Decitre
Decitre is a French bookstore chain serving individual readers across France through e-commerce and physical stores, selling new and used books, digital content, stationery, games, educational products, and related accessories.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1936
- HeadquartersLyon, France
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Decitre does
Decitre is a French bookstore chain serving individual readers through physical stores and decitre.fr. Its core product is an e-commerce catalog exceeding 1.5 million book and publication references, supported by integrated inventory management, digital delivery for ebooks and audiobooks, and online reservation with one-hour in-store pickup. The retail range also includes physical and used books, trade-in services, stationery, office and school supplies, games, toys, and e-reader devices and accessories.
Revenue comes primarily from one-time sales of new and used physical books, with additional unit-priced digital content and adjacent categories. Paperbacks are typically €6-€12, hardcovers €18-€25, collector editions up to €28, and delivery starts at €0.01; ebooks have varying unit prices, and the company also sells gift cards. Decitre targets all-age individual readers, with students and educational institutions and collectors or enthusiasts as secondary segments. Eligible users can also purchase books through the Pass Culture program using cultural credit.
Decitre operates as part of Nosoli alongside Furet du Nord and La Générale du Livre. In May and June 2026, Nosoli entered judicial recovery and announced a restructuring plan that includes closing four of Decitre's nine stores and implementing larger group-wide workforce and store reductions, while Decitre remained operational.
Decitre firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Decitre
- Legal name
- Decitre
- Website
- https://decitre.fr
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1936
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Decitre is a French bookstore chain serving individual readers across France through e-commerce and physical stores, selling new and used books, digital content, stationery, games, educational products, and related accessories.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Decitre industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Retail Bookstore
- NAICS
- Book Retailers and News Dealers (459210), Used Merchandise Retailers (459510)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Digital Reading Content & eBooks (Leveled Readers, Libraries) (EDAFACAH)
Keywords
Where Decitre is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lyon
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices6 records
Markets served
Decitre business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- New Book Sales: Primary revenue stream from selling new physical books across all categories including literature, youth, comics, manga, wellness, and educational materials. Products range from €2.50 (paperbacks) to €25+ (hardcover/collector editions).
- Used Book Sales: Secondary revenue from reselling pre-owned books, supporting circular economy model and lower price points for budget-conscious consumers.
- Digital Content (Ebooks & Audiobooks): Sales of digital books and audiobooks (MP3 and CD formats), providing margin-efficient inventory-less products.
- Stationery & Office Supplies: Sales of agendas, calendars, games, puzzles, art supplies, and school/office stationery products.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Book products across all categories and formats |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Ebooks and digital content |
| Subscription | Pay-as-you-go | Gift cards (Carte cadeau) |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Decitre product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Decitre is a French independent bookstore chain operating both physical stores and an e-commerce platform (decitre.fr) selling over 1.5 million book references across literature, youth, comics, manga, wellness, education, and other categories. The offering spans new and used physical books, ebooks, audiobooks (MP3 and CD), e-readers, stationery, and games/toys, with hybrid fulfillment via home delivery and 1-hour in-store pickup.
Product overview
Decitre is a French independent bookstore group operated by Nosoli, operating both online and physical retail locations. The company offers a comprehensive book retail platform featuring over 1.5 million titles across literature, youth books, comics/manga, and non-fiction categories. The product portfolio includes the core online bookstore, digital e-books and e-reader devices, used/secondhand books with a buyback program, stationery and office supplies, games and toys, audiobooks (MP3 and CD), and related services such as in-store express pickup and home delivery starting from minimal cost. The company also integrates with Pass Culture for cultural spending credits.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Decitre Online Bookstore French online bookstore offering over 1.5 million book references across literature, youth, comics, manga, wellness, and education categories, with home delivery and in-store pickup. Targets individual consumers across all reading demographics.
- Used Books (Livres d'occasion) Pre-owned book marketplace where customers can buy used books and trade in their old books for store credit, supporting a circular economy model and lower price points for budget-conscious readers.
- E-books and E-readers Digital book platform offering ebooks and e-reader devices with companion accessories for reading on tablets or dedicated e-reader hardware.
- Audiobooks (MP3 and CD) Audiobooks available in MP3 download and physical CD formats for on-the-go listening.
- Stationery and Office Supplies Paper products, school supplies, agendas, calendars, planners, and office accessories including bags and leather goods.
- Games and Toys Board games, puzzles, creative activities, and children's toys including wooden toys and educational games.
- Physical Bookstore Retail Locations 9 physical Decitre bookstores across France in Lyon, Ecully, Chambéry, Annecy, Levallois-Perret, and Arcueil, offering in-person browsing, expert bookseller recommendations, and 1-hour express pickup of online orders.
Quantifiable outcome
- Delivery service starting from €0.01
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Decitre
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Decitre technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Decitre partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Pass CultureminorDecitre participates in the Pass Culture program, allowing eligible users to purchase books using their Pass Culture credit/funds through the platform.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves3 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Decitre competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Furet du Nord: Furet du Nord is the sister brand under the Nosoli group alongside Decitre and La Générale du livre, operating physical and online bookstores in northern France. Direct operational and structural peer, sharing the same parent company's judicial-recovery reorganization plan and overlapping omnichannel model.
- Cultura: Cultura is a French retail chain selling books, stationery, and cultural/leisure goods through large-format stores. Highly comparable business model — multi-category retail (books, papeterie, games), strong omnichannel footprint, and similar customer demographic — making it a leading direct competitor for Decitre.
- Gibert: Gibert is a long-standing French independent bookstore chain with both physical stores and an online platform, known for its strong used-book business. Direct peer — comparable size, similar omnichannel strategy, and overlapping product mix including new and secondhand books.
- Chapitre.com: Chapitre.com is a French online bookstore aggregating inventory from independent French bookshops. Directly comparable as a competing online book-retail channel, though operating as a marketplace aggregator rather than a vertically integrated bookseller.
- RecycLivre: RecycLivre is a French recommerce platform specializing in used books, with social-impact positioning. Directly comparable on Decitre's used-book trade-in and resale motion, and a competitor in the secondhand book segment that increasingly matters to Decitre's circular-economy strategy.
- La Générale du Livre: La Générale du Livre is the third bookstore chain under the Nosoli group alongside Decitre and Furet du Nord. Direct peer — same parent company, same judicial-recovery restructuring, and highly overlapping omnichannel book-retail operating model.
Broad incumbents
- Fnac: Fnac is France's largest specialist retailer of books, electronics, and entertainment products, with a national store network and significant e-commerce presence. Overlaps with Decitre in book retailing as part of a broader multi-category portfolio and is a dominant incumbent competitor in the French market.
- Amazon France: Amazon.fr is the dominant online retail platform in France, including a deep book catalog with competitive pricing and Prime delivery. Overlaps with Decitre's e-commerce channel as a broad incumbent competitor with pricing power constrained only by Loi Lang for new books.
Regional players
- Sauramps: Sauramps is a French independent bookstore group historically anchored in Montpellier and southern France, with both physical stores and an online channel. Comparable in business model and product mix but operates in a different regional geography, serving as a regional rather than national competitor.
Emerging players
- Momox: Momox is a European recommerce platform for books, CDs, DVDs, and other media, active in France via momox-shop.fr. Comparable on the used-book buyback and resale mechanic that underpins Decitre's Reprise de livres program, and a meaningful emerging competitor in recommerce.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Decitre social profiles
Digital presenceDecitre financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Decitre leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Decitre funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Decitre M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Decitre
What does Decitre do?
Decitre is a French independent bookstore chain operating both physical stores and an e-commerce platform (decitre.fr) selling over 1.5 million book references across literature, youth, comics, manga, wellness, education, and other categories. The offering spans new and used physical books, ebooks, audiobooks (MP3 and CD), e-readers, stationery, and games/toys, with hybrid fulfillment via home delivery and 1-hour in-store pickup.
Is Decitre a public or private company?
Decitre is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Decitre founded?
Decitre was founded in 1936. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Decitre based?
Decitre is headquartered in Lyon, France, in the Europe region.
How does Decitre make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. New Book Sales are the primary driver. The others are used Book Sales, digital Content (Ebooks & Audiobooks) and stationery & Office Supplies.
Who are Decitre's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Furet du Nord, Cultura, Gibert, Chapitre.com, RecycLivre and La Générale du Livre. Broad incumbents are Fnac and Amazon France. Sauramps is listed as a regional player. Momox is listed as an emerging player.
Does Decitre have an API?
No public API is recorded for Decitre.
What industry is Decitre in?
Decitre's product category is Retail Bookstore. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFACAH, Digital Reading Content & eBooks (Leveled Readers, Libraries). Its NAICS code is 459210.