Sunday, November 21, 2004

sporting goods chain plays hardball and wins

To prove my respect and continued faith in the Dick's Sporting Goods franchise (though not at SouthPark), here's a great article on them from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

In 2001, brokers for the new Mall at Robinson had a lead on a sporting goods chain interested in opening a state-of-the-art, two-level store. Trouble was, the potential tenant was Indiana-based Galyan's Trading Co. Officials at rival Dick's Sporting Goods, headquartered in neighboring Findlay, were not amused.

Dick's staff intercepted the lease, much as they did a few years earlier when Galyan's was close to taking a spot at the Waterfront shopping center in Homestead. "We defended our turf," said Dick's Chairman Ed Stack. "We wrestled both of those deals away from them."

Sometimes it takes a little grandstanding, a little adversity to get this company moving. Indeed, Dick's was founded in Binghamton, N.Y., by Ed Stack's father more than 50 years ago after an employer told him he would never be a good merchant. This summer, the retailer bought out the competitor that kept trying to encroach on its turf, speeding its ascension toward the top of the specialty sporting goods ranks.

Read more at Ed's way stacks up well for Dick's Sporting Goods

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