SV Sports, formerly Schuylkill Valley Sports, has completed a new funding round that included participation from Chris Paul, the 12-time NBA All-Star.
The funding comes as the Pottstown, PA-based retailer and team dealer is expanding its internal sales force and plans to open a new store in the LakePoint (Georgia) Sports Complex.
SV Sports was recently acquired by John Scipio, CEO; Jason Lutz, president and Ralph Greene, chief marketing officer. Paul, who currently plays for the Phoenix Suns, has been an investor in youth sports and minority-owned businesses.
“We are thrilled to have Chris and his brother CJ join the SV Sports family and team,” said Greene. “Their grassroots youth teams and camps, their long history working with HBCUs and their commitment to supporting Black-owned business is a perfect trifecta for us.”
“I’m excited about SV’s opportunity to redefine the sporting goods industry by leveraging diversity and focusing on cultural relevance for the youth athlete,” said Paul. “But what I’m most excited about is the company’s commitment to promoting empowerment opportunities to the historically underserved communities it serves.”
Scipio worked for 25-years at Nike which included managing its team division where SV is a key account. It is there he met Lutz who grew Villa from a single store owned by his parents into a mid-Atlantic region with 125 locations. Greene, also a Nike employee, was formerly its VP, Eastern Region, the largest in its domestic portfolio.
“Coming from the lifestyle category in footwear and apparel, we all recognized that the key elements that drove success there—delivering personalization, self-expression and cultural relevance—were largely missing from sporting goods,” said Scipio. “And you have a landscape where just two out of over 500 sporting goods companies have African American ownership, yet the major influences come from Black culture. So, we think, there is a great opportunity to redefine the way the youth athlete is served.”
