JD Sports
 |
|
| Public limited company | |
| Traded as | : |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1981 |
| Headquarters | Bury, Greater Manchester |
|
Key people
|
Peter Cowgill Chairman) Peter Cowgill , (CEO) |
| Products |
Clothing Sportswear Accessories |
| Revenue | £10,522.3 million (2015) |
| £92.6 million (2015) | |
| £54.0 million (2015) | |
| Owner |
Pentland Group (58%) Sports Direct (6%) Aberforth Partners (10%) Fidelity Management (5%) Peter Cowgill (CEO) (1%) Other Minor Shareholders (20%) |
| Website | www.jdsports.co.uk |
JD Sports Fashion plc, more commonly known as just JD (stylized as jD), is a sports-fashion retail company based in Bury, Greater Manchester, England with shops throughout the United Kingdom, and now has 25 stores in Ireland, after taking over Irish sports retailer Champion Sports, in January 2011.
Since October 1996, it has been listed on the , and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. JD Sports Fashion Plc is also a subsidiary of the Pentland Group.
The letters JD in JD Sports stand for the initials of the founders of the company, John & David. In 1981, the company was established by John Wardle and David Makin, trading from a single shop in Bury. In 1983, the company opened a store in the Arndale Centre in Manchester. In 1989, the first store opened in Oxford Street, London. In October 1996, the company was first listed on the .
In December 2001 it acquired nearly 200 further stores, with the acquisition of First Sport, from Blacks Leisure Group. In October 2005, it bought 70 stores, from the administrators of Allsports, whom entered administration in September 2005. In May 2005, Pentland Group bought Wardle's and Makin's shares for £44.6M; the pair later resigned from the board. In December 2007, the company bought out Bank Stores, which sold fashion clothing, such as Firetrap, Alu, Henleys & Adidas Originals for around £19M.
JD Sports is the official supplier and sponsor of numerous association football teams, players and associations. In August 2008, JD Sports announced sponsorship deals with Bournemouth, Charlton Athletic, Dundee United, Blackpool, Luton Town & Oldham Athletic; these sponsorship deals allow certain clubs to use the Carbrini brand. In May 2009, JD Sports acquired Chausport, which operated 75 small stores in France. In addition, JD acquired the rugby heritage brands 'Canterbury' and 'Canterbury of New Zealand' as well as 'The Duffer of St. George' and 'Kooga Rugby' brands.
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