JJB Sports

JJB Sports plc was a British sports retailer. On 24 September 2012, shares in JJB Sports were suspended, and the firm called in administrators. On 1 October 2012, it was announced that Sports Direct had purchased part of the business, including 20 stores, the brand, and its website for £28.3 million.[2][3]

Corporate history

The original JJB sportshop was founded in the beginning of the 1900s. It was expanded and incorporated in 1971,[4][5] when ex footballer and supermarket chain operator Dave Whelan acquired a single sports shop in Wigan, and immediately opened a second sports goods outlet in his supermarket in Sutton, St Helens.[5]

2011: Major Restructuring Plan

JJB was one of many companies that had undergone major restructuring and change due to the recession and faced a £31.5 million debt, the closure of 95 stores and a possible hostile takeover by one of its top rivals, JD Sports, as of February 2011.[14][15] The firm attempted to raise £65 million in finances from its investors on 7 April 2011.[16]

In February 2011, JJB revealed that as many as 95 of its stores faced closure within the next two years,[17] and had asked for emergency £31.5m funding on 11 December 2011.[18]

Administration

The combined market value of JJB Sports' shares had totaled £500 million in 2010, but had unpredictably collapsed to only £1.2 million by September 2012.[6]

On 24 September 2012, it was reported by the BBC that shares in JJB Sports had been suspended, and that the firm was calling in the administrators. It was expected that many of the firm’s 180 stores would close, and most of the company's 4,000 employees would be made redundant.[19] It was reported that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was to lose millions of dollars from this outcome, following its investment in JJB Sports in 2009.[20]

On 1 October 2012, it was announced that rival retailer Sports Direct had purchased the 'JJB' brand name, website and 20 stores, saving around 550 jobs. However, the remaining 160 stores were to close, resulting in 2,200 redundancies.[21] JJB Sports was officially dissolved, with debts of £150 million on 9 November 2012.[5][22] There were a total of 5,000 employees at its closure.[4]

As of 2025, JD Sports owns the JJB brand name and trademarks, Frasers Group still owns the website domain.[23]

Legal issues

On 13 October 2009, JJB admitted that former executives were being investigated by both HM Revenue & Customs and the Serious Organised Crime Agency.[13]

The former boss of both Next and JJB Sports,[24] Sir David Jones,[24] was charged in February 2013,[24] over allegations of forgery and making misleading statements to the market while he was executive chairman of JJB Sports, concerning an earlier £150 million loan.[24] Jones helped to turn the clothes retailer Next into one of Britain's largest retailers.[24]

type	Subsidiary
fate	Bankruptcy
founder	JJ Broughton
foundation	1971
defunct	1 October 2012
location	Pemberton, near Wigan, Greater Manchester, England
key people	David Williams (CEO & CFO) Keith Jones (Chairman)
industry	Retail
products	Clothing, sportswear, sports equipment
revenue	£284.2 million (2011)‡R1R‡
operating income	£(103.5) million‡R1R‡
net income	£(101.1) million‡R1R‡
homepage	jjbsports.com (Now redirects to www.sportsdirect.com)

Corporate history

2011: Major Restructuring Plan

Administration

Legal issues

Brands

Marketing

Price fixing

Fitness clubs

Sponsorships

External links

References