JD Sports is an English sports and outdoor wear retailer, founded in 1981, based in Lancashire. Despite competition from JJB and Sports Direct, the former’s fall into administration and the latter’s faltering reputation has meant JD Sports has prevailed with strong growth in an increasingly sought-after market. The highly profitable business runs two divisions – sports fashion and outdoor. It also trades online and is expanding internationally. Its outdoor business was bolstered by the acquisition of Go Outdoors in 2017. The retailer is developing its systems in-house as it looks to build itself into a “cutting-edge international multichannel retailer”. This includes the continued launch of new stores and localised websites across Europe, Asia, Australia and North America. Pentland Group, the owner of various sports brands including Speedo and Berghaus, has held a strategic stake in JD Sports since 2005.
JD Sports executive chairman Peter Cowgill has lambasted the competition regulator’s provisional findings on the retailer’s acquisition of Footasylum.
Asda-Sainsbury’s, JD Sports-Footasylum and potentially Amazon-Deliveroo – the CMA has been taking a tough stance on retail M&A over the past two years. But is the watchdog’s clampdown on mergers actually hurting the industry?
JD Sports has said that it has posted like-for-like sales growth across its retail portfolio despite “widely reported challenges” in the UK market.
JD Sports has insisted its £90m takeover of rival Footasylum “will benefit consumers” as it wrestles to convince competition watchdogs of the merits of the deal.
In a few days, the tumult of Christmas trading will be over. The short time before the January Sales kick off – in-store at least – brings a chance to reflect on the retail year gone by.
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