Pending final approval by Delaware District Bankruptcy court on July 15, Dick’s Sporting Goods will purchase the failing Sports Authority brand and pick up the lease on 31 of its stores, including the one in Goleta’s Calle Real Marketplace.
Going-out-of-business discounts lined the shelves of the chain’s 460-plus stores this summer after a widely publicized Chapter 11 bankruptcy announcement in March. Dick’s $15-million winning bid, announced Thursday, bought the Fortune 500 company Sports Authority’s website, 114 million customer files, and 28.5-million member loyalty program, reporter Reuters.
An additional $8 million, according to court documents, purchased for Dick’s 31 Sports Authority locations across the country, including 10 in Southern California. The company beat out seven bidders — among them UK’s largest sports retailer, Sports Direct, and Canadian Tire — for the Sports Authority empire.
Headquartered in the greater Pittsburgh area, Dick’s Sporting Goods owned about 650 stores — mostly on the East Coast — before the impending deal with Sports Authority bumped it to nearly 800.