City Sports named Edward Albertian as president and chief executive officer of the company. Albertian joins City Sports after seven years as president and chief operating officer of the Trans National Group in Boston. He replaces Jeff Connor, who resigned in mid-August.

“I'm delighted to join the strong management team and dedicated employees of City Sports as we continue to bring the best in specialty athletic retail to consumers everywhere,” said Albertian. “I look forward to enhancing all areas of our business, from merchandising and marketing to store operations, human resources and distribution as we continue to expand and enter new markets.”

Prior to Trans National Group, Albertian served as President and COO of C&S Wholesale Grocers, the largest wholesale grocery supply company in the country, which followed his five-year stint as COO of the Star Markets Company Inc. Albertian had previously worked as a Senior Vice President of Retail Operations at Staples, and currently sits on the boards of the University of Massachusetts College of Management and the Florida-based retail corporation Bealls Inc.

“Ed Albertian is a proven retail veteran with an impressively stellar track record, and we are thrilled to add such a dynamic and success-oriented leader to the City Sports team,” said Tom Stemberg, Managing General Partner of Highland Consumer Fund, the parent of City Sports.

The addition of Albertian at the company's top post caps off a record growth year for City Sports, which launched four new retail locations in the past 12 months including stores in Burlington, VT and Wellesley, MA. City Sports recently topped two of Boston's most revered annual retailer lists, winning 2012 honors from Boston Magazine and The Improper Bostonian for Best Men's Fitness Clothing and Best Sporting Goods respectively.

The company operates 21 metropolitan stores across the East Coast, with locations in Boston, Providence, New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Burlington, VT.