Decathlon is expanding its Festival Tent Pledge by offering customers a cash refund when they return their tent after an event.
The company will now give shoppers the option to claim up to 50 per cent of the original purchase price back in cash, depending on the condition of the tent when it is returned.
The scheme previously allowed customers to buy a Decathlon tent before a festival, use it across the weekend and return it to a participating store in exchange for the value back as a gift card.
The offer will run until 6 September, with returned tents in good condition assessed, cleaned and resold through Decathlon’s Second Life programme.
Decathlon launched the initiative to tackle the growing problem of festivalgoers treating tents as single-use items and leaving them behind to end up in landfill.
Decathlon UK sustainability leader Chris Allen said: “Our No Tent Left Behind scheme goes from strength to strength each year.
“What started as a small-scale initiative has become an important part of how we approach camping and festivals more broadly, encouraging customers to return used equipment, keep valuable materials in circulation, and give more products a second chapter through our Second Life programme.
“This year, we’re helping customers’ pockets as well as our planet. With our new one-hour bank transfer service, we’re providing the flexibility and value needed to turn unused gear into new adventures.”
The campaign is being backed by radio broadcaster Edith Bowman, whose work includes covering Glastonbury.
Bowman said: “From festival fields to family camping trips, great gear should be used and enjoyed again and again.
“Decathlon’s Tent Pledge makes it easy for people to pass tents on, give them a second life, and help keep the spirit of adventure going long after the weekend ends.”
Decathlon is continuing to build out its circular retail offer across multiple categories.
Earlier this year, the retailer expanded its BuyBack service by allowing customers to trade in unwanted or outgrown bikes for instant money back for the first time.
Customers can bring bikes from any brand into a UK Decathlon store, where staff assess the condition and offer a quote. The retailer has also launched an online quick quote tool, giving shoppers an estimated value before completing the full trade-in process.
For 2026, Decathlon has introduced a one-hour bank transfer payment option across BuyBack, giving customers cash for their unwanted gear. Shoppers can also choose a gift card to spend in store or online.
The BuyBack scheme, which launched in 2023, now covers products across up to 15 sports, including fitness equipment, racquet sports, golf, horse riding, GPS watches, camping gear, kayaks and paddleboards.
More than 10,000 items have been returned since the scheme launched, with Decathlon refurbishing products before reselling them through its Second Life range at a reduced price.
Allen previously said the service was designed to help customers’ “pockets as well as our planet”, while making it easier to turn unused sports equipment into “new adventures”.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
