JD Sports Fashion to Launch a Value Fashion Business Later 2014; Announces Management Appointments
January 24, 2014 at 02:40 pm EST
Share
JD Sports Fashion is launching a value fashion business later 2014 and has recruited a new team to spearhead the move. The group plans to open 15 new stores this year, with each store taking "a new retail identity". Sources suggested JD was reviving its Open fashion fascia, which was axed in September 2007. This will be the second retail launch for JD in the last 12 months, following its sports performance fascia JD Pro, which opened in November.
The launch team is headed by former Blue Inc. buying and design director Stephen Galea as managing director. He left the young fashion chain in September after eight years but had previously spent 12 years at Arcadia, becoming head of buying for menswear at Topman in 2003. Stewart Messer, formerly head of buying at Blue Inc, has been brought in as head of buying for Open while Oliver Woodhouse, previously head of buying and merchandising at Bench, has joined as head of merchandising. Design is being headed up by Rachael Stocks Thomas, who was previously a senior men's designer at JD but has also held roles at Tesco, Boxfresh and River Island.
JD Sports Fashion Plc is a United Kingdom-based multichannel retailer of sports, fashion and outdoor brands. The Company specializes in the sale of sports fashion and outdoor footwear and apparel, combining global brands such as Nike, adidas, Puma and The North Face, with own brand labels such as Pink Soda and Supply & Demand. The Company's segments include Sports Fashion and Outdoor. Its sports fashion brands include JD, Size?, Footpatrol, Finish Line, Shoe palace, DTLR, Livestock, Sprinter, Sport Zone, Perry Sport and Sizeer. Its outdoor brands include Go Outdoors (GO), Blacks, Millets, Tiso, Ultimate Outdoors, Fishing Republic and Naylors. Its Finish Line is a retailer of multi-branded athletic footwear, apparel and accessories in the United States. Shoe Palace is a retailer of branded sports footwear and apparel located on the West Coast of the United States and has over 160 stores, which trade under the Shoe Palace banner.