Athletic Supply/Barcelona Sporting Goods, owned by Trivest Partners, has acquired three team dealers:Williams’ Sporting Goods (WSG), Cardinal’s Sports Center and Team Sports Inc. (TSO).
These acquisitions will serve to broaden the company’s product lines, build density in existing markets, deepen relationships with key vendors, grow the company’s sales coverage network and expand into the attractive Midwest geographic region. The key executives of each partner company are joining Athletic Supply’s management team and will retain meaningful ownership in the combined business. Most importantly, Athletic Supply remains well positioned to continue to deliver on its number one priority–delivering outstanding customer service.
WSG, founded in 1945 and headquartered in Paris, TX, is a provider of apparel and sports equipment to schools, little leagues and other sports organizations in Northeast Texas and Southeastern Oklahoma. The partnership closed in May 2018.
Cardinal’s Sports Center is a 70-plus-year-old supplier of athletic equipment and apparel and market leader in West Texas and beyond. Based in Lubbock, TX, Cardinal’s also maintains a state-of-the-art screen printing and embroidery operation. The Cardinal’s partnership closed in August 2018.
TSO is a leading customer service-focused provider of athletic apparel, uniforms, equipment and footwear to the Ohio, MI, Kentucky and Indiana markets. Founded in 1980 and headquartered in Toledo, OH, TSO will serve as the platform for Athletic Supply’s continued growth in the Midwest. The TSO partnership closed in September 2018.
Athletic Supply is now one of the leading value-added distributors of sporting goods equipment in the country. With a team of over 80 sales professionals and a loyal customer base of more than 3,500 accounts across seven states, the company said it is positioned to build on its reputation of providing a broad array of products from nearly every brand in the marketplace with unmatched, local customer service. As a relationship driven organization, Athletic Supply will continue to partner with Sports Inc., the largest team and outdoor buying group in the country.
In April, Trivest Partners announced it recapitalized and merged Athletic Supply, Odessa, TX, and Barcelona Sports, based in Houston. The executives of both businesses, including Ronny Flowers and Sammy Barcelona, remain owners in the company and will continue to lead day-to-day operations.
Trivest Partners, based in Miami, is a private investment firm that focuses on partnering with founder/family owned businesses in the United States and Canada. Since its founding in 1981, Trivest has completed more than 250 transactions, totaling in excess of $6.0 billion in value.
Photo courtesy Barcelona Sporting Goods
