About Big 5 Sporting Goods

Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation operates as a sporting goods retailer in the western United States. The company operates various stores and an e-commerce platform under the 'Big 5 Sporting Goods' name. The company provides a full-line product offering in a traditional sporting goods store format that averages approximately 12,000 square feet. The company's product mix includes athletic shoes, apparel and accessories, as well as a broad selection of outdoor and athletic equipment for team sports, fitness, camping, hunting, fishing, home recreation, tennis, golf, and winter and summer recreation. The company supplements its traditional sports merchandise mix with an assortment of other products that the company purchases through opportunistic buys of vendor over-stock or close-out merchandise. The company's stores carry a wide range of products at competitive prices from well-known brand name manufacturers, including adidas, Coleman, Columbia, Everlast, New Balance, Rawlings, Skechers, Spalding, Under Armour and Wilson. The company also offers brand name merchandise produced exclusively for the company, private label merchandise and specials on quality items the company purchases through opportunistic buys of vendor over-stock and close-out merchandise. The company reinforces its value reputation through digital marketing programs, print advertising in major and local newspapers, and direct mailers designed to generate customer traffic, drive net sales and maintain brand awareness. The company also maintains social media sites to enhance distribution capabilities for the company's promotional offers and to enable communication with the company's customers. The company conducts its business through Big 5 Corp., a 100%-owned subsidiary incorporated in Delaware on October 27, 1997. The company conducts its gift card operations through Big 5 Services Corp., a 100%-owned subsidiary of Big 5 Corp. incorporated in Virginia on December 19, 2003. Merchandising The company targets the competitive and recreational sporting goods customer with a full-line product offering at a wide variety of price points. The company offers a product mix that includes athletic shoes, apparel and accessories, as well as a broad selection of outdoor and athletic equipment for team sports, fitness, camping, hunting, fishing, home recreation, tennis, golf, and winter and summer recreation. The company delivers consistent value to consumers by offering a distinctive merchandise mix that includes a combination of well-known brand name merchandise, merchandise produced exclusively for the company under a manufacturer's brand name, private label merchandise and specials on quality items the company purchases through opportunistic buys of vendor over-stock and close-out merchandise. The company sells its popular branded merchandise from an extensive list of major sporting goods equipment, athletic footwear and apparel manufacturers. A selection of some of the brands the company carries are adidas, Coleman, Footjoy, Impex, Rawlings, Spalding, Asics, Columbia, Franklin, JanSport, Razor, Speedo, Bearpaw, Crosman, Gildan, Lifetime, Remington, Timex, Bushnell, Daisy, Head, McDavid, Rollerblade, Titleist, Callaway, Dickies, Heelys, Mizuno, Russell Athletic, Under Armour, Camp Chef, Easton, Hillerich & Bradsby, Mossberg, Saucony, Wilson, Carhartt, Everlast, iFit (Proform), Mueller Sports Medicine, Shimano, Winchester, Casio, Fila, Igloo, New Balance, and Skechers. The company's private label items include shoes, apparel, camping equipment, fishing supplies and snowsport equipment. Seasonality influences the company's buying patterns and the company purchases merchandise for seasonal activities in advance of a season and supplement the company's merchandise assortment as necessary and when possible during the season. The company tailors its merchandise selection on a store-by-store basis in an effort to satisfy each region's specific needs and seasonal buying habits. In the fourth fiscal quarter (year ended December 2023), the company normally experiences higher inventory purchase volumes in anticipation of the winter and holiday selling season. Advertising and Marketing The company markets its products through the effective use of both digital communications, as well as print media. The company provides print advertisements and other targeted promotional offers through carrier delivery and direct mail. The company promotes its products through digital marketing programs that include sending regular digital communications to the company's customers (e-mail marketing to the company's 'E-Team'), search engine marketing, social media including Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter) and Instagram, mobile programs and other website initiatives. The company's digital promotional strategy is designed to provide opportunities to connect with potential customers and enable the company to promote the Big 5 brand. The company's e-mail marketing program invites its customers to subscribe to the company's E-Team for daily special deals, weekly advertisements and product information disseminated on a regular basis. The company uses search engine marketing methods as a means to reach those customers searching the Internet to gather information about the company's products. Within the company's social media program, the company's customers have the opportunity to engage in conversations with other sports-minded people and receive exclusive information about new products and unique weekly offers. All of these marketing methods are intended to simplify the shopping experience for the company's customers and further demonstrate the company's commitment to provide great brands at great values. The company's e-commerce platform delivers an online shopping experience to the company's customers, and the company continues to develop its online capabilities to meet customer expectations of being able to shop at their convenience. Vendor Relationships The company purchase merchandise from over 600 vendors. Distribution The company operates a 953,000 square-foot distribution center located in Riverside, California, that includes storage and office space and services all of the company's stores. The company regularly distributes merchandise from its distribution center to the company's stores using its fleet of leased tractors, as well as contract carriers. Service Marks and Trademarks The company uses the 'Big 5' and 'Big 5 Sporting Goods' names as service marks in connection with the company's business operations and have registered these names as federal service marks. The renewal dates for these service mark registrations are in 2025 and 2033, respectively. The company has also registered the names Golden Bear, Harsh, Pacifica and Rugged Exposure as federal trademarks under which the company sells a variety of merchandise. The renewal dates for these trademark registrations range from 2026 to 2028. Competition The company competes directly or indirectly with the following categories of companies, through traditional retail and e-commerce channels: Sporting goods superstores, such as Academy Sports & Outdoors and Dick's Sporting Goods; Specialty sporting goods shops and pro shops, such as Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's, Foot Locker, Sportsman's Warehouse and REI; Mass merchandisers, discount stores and department stores, such as Walmart, Target, Kohl's and JC Penney; E-commerce retailers, such as Amazon.com; and Athletic and sporting goods brands that engage in direct-to-consumer sales, such as adidas and Under Armour. History Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation was founded in 1955. The company was incorporated in Delaware in 1997.