Academy Sports and Outdoors

Infobox_Company
company_name = Academy Sports + Outdoors
company_
company_type = Sporting goods, Private
company_slogan = Academy, The Right stuff the low price!
foundation = flagicon|USA San Antonio,USA (1938)
location = flagicon|USA Katy, Texas, USA
key_people = Max Gochman Founder
David Gochman, Chairman, President and CEO
Rodney Faldyn, CFO
industry = Retail
num_employees = Over 11,000
products = Discount stores
revenue = profit US $1.2 billion, (2005)
net_income = profit US $65.0 million
homepage = [http://www.academy.com/ www.academy.com]

Academy Sports and Outdoors (Sometimes Academy Sports + Outdoors) is a sports goods discount store headquartered in Katy, TX. It is a privately held company owned by the Gochman family, with David Gochman as the company's current Chairman, President and CEO. Academy is one of the largest sporting goods stores in the US, operating 105 stores across the southeastern United States.

History

In 1938, founder Max Gochman started the Academy Tire Co. in San Antonio, Texas. Eventually, in 1956, he moved the business to Austin, Texas, started selling military surplus supplies, and changed the name to Academy Super Surplus. It was during this time that he expanded to four stores. Max's son Arthur opened six Academy Super Surplus stores in Houston, Texas in 1973. In the 1980s Academy started selling sporting good supplies, and by 1990, had expanded into the store that it is today. They recently opened their 105th store.

Business

Academy stores have six departments:
*Team Sports (Including the Golf Shop and Fitness Flex)
*Footwear
*Camping (Including patio furniture and cooking supplies)
*Hunting and Fishing (Including firearm sells, boating, and truck and trailer accessories. Academy is the second largest distributor of firearms in the US.)
*Apparel
*Front End (Cash Registers, including hunting and fishing license sales at select registers)

The company ensures good customer service by training associates when they are first hired, as well as through department specific training modules throughout the employee's career at Academy. Academy is one of the major sports and outdoors stores in the nation even with a little over 100 stores in the south and southwest regions of the US. Academy suscribes to the volume discount business model. Low prices drive the company's business strategy.

tores

Academy stores are generally painted white on outside, with familiar red and blue signage. On the inside, they are similarly painted white, giving stores an open, clean appearance. With over 100,000 square feet, the floor plan in all stores are similar. Walking into the store, team sports and footwear are on the left wall, camping on the back wall, hunting and fishing on the right wall, apparel in the middle and the registers on the front wall, leading to the exit. Many stores feature a small putting green to test out putters on in its Golf Shop.

Locations

Academy operates stores in 11 states:
*Alabama
*Arkansas
*Florida
*Georgia
*Louisiana
*Mississippi
*Missouri
*Oklahoma
*Tennessee
*Texas
*South Carolina

The majority of the stores are located in Texas, followed by Louisiana.

References

* [http://www.academy.com/index.php?page=content&target=company/about_us Company Information]
* [http://www.academy.com/index.php?page=content&target=company/locator/landing&lnkSRC=HmFeatSct Academy.com Find a Store]
* [http://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/21/biz_06privates_Academy-Sports-Outdoors_16TM.html/ Forbes.com article]
* [http://www.answers.com/topic/academy-sports-outdoors/ Answers.com article]

External links

* [http://www.academy.com/ Official site]