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Finance

THE POWER PLAYERS: VENATOR, JUST FOR FEET IN WEEKEND MEDIA

          Just into his fourth year as Venator Group CEO,
     formerly Woolworth, Roger Farah has changed the company's
     "century-old strategy," and for "all intents and purposes,"
     he is now "running a sporting goods holding company,"
     according to Jennifer Steinhauer of the N.Y. TIMES.  Three
     "smallish acquisitions -- a pair of sporting goods chains
     and an athletic goods catalogue -- underscore the new
     direction," while a proposed "big addition -- the 206-store
     Sports Authority [TSA] chain -- is in his sights." 
     Steinhauer wrote that in many ways, Venator's plan to buy
     TSA is intended to "help consolidate the fragmented" sneaker
     industry, which is "in the dumps."  Farah says the trends in
     athletic shoes are "cyclical," and that "sales can turn
     upward on a dime with a few hot new products," but 
     Steinhauer wrote that Farah's task "remains daunting."  
     While Farah is "remodeling, expanding and adding fresh
     goods" to his 2,848-store Foot Locker division, he is still
     "playing catch-up with competitors like Finish Line and Just
     for Feet.  Over all, Venator's sales continue to sag, and
     its profit margins remain weak" (N.Y. TIMES, 7/12).
          JUST FOR FEAT: BUSINESS WEEK's Nicole Harris profiles
     Just For Feet, which has "bucked a four-year, 23% decline in
     industry sales to hit a record" $479M in revenue in '97.  
     The company's "big-box" stores stock 4,000-odd styles of
     sneakers, offering consumers "10 times as many as most
     rivals."  Analyst Marcia Aaron expects the 293-store chain
     to earn $54.4M this year, up from $34.4M in '97, and
     believes that sales "will jump" 43% in '98, to $682.5M. 
     Harris adds that Just For Feet CEO Harold Ruttenberg
     recently acquired two regional chains, called Athletic
     Attic, adding 86 smaller stores (BUSINESS WEEK, 7/20 issue).

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