Intersport Elverys, is one of Ireland’s oldest sports retailers. It was founded in 1847 and it has grown from a single shop into a national brand with 44 stores and around 750 employees, maintaining a strong family-owned ethos and deep commitment to supporting Irish sport at all levels. The company’s robust Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) strategy focuses on fostering an inclusive workplace, enhancing diversity through recruitment and training, and engaging with communities and organisations to champion equality. With a balanced gender workforce, positive pay gap figures, and recognition through Irish Centre for Diversity awards, Intersport Elverys exemplifies leadership in retail DEI, while also empowering women in sport and offering development opportunities for underrepresented groups across Ireland. I interviewed the head of HR at Intersport Elverys Cathleen Fergus to find out more about their DEI strategy and initiatives:

1. Let’s start at the beginning, for those who may not know, what is Intersport Elverys. How did it begin and what is its mission now?

Founded in 1847 with a single shop on Lower O’Connell Street (Elephant House) in Dublin city centre, Intersport Elverys is Ireland’s oldest sports retailer. Following the opening of the first Staunton Sports shop in Castlebar in 1981, John and Jimmy Staunton rapidly expanded the business, and in 1998, they successfully acquired Elverys, launching a network of stores on the eastern side of the country. In 2015, we rebranded as Intersport Elverys, becoming part of Intersport, the world’s leading sporting goods retailer. Today, we’re a market leader in Irish sports retail with 44 stores across the country, employing around 750 people. We take pride in being a local, family-owned Irish brand that has supported Irish sport from grassroots to elite levels since our inception—an ethos that remains central to our mission today.

2. What are Intersport Elverys DEI objectives and how do you go about achieving them?

Our EDI (Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion) Strategy and Action Plan (2023–2025) outlines five key objectives:

• To establish the right structures, policies, and support systems for a diverse, inclusive, and positive working environment, along with delivering respectful and welcoming service to our customers.
• To cultivate a culture of equality, diversity, and inclusion through structured training, knowledge sharing, and leadership.
• To enhance our diversity in recruitment and progression, making Intersport Elverys an employer of choice for all, especially those from underrepresented groups.
• To raise awareness of, and celebrate, equality, diversity, and inclusion.
• To track and transparently report on our progress.

Achieving these objectives involves a number of initiatives including:

• Updating our EDI Strategy Statement and Action Plan.
• Rolling out an inclusive leadership training plan for the leadership team and management.
• Integrating EDI policies into our online employee induction and learning platform.
• Communicating EDI policies through regular reminders.
• Adding an EDI module to HR Management training.
• Making EDI a regular agenda item at senior leadership meetings.
• Engaging with organizations that support underrepresented groups.
• Beginning our accreditation journey with the Irish Centre for Diversity to achieve bronze and silver accreditations.

3. Do you have any collaborations with organisations or events that align that help you achieve your goals?

Yes, since 2023, we’ve partnered with the Irish Centre for Diversity, helping raise awareness and funds for causes that align with our goals, such as Shout Out and Suicide or Survive. One of our major 2025 highlights is our fundraising efforts for Bumbleance, which provides safe transportation for children as they travel between their homes and hospitals, hospices, treatment centres and respite centres nationwide—having raised €25,000 and counting.

We are also proud to partner with Immigrant Council of Ireland and their Show Racism the Red Card programme which is about using sport as a medium to tackle racism in schools. This programme aligns with our values, our impact on community and our love of sport. We became the main sponsor of the 2025 Wear Red campaign, as it resonated with our commitment to EDI and we are committed to continuing our support for this programme in 2026.

4. How does Intersport Elverys support women in sport and empower female athletes at both grassroots and elite levels?

We actively highlight female athletes in our campaigns, celebrating women in sport regularly. Our current partnerships include Kate Taylor and Laura Cadden (athletics), and we’ve previously collaborated with Rhianna Jarrett (soccer), Sarah Quinn (athletics), and Katie O’Brien (para-rower).

Additionally, we support women’s teams across various sports, including the IRFU, Connacht Rugby, Sligo Rovers, and Mayo GAA/LGFA, and have had over 20 years of involvement with the Vhi Women’s Mini Marathon. Intersport Elverys’ commitment to women in sport spans grassroots engagement, elite athlete representation, organizational partnerships, and major events—demonstrating a long-term dedication to empowering women in Irish sport.

5. How does Intersport Elverys ensure gender balance within its management and staff roles, and what are the current statistics? Particularly addressing areas such as its gender pay gap?

As of 2024, our workforce consists of 744 employees, with a 50:50 gender balance. In management roles, 49% are male and 51% are female. We’re also proud to report positive gender pay gap results, with a mean gap of 1.81% and a median gap of -1.11%. This balance reflects our family ethos, focus on internal progression, and strong retention rates, which I believe contribute to a more gender-balanced workforce compared to others.

6. What recent recognition or accreditation has Intersport Elverys received for its diversity and inclusion efforts?

We achieved the Irish Centre for Diversity Bronze award in 2023 and progressed to the Silver Award in 2024, being one of two Irish retailers (currently) with this award. We recently made it to the final three in the Diversity, Equality & Inclusion Awards – Retail. On an international level, we took home the Team Award at the 2024 Intersport Leadership Summit in Cannes, for our DEI efforts.  

7. What opportunities does Intersport Elverys provide for employee learning, development, and advancement, particularly for underrepresented groups?

Intersport Elverys has always provided work and training opportunities to our youth and to those with additional needs.  Since 2022, more than 600 students from secondary schools and ID organizations across Ireland have completed their work experience in our stores and warehouse. We have long-standing partnerships with The National Learning Network and local organisations including St Joseph’s Foundation, Charleville, Carraiglea Cairde Services Dungarvan, St. Michael’s House and WALK, Dublin.

We offer educational support including Level 5 certification via our Next Generation Trainee Management Programme which has been running since 2012 and has helped many of our employees gain their first further education qualification.  

8. What role does community engagement play in Intersport Elverys’ approach to DEI?

Community engagement is at the heart of our values. With 44 stores across Ireland, we leverage our local presence, reputation, and connections to set a benchmark for fairness, respect, equality, diversity, and inclusion. In a climate where DEI efforts are sometimes under threat, we aim to champion these values and make a lasting impact across communities, clubs, and sports venues nationwide.

9. How does Intersport Elverys track and measure the impact of its DEI programmes, and what goals has it set for the future?

Our progress towards DEI is reflected in our achievement of the ICD Silver Award, showing maturity in all pillars of the Investors in Diversity Framework. According to our 2025 employee survey, 95% of respondents feel we value diversity, and 96% agree that our workplace is inclusive and equitable.

Our strategy is a living document, providing the foundation for long-term DEI growth. We’ll continue to look to industry leaders for guidance and best practices and aim for the ICD Gold accreditation. We also gather ongoing employee feedback to identify areas for improvement, ensuring our culture and work environment continue to evolve.

10. What other companies, programmes or initiatives are you or the DEI team at Intersport Elverys big fans of?

When I think of trailblazers in DEI within retail, I immediately think of Woodie’s and Brown Thomas. Despite their different business models, both companies share a similar ethos toward DEI, and I have tremendous respect for the work they’ve done—and continue to do—in this area.