Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation is a sporting goods retailer headquartered in El Segundo, California, with 410 stores in the Western United States.[2] Theodore Shin is the CEO as of January 2026.
History
Founded in September 1955 by Maurie Liff, Harry Liff and Robert Miller,[3] its name is derived from the first five Army surplus stores that were opened in California.[4] Sportswest and Sportsland were acquired in May 1988 from Pay 'n Save.
In 1990, the company was fined $125,000 for selling discounted brand-name shoes that were actually poorly manufactured by those brands to be distributed only in Big 5 stores. For example, some New Balance models sold in Big 5 stores used a cardboard heel cup instead of a plastic heel cup. The investigation started when long-distance runner Gary Tuttle reported the oddly poor quality of the name-brand shoes he had purchased at Big 5 stores.[5]
In 1997, Robert Miller and his son Steven G. Miller bought Big 5 back from Leonard Green & Partners, owners since 1992, by acquiring a majority stake. By then, the firm was making $400 million in revenue with 202 stores in 9 states.[6]
In 2016, the company posted net sales of $1.02 billion with 432 stores in 11 States.[7]
On June 29, 2025, Worldwide Golf Group and Capitol Hill Group reached an agreement valued at $33.6 million to acquire the company, with stockholders receiving $1.45 per share.[8] On October 2, 2025, the transaction had been completed and Big 5 became a private company and merged with Worldwide Sports Holdings LLC.[2][9] Big 5's common stock, which had traded under the ticker symbol BGFV, was delisted from the Nasdaq.[10]
Description
Big 5 is one of the largest sporting good retailers in the western United States. The average store is typically smaller than big-box competitors, with an average size of 12,000 square feet, but enables locations in both large and small communities. The stores sell name-brand products and Big 5 products.[4]
Big 5 stores sells firearms in some locations, but face ever-stricter local regulations regarding the secure sale of firearms.[11]
External links
References
- Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended 29 December 2024 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, 14 March 2025, retrieved 20 October 2025^
- Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation Completes Merger with a Partnership Comprisedof [sic] Worldwide Golf and Capitol Hill Group Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation, 2 October 2025, retrieved 20 October 2025^
- Dow Jones Client Solutions. Investor Relations Home Big 5 Sporting Goods, Big 5 Sporting Goods, Inc., September 5, 2010, retrieved September 5, 2010^
- Big 5 founder Robert W. Miller dies at age 85 Whittier Daily News, 2008-09-17, retrieved 2024-05-22^
- Mack Reed. Big 5 Fined $125,000 for False Advertising Los Angeles Times, 1990-05-16, retrieved 2024-05-22^
- Debora Vrana. Big 5 Founder to Buy Majority Stake in Firm Los Angeles Times, 1997-10-09, retrieved 2024-05-22^
- How Big 5 Sporting Goods is succeeding where other sporting goods stores have failed Pasadena Star News, 2017-01-19, retrieved 2024-05-22^
- Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation Enters Into Definitive Agreement to Be Acquired by a Partnership Comprisedof [sic] Worldwide Golf and Capitol Hill Group Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation, 30 June 2025, retrieved 20 October 2025^
- Worldwide Golf Group LLC and Capitol Hill Group completed the acquisition of Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation. MarketScreener, retrieved 2025-10-08^
- Equity Corporate Actions Alert #2025-538: Information Regarding the Merger of Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation (BGFV) Nasdaq Stock Market LLC, 2 October 2025, retrieved 20 October 2025^
- Council asks for new restrictions on gun sales and ownership Santa Monica Daily Press, 2023-06-19, retrieved 2024-05-22^