Sports Direct news and archive

Frasers Group CEO Mike Ashley reportedly ‘set to step down’

Frasers Group boss Mike Ashley is reportedly set to step down from the helm of the retail empire he founded almost 40 years ago. Ashley is expected to hand the reins over to Michael Murray, who is Frasers Group’s head of elevation and who is also engaged to Ashley’s daughter Anna, The Telegraph reports. It is thought Ashley would then become...

People

Former Sports Direct CEO named MD of Revolution Beauty

The former CEO of Sports Direct has taken up the role of managing director at British cosmetics company Revolution Beauty. Dave Forsey took up the new position in March last year, according to LinkedIn, but the news was only recently reported by The Times. Forsey spent 33 years at Sports Direct, now known as Frasers Group, and became the...

Retail

Frasers Group opens first Frasers store in Wolverhampton

Frasers Group has opened its first Frasers store in Wolverhampton as part of a larger multi-brand shopping destination. Located in the Mander Centre, in a former Debenhams unit, the 34,000 square foot Frasers store offers over 120 brands spanning beauty, fashion, lifestyle, kids and home brands, and also has a restaurant for visitors. The new...

Featured

Retail

Sports Direct unveils first-ever Christmas advert

Sports Direct has launched its first-ever Christmas advert in a bid to showcase what it calls its new and fresh, elevated brand positioning and rebrand for 2021. The UK’s biggest sports and fitness retailer has invested 5 million pounds into its ‘Sports Starts Here’ Christmas campaign, as it looks to demonstrate its “unique high street and...

Featured

Business

CMA decision to block JD Sports’ acquisition of Footasylum overturned

The UK’s Competition Appeal Tribunal has overturned a decision made earlier this year by the country’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to block an acquisition by JD Sports of rival sportswear retailer Footasylum. The CMA announced in May it had blocked the 90 million pound deal after finding it would result in “substantial lessening of...

Retail

Frasers Group to open ‘game-changing’ multi-brand store

Frasers Group has announced it is to open a ‘game changing’ multi-brand store in Portsmouth on Saturday as part of its ongoing elevation strategy. The 51,000-square-foot space, situated in the Cascades Shopping centre, will be the group’s first to house a Sports Direct, USC, Evans, Game as well as a Belong Gaming Arena all under one roof. The...

Business

Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley ‘deeply' sorry for Covid-19 response, offers support to NHS

Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley has said he is “deeply apologetic” for his company’s earlier efforts to keep stores open amid the country’s lockdown and has offered to help the NHS during the pandemic. On Monday evening, prime minister Boris Johnson announced the immediate closure of all ‘non-essential’ stores across the country - including...

Business

Sports Direct withdraws EBITDA growth guidance

Frasers Group has announced that its board expects COVID-19 to cause significant disruption to the business, including reducing customer footfall and therefore expects that the group will not achieve the range of guidance of 5 to 15 percent EBITDA growth for the financial year ending April 26, 2020. The company said in a statement that it has...

Business

Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group acquires 12.5 percent share in Mulberry

Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group, formerly known as Sports Direct, has announced it has acquired a 12.5 percent share in luxury British handbag label Mulberry as the group moves forward with plans to become more upmarket. Though a price for the deal wasn’t disclosed, based on Friday’s share price when the transaction was made, the stake is worth...

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Business

Sports Direct's H1 profits rise, bullish on recovery at House of Fraser

Group revenue for the first half year at Sports Direct International was up 14 percent to 2,043.5 million pounds (2,740 million dollars), which the company said was largely due to acquisitions contributing 222.5 million pounds, growth in premium lifestyle, growth in wholesale and licensing and the full period of revenue from House of Fraser....

Business

Sports Direct to rebrand as Frasers Group

Sports Direct International is to rebrand as Frasers Group in December as part of the company’s elevation strategy. The UK sportswear giant is expected to formally rebrand after its shareholder meeting 16 December. Following its acquisition of House of Fraser, Sports Direct is upgrading its profile and consumer position, which also owns luxury...

Business

Sports Direct calls for probe into Nike and Adidas

Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct has called for sportswear giants Nike and Adidas to be investigated over their domination in the industry. The news comes after an article from The Sunday Times published this week said Nike would be ending supply deals with several independent retailers, stating that their way of stocking its goods was “no longer...