Fleet Feet, Inc., the nation’s leading franchisor of running specialty stores, met in Dallas this week for its annual Winter Franchise Conference. Franchisees from 30 states attended workshops and an exclusive trade show which marked the first year of a new conference format that added educational sessions. New content included business roundtable discussions where vendor executives, top independent specialty running store owners and Fleet Feet Sports franchisees discussed current business issues.

Fleet Feet Sports and New Balance attendees kicked off the 2009 season of No Boundaries® by building bicycles and donating them to the local Boys’ and Girls’ Club. No Boundaries® is a national 5K training program designed for true beginners that was introduced with great success in 2008. The program, sponsored by New Balance, guides participants toward becoming active by pursuing an achievable goal of walking or running a 5K for the first time.

An awards dinner on Tuesday highlighted the record-breaking results for the Fleet Feet Sports franchise in 2008 – more than $86 million in sales and a 12 percent comp store sales gain. Fleet Feet President Jeff Phillips commented, “While we celebrate our collective accomplishments of the past year, we recognize that the economic environment has changed significantly. In 2009 we will focus efforts on the fundamentals that will keep the brand strong: working collaboratively with our franchisees and vendor partners to improve store operations and acquire new customers to drive our business.” In addition, the organization presented its Outstanding Apparel Vendor award and an annual community service award.

Brooks Sports was honored as Fleet Feet Sports’ Outstanding Apparel Vendor of 2008 for its growth in sales to Fleet Feet Sports stores, as well as its customer service, product quality, shipping and overall commitment to the Fleet Feet Sports organization.