The Finish Line, Inc. announced that it has invested $8.5 million to acquire the assets of and assume certain liabilities of The Running Company, an 18-store chain of specialty running shops across several states with consolidated annual sales of approximately $19 million. Key members of the chain's management team and store leadership will remain in place following the acquisition.
The stores banners include Greater Boston Running Company, Texas Running Company, Georgetown Running Company, Princeton Running Company and New York Running Company.
The Running Company chain was founded by competitive runner Gene
Mitchell in 1996, and the stores are operated by a group of individual
owners.
Finish Line said in its statement that the stores have earned a loyal
following of serious runners who demand expert advice and
precision-fitted running shoes and apparel. Finish Line also plans to
keep the stores operating under their current banners and will retain
the culture and outstanding customer service that have made them
successful.
“This acquisition is an important step in our
strategic plan to drive growth outside of our core Finish Line
business,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Glenn Lyon. “We
have a tremendous growth opportunity within the specialty running
business with this acquisition as the foundation of that growth. We
plan to expand the number of stores and develop this chain's first
e-commerce capability as well as pursue other potential acquisitions in
the specialty running business. The dedicated team we have in place to
drive growth outside of our core business will focus on maximizing this
opportunity, which clearly leverages our company's strengths and core
competencies.”
Finish Line management anticipates that due
primarily to start-up costs, the acquisition will be dilutive to
earnings by approximately 1 cent per share in fiscal year 2012.
Its most famous location is New York Running at Time Warner
Center near Columbus Circle in New York City. It also operates a New York
Running Co. on the upper East Side of Manhattan, according to www.therunningcompany.net. Also in New York it operates Bronxville
Running Co. in Bronxville, NY.
The company has five stores in New Jersey named after
respective towns (Morristown Running Co., Princeton Running Co., Ridgewood
Running Co., Summit Running Co., and Westfield Running Co.) as well as three Greater
Boston Running Co. stores in Massachusetts (Hingham, Lexington and Newburyport). It has one store
in Connecticut (Greenwich Running Co.). In the D.C. region, it operates two Georgetown
Running Co. locations, one in Washington, D.C. and one in Chevy Chase, MD.
Down south, it operates three Texas Running Company locations,
including two in Austin and one in Sugar Land, TX. It has one Florida Running
Company location in Coconut Grove, FL.
