Foot Locker
Encyclopedia
Foot Locker, Inc. is an American
sportswear and footwear retailer, with its headquarters in Midtown Manhattan
, New York City
, and operating in approximately 20 countries worldwide. Formerly known as Venator Group, Inc., it is the successor corporation to the F.W. Woolworth Company (“Woolworth’s”), and many of its freestanding stores are former Woolworth's locations. Foot Locker, Inc. operates the eponymous “Foot Locker” chain of athletic footwear retail outlets (along with “Kids Foot Locker” and “Lady Foot Locker” stores), Champs Sports
, Footaction USA, and Eastbay
/Footlocker.com. Eastbay/Footlocker.com own the rights to Final Score. The chain is known for its employees' uniforms, resembling those of referees.
According to the company's filings with the SEC
, as of January 28, 2006, Foot Locker, Inc. had 3,921 primarily mall-based stores in the United States, Canada
, Europe
(including the United Kingdom
), and Asia Pacific (including Australia
and New Zealand
).
and operated it as a subsidiary
. In the 1960s, Kinney branched into specialty shoe stores, including Stylco in 1967, Susie Casuals in 1968, and Foot Locker in 1974.
Woolworth also diversified its portfolio of specialty stores in the 1980s, including Afterthoughts, Northern Reflections, and Champs Sports. By 1989, the company was pursuing an aggressive strategy of multiple specialty store formats targeted at enclosed shopping malls. The idea was that if a particular concept failed at a given mall, the company could quickly replace it with a different concept. The company aimed for 10 stores in each of the country's major shopping malls, but this never came to pass as Woolworth never developed that many successful specialty store formats.
In 1988, the F.W. Woolworth Company incorporated a separate company called the "Woolworth Corporation" in the state of New York
. The Woolworth Corporation was responsible for the operations of the Foot Locker stores, among the other specialty chains operated by Woolworth's. One of its first moves was the acquisition of Champs Sports and to rename itself the Woolworth Athletic Group.
During the 1980s and 1990s, the F.W. Woolworth Company’s flagship department store
chain fell into decline, ultimately culminating in the closure of the last stores operating under the name of Woolworth’s in the United States in 1997, while continuing aggressive expansion into the athletic business with an acquisition of the Eastbay
catalog store. That year, Wal-Mart replaced Woolworth in the Dow Jones average. The Woolworth Corporation remained the parent company of Foot Locker, and in 1998 it changed its name to "Venator Group, Inc." By the 1990s, Foot Locker was responsible for more than 70 percent of Kinney Shoe Corp. sales, while traditional shoe retailer Kinney was in decline. Venator announced the shuttering of the remaining Kinney Shoe and Footquarters stores on September 16, 1998.
As the “Foot Locker” brand had become the Woolworth/Venator company’s top performing line, on November 2, 2001 Venator changed its name to Foot Locker, Inc.
In 2004, Foot Locker acquired the Footaction USA brand and approximately 350 stores from Footstar
for $350 million.
In 2007, Foot Locker joined with schoolPAX to launch the Foot Locker School Rewards Program, designed to provide charitable donations to schools who sign up and shop at Foot Locker with a custom-coded keytag or school code.
In 2011, Foot Locker joined Do Something
for the Foot Locker Scholar Athletes program, which honors high school athletes for demonstrating academic excellences as well as flexing their hearts on their sports team and in their communities.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sportswear and footwear retailer, with its headquarters in Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan, or simply Midtown, is an area of Manhattan, New York City home to world-famous commercial zones such as Rockefeller Center, Broadway, and Times Square...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and operating in approximately 20 countries worldwide. Formerly known as Venator Group, Inc., it is the successor corporation to the F.W. Woolworth Company (“Woolworth’s”), and many of its freestanding stores are former Woolworth's locations. Foot Locker, Inc. operates the eponymous “Foot Locker” chain of athletic footwear retail outlets (along with “Kids Foot Locker” and “Lady Foot Locker” stores), Champs Sports
Champs Sports
Champs Sports, is the second-largest component retailer in the Foot Locker family of stores. Champs offers for sale footwear, apparel and sporting goods. The company sponsors the Champs Sports Bowl college football game...
, Footaction USA, and Eastbay
Eastbay
Eastbay is a world supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. The company was established to meet the performance needs of local high school and college athletes within Central Wisconsin...
/Footlocker.com. Eastbay/Footlocker.com own the rights to Final Score. The chain is known for its employees' uniforms, resembling those of referees.
According to the company's filings with the SEC
United States Securities and Exchange Commission
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is a federal agency which holds primary responsibility for enforcing the federal securities laws and regulating the securities industry, the nation's stock and options exchanges, and other electronic securities markets in the United States...
, as of January 28, 2006, Foot Locker, Inc. had 3,921 primarily mall-based stores in the United States, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
(including the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
), and Asia Pacific (including Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
).
History
In 1963, F.W. Woolworth Company purchased the Kinney Shoe CorporationG.R. Kinney Company
G.R. Kinney Company was an American manufacturer and retailer of shoes from 1894 until September 16, 1998. Its listing on the New York Stock Exchange, symbol KNN, began in March 1923. The shoe concern was started by...
and operated it as a subsidiary
Subsidiary
A subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
. In the 1960s, Kinney branched into specialty shoe stores, including Stylco in 1967, Susie Casuals in 1968, and Foot Locker in 1974.
Woolworth also diversified its portfolio of specialty stores in the 1980s, including Afterthoughts, Northern Reflections, and Champs Sports. By 1989, the company was pursuing an aggressive strategy of multiple specialty store formats targeted at enclosed shopping malls. The idea was that if a particular concept failed at a given mall, the company could quickly replace it with a different concept. The company aimed for 10 stores in each of the country's major shopping malls, but this never came to pass as Woolworth never developed that many successful specialty store formats.
In 1988, the F.W. Woolworth Company incorporated a separate company called the "Woolworth Corporation" in the state of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The Woolworth Corporation was responsible for the operations of the Foot Locker stores, among the other specialty chains operated by Woolworth's. One of its first moves was the acquisition of Champs Sports and to rename itself the Woolworth Athletic Group.
During the 1980s and 1990s, the F.W. Woolworth Company’s flagship department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
chain fell into decline, ultimately culminating in the closure of the last stores operating under the name of Woolworth’s in the United States in 1997, while continuing aggressive expansion into the athletic business with an acquisition of the Eastbay
Eastbay
Eastbay is a world supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. The company was established to meet the performance needs of local high school and college athletes within Central Wisconsin...
catalog store. That year, Wal-Mart replaced Woolworth in the Dow Jones average. The Woolworth Corporation remained the parent company of Foot Locker, and in 1998 it changed its name to "Venator Group, Inc." By the 1990s, Foot Locker was responsible for more than 70 percent of Kinney Shoe Corp. sales, while traditional shoe retailer Kinney was in decline. Venator announced the shuttering of the remaining Kinney Shoe and Footquarters stores on September 16, 1998.
As the “Foot Locker” brand had become the Woolworth/Venator company’s top performing line, on November 2, 2001 Venator changed its name to Foot Locker, Inc.
In 2004, Foot Locker acquired the Footaction USA brand and approximately 350 stores from Footstar
Footstar
Footstar is a shoe retailer based in Mahwah, New Jersey. , it principally conducts business through its Meldisco Segment which sells and operates family footwear stores principally within Kmart stores as part of Footstar's Shoemart unit...
for $350 million.
In 2007, Foot Locker joined with schoolPAX to launch the Foot Locker School Rewards Program, designed to provide charitable donations to schools who sign up and shop at Foot Locker with a custom-coded keytag or school code.
In 2011, Foot Locker joined Do Something
Do Something
Do Something is a non-profit organization that motivates young people to take action around social changes through national campaigns and grants for projects that make an impact. The organization's CEO is Nancy Lublin, who founded Dress for Success in 1996.-History:The organization was co-founded...
for the Foot Locker Scholar Athletes program, which honors high school athletes for demonstrating academic excellences as well as flexing their hearts on their sports team and in their communities.