SportsTown Inc. announced that it has obtained final court
approval of its Debtor-in-Possession (DIP) financing and its
Joint Venture Agreement with The Athlete's Foot. The 3-year
financing agreement with The CIT Group/Business Credit Inc.
provides $40M to pay creditors. The Bankruptcy Court's final
approval of SportsTown's deal with The Athlete's Foot will allow
the two companies to jointly develop and roll out a new shoe
superstore concept within SportsTown's megastores. The first
such store is scheduled to be unveiled May 1995. SportsTown
reported a sales increase for '94 of 18.9%. The sales increase
was attributed to sales from new stores partially offset by a
9.8% decrease in comparable store sales (SportsTown).
SPORT CHALET: The 17-store West Coast chain posted a net
loss for fiscal '94 despite a nearly 15% increase in sales.
Everything from the natural disasters in CA to the warm weather
effecting the sale of ski apparel is blamed for the company's
poor showing. The company is also searching for a new president
after Joe Coulombe resigned last week after less than two months
on the job. He cited "management-style differences" with Sport
Chalet founder Norbert Olberz as his reason for leaving (Nancy
Rivera Brooks, L.A. TIMES, 4/10).
