COMPANYHISTORIES
NAIC 45111

Sporting Goods Stores

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

31companies1887–1988founding years29still active2no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedRawlings Sporting Goods Co., Inc.
1887
FoundedHenry Modell & Company Inc.
1889
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
1916
EconomyPiggly Wiggly opens the first self-service grocery store.
FoundedKinney Shoe Corp.
1917
FoundedRallye SA
1924
FoundedL.L. Bean, Inc.
1934
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
FoundedHibbett Sporting Goods, Inc.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
FoundedGart Sports CompanyFoundedOshman's Sporting Goods, Inc.
1946
FoundedBoyne USA Resorts
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
FoundedLechmere Inc.
1948
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
FoundedSport Chalet, Inc.
1960
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
EconomyThe first Walmart opens, built on everyday low prices.
FoundedCabela's Inc.
1965
FoundedScheels All Sports Inc.
1969
FoundedJJB Sports plc
1971
FoundedGIB Group
1974
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
FoundedGroupe Go Sport S.A.
1976
FoundedTrend-Lines, Inc.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedThe Sports Authority, Inc.
1987
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1994
TechnologyE-commerce begins to disrupt retail.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Rawlings Sporting Goods Co., Inc. →
Active · founded 1887
Rawlings Sporting Goods Co., Inc.
Henry Modell & Company Inc. →
Active · founded 1889
Corporate Perspectives: Modell's Sporting Goods strives for quality and excellence by listening, respecting and…
Spiegel, Inc. →
Active · founded 1893
Spiegel, Inc.
Kinney Shoe Corp. →
Active · founded 1917
Kinney Shoe Corp., a subsidiary of Woolworth Corp., is a century-old company that made its reputation as a family shoe…
Blacks Leisure Group plc →
Active · founded 1923 · United Kingdom
Blacks Leisure Group plc is one of the United Kingdom's leading retail sportswear and sporting goods groups and is that…
Rallye SA →
Active · founded 1924 · France
Rallye SA is one of France's--and the world's--top retail groups.
L.L. Bean, Inc. →
Active · founded 1934
L.L.
Recreational Equipment, Inc. →
Active · founded 1938
Recreational Equipment, Inc.
Hibbett Sporting Goods, Inc. →
Active · founded 1945
Hibbett Sporting Goods, Inc., is a leading operator of retail stores for a full line of sporting goods.
Galyan's Trading Company, Inc. →
Active · founded 1946
Galyan's Trading Company, Inc.
Gart Sports Company →
Active · founded 1946
Appropriately headquartered in the recreation haven of Colorado, Gart Sports Company is the second largest sporting…
Michigan Sporting Goods Distributors, Inc. →
Active · founded 1946
Michigan Sporting Goods Distributors, Inc.
Oshman's Sporting Goods, Inc. →
Active · founded 1946
Creator of a unique retail format in the sporting goods industry, Oshman's Sporting Goods, Inc.
Boyne USA Resorts →
Active · founded 1947
Boyne USA Resorts is one of the leading operators of ski and golf resorts in North America.
Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. →
Active · founded 1948
Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc.
Lechmere Inc. →
Active · founded 1948
Lechmere Inc.
Gander Mountain, Inc. →
Active · founded 1960
Gander Mountain, Inc.
Sport Chalet, Inc. →
Active · founded 1960
A leading operator of full service, specialty sporting goods superstores, Sport Chalet, Inc.
Cabela's Inc. →
Active · founded 1965
Cabela's Inc.
AEON Co., Ltd. →
Active · founded 1969 · Japan
Formerly known as JUSCO AEON Co., Ltd.
Scheels All Sports Inc. →
Active · founded 1969
Hunters, cyclists, golfers, runners and nearly all other sports and outdoor enthusiasts can find the gear they need at…
Sportmart, Inc. →
Active · founded 1970
The Sportmart, Inc.
JJB Sports plc →
Defunct · founded 1971 · United Kingdom
JJB Sports plc is in the big leagues of U.K.
Academy Sports & Outdoors →
Active · founded 1973
Privately owned by the Gochman family, Academy Sports & Outdoors operates the fourth largest chain of retail sporting…
GIB Group →
Active · founded 1974 · Belgium
GIB Group, Belgium's top retailer, is active in four sectors: supermarkets and hypermarkets; do-it-yourself (DIY) home…
Groupe Go Sport S.A. →
Defunct · founded 1976 · France
Groupe Go Sport S.A.
The Finish Line, Inc. →
Active · founded 1976
The Finish Line, Inc., is an athletic specialty retailer, carrying men's, women's, and children's brand name footwear,…
Trend-Lines, Inc. →
Active · founded 1981
Trend-Lines, Inc.
The Score Board, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
The largest distributor of sports memorabilia in the United States, The Score Board, Inc.
The Sports Authority, Inc. →
Active · founded 1987
The Sports Authority, Inc.
Sports & Recreation, Inc. →
Active · founded 1988
Operator of the tenth-largest sporting goods chain in the United States, Sports & Recreation, Inc., is a specialty…
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