Climbing the Mountain

Galyan's Trading Co. Inc. (Plainfield, Ind.), which recently announced plans for a big new superstore in Roosevelt Field on New York's Long Island (see previous news item), reported a 23.9 percent jump in net sales for the 2002 fiscal year ended Feb. 1, 2003. Same-store sales increased 0.5 percent (driven, the company says, by higher results in the winter sports, athletic apparel, athletic footwear and accessories categories).

Net sales for the 2002 fourth quarter rose 21.4 percent and same-store sales decreased 1.4 percent.

“While the retail sector and overall operating environment was extremely challenging, Galyan's achieved solid fourth quarter earnings improvement through strong gross margin performance and SG&A leverage,” said chairman and ceo Robert Mang. “Galyan's continued to execute its business plan in fiscal 2002. We opened nine new stores and we remain on track to open nine more in fiscal 2003 [and] expanding the company's footprint into key new markets in New England, the Southwest and the Midwest.”

During fiscal 2002, the sporting goods retailer opened new stores in Colorado Springs and Littleton, Colo.; Niles and Geneva, Ill.; Henderson, Nev.; Okemos, Mich.; Des Peres, Mo.; Danvers, Mass. and Arlington, Texas, bringing the total stores in operation at fiscal year-end to 34.

Galyan's has planned nine new store openings in 2003, including its first entry into the New York metropolitan market with two stores. It has also signed leases for two additional stores in the Chicago market; and its first entries into Cleveland, Richmond, Va., Omaha, Neb., and Peoria, Ill., plus a new store in the south Indianapolis, Ind., market, which replaces a store lost last year to tornado damage.