags and backpacks, nautical gear (kayaks, SUPs, canoes), running gear, hiking equipment, climbing gear, electronics, winter sports equipment, and travel accessories.
• Fishing Equipment Full selection of fishing gear for individual anglers, including rods (spinning, bait casting, trolling, fly fishing), reels, sonars, motors, lures, fishing clothing and boots, fly fishing equipment, ice fishing gear, and species-specific tackle.
• Hunting Gear Complete hunting equipment including firearms, firearm accessories, scopes, hunting clothing and boots, crossbows and bows, game calls, decoys, trail cameras, hunting knives and tools, airguns, and attractants.
• Clothing (Men, Women, Kids) Extensive apparel lines for outdoor activities across men's, women's, and children's categories, including tops, bottoms, jackets (transitional, shell, winter, vests), outdoor pants, sportswear, swimwear, plus size, baselayers, and underwear.
• SAIL Brand Products SAIL's own private-label products including the SAIL Cool hard-sided cooler (42L), camping equipment, and various outdoor gear items sold under the SAIL name, offering quality and value across essential outdoor categories.
• SAIL Picks Specialist-curated product selection featuring proven outdoor products chosen by SAIL's in-house outdoor experts, available across footwear, camping, and outdoor gear categories.
• Explore+ Rewards Program Customer loyalty program with three tiers (Level 1 Novice, Level 2 Enthusiast, Level 3 Expert) offering discount coupons (10% at $300-$899.99 annual purchase volume, 15% at $900+), anniversary month benefits, exclusive event access, free online returns at Level 3, and a 45-day extended return/exchange period.
• reSAIL Second-Hand Marketplace Peer-to-peer second-hand marketplace platform at resail.sail.ca that lets customers buy and sell pre-owned outdoor gear, extending access to equipment at lower price points and supporting SAIL's sustainability initiatives.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• REI Co-op: US-based outdoor co-op retailer with a comparable category mix (camping, hiking, climbing, paddling, apparel) and strong loyalty program model. Less direct in Canada but a benchmark for omnichannel outdoor retail execution.
• Sport Chek: Canada's largest sporting goods retailer and another Canadian Tire-owned banner. Sport Chek offers a broader assortment than SAIL but competes in the same outdoor and active lifestyle categories from a larger footprint.
• L.L.Bean: US-based outdoor retailer with comparable assortment in camping, hiking, fishing, and outdoor apparel. Notable for its strong catalog and direct-to-consumer heritage, comparable to SAIL's omnichannel outdoor focus.
• Bass Pro Shops: North American outdoor retailer specializing in hunting, fishing, camping, and marine recreation. Significant overlap with SAIL's hunting, fishing, and water sports categories; primarily US-based with growing Canadian presence.
• Canadian Tire: Mass-market Canadian retailer with sporting goods as one of many categories. While much broader than SAIL, Canadian Tire's sporting goods assortment and Atmosphere banner compete directly with SAIL across price points.
• Hudson's Bay: Historic Canadian department store retailer with outdoor and active lifestyle offerings. Overlaps with SAIL on apparel, footwear, and outdoor accessories while operating at much greater scale across more categories.

Others

• Patagonia: Outdoor brand with retail stores and a strong direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform. While primarily a brand rather than a multi-brand retailer like SAIL, Patagonia is comparable in product range, sustainability positioning, and outdoor enthusiast target customer.

Direct peers

• MEC (Mountain Equipment Company): Canadian outdoor co-op retailer offering a comparable assortment of camping, hiking, climbing, and paddling gear. MEC operates a similar omnichannel model across Canada and competes directly with SAIL for the same outdoor enthusiast customer.
• Atmosphere (Canadian Tire): Outdoor-focused sporting goods banner owned by Canadian Tire, with a category mix (camping, hiking, fishing, hunting, water sports) that closely overlaps SAIL's assortment. Direct competitor in Canadian outdoor retail with the backing of a much larger parent.

Emerging players

• Decathlon Canada: Global sporting goods giant aggressively expanding physical stores in Canada with private-label-heavy outdoor and active lifestyle assortment. A growing direct threat to SAIL given Decathlon's scale and value pricing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/sailpleinairoutdoors
• Facebookfacebook.com/SAILpleinairoutdoors
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sail-plein-air-inc.
• Instagraminstagram.com/sailpleinairoutdoors
• TikToktiktok.com/@sailpleinairoutdoors
• Xx.com/sail_canada

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SAIL Plein Air SAIL Outdoors