U.S. retailer Dick's Sporting Goods Inc is investing 20 million pounds ($31.8 million) in Britain's JJB Sports, throwing a lifeline to the loss-making UK chain and signalling international ambitions for the U.S. business.Dick's, which runs over 550 stores in the United States, said on Thursday the deal would eventually see it become a controlling shareholder in JJB and would act as a "stepping stone" to its future growth and development.JJB said the deal, along with a separate agreement with key supplier Adidas, would help it to accelerate a turnaround plan which has included closing stores and revamping others to focus on sporting families and keen amateurs.Britain's retail sector has seen a string of household names including Woolworths and MFI go out of business in recent years as cut-price competition from supermarkets and the internet has been exacerbated by a squeeze on consumer incomes due to rising prices, muted wages growth and government austerity measures.
Dick?s Sporting Goods, Inc. (Dick?s) is a sporting goods retailer offering a range of brand name sporting goods equipment, apparel, and footwear in a specialty store environment. Shares of DKS remained unchanged at $48.65. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $29.10 and as high as $49.97. On average, 1689790 shares of DKS exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 0.
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