Wholesale Sports

Last updated
Wholesale Sports Outdoor Outfitters
Industry Retail
DefunctDecember 28, 2017 (2017-12-28)
Headquarters
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
ProductsHunting, fishing, camping gear and apparel
Number of employees
501-1000 employees
Website www.wholesalesports.com/

Wholesale Sports Outdoor Outfitters was a Canadian owned and operated retailer in western Canada that provided hunting, fishing, and camping gear and apparel, and advice and merchandise for outdoor sports and activities.

Contents

History

Wholesale Sports offered equipment, clothing and accessories in the camping, hunting, and fishing categories to outdoor enthusiasts across western Canada. Founded by two brothers from Calgary, they acquired local retailers including Frenchy's and Barottos Sports, establishing Wholesale Sports as a retailer and distributor to western Canada's sportsmen and women. Over time, Wholesale Sports acquired and opened additional stores in Edmonton, Lethbridge, Winnipeg, Saskatoon and Kamloops.

UFA acquired Wholesale Sports Canada in early 2008. [1] A year later, they acquired the leases of 15 Sportsman's Warehouse stores with an employee base of 1,200. Sportsman's Warehouse, a privately held Salt Lake City-based outdoor adventure retailer, had 68 locations throughout the U.S. before UFA acquired 15 sites. [2] The Fargo, North Dakota location was closed in July 2011, leaving 14 stores in the U.S., and 11 in Canada. In 2013 UFA divested its U.S. Wholesale Sports business. [3]

Wholesale Sports opened its 12th and 13th Canadian locations in Prince George, B.C. (2013), [4] and Westbank, B.C. (2014). [5]

In early 2015, Wholesale Sports implemented a new e-commerce platform at www.wholesalesports.com/ [6] [7]

In 2016, Wholesale Sports closed its Regina location. As of September 14, 2017 they planned to close all stores.

The last business day of retail sales before closing permanently was on December 28, 2017.

Locations

State/ProvinceCity
Alberta Calgary
AlbertaNorth Edmonton
AlbertaSouth Edmonton
Alberta Grande Prairie
AlbertaLethbridge
British Columbia Kamloops
British Columbia Langley
British Columbia Nanaimo
British ColumbiaPrince George
British ColumbiaWestbank
Manitoba Winnipeg
Saskatchewan Saskatoon
SaskatchewanRegina

References

  1. "UFA Co-operative Limited's acquisition of Wholesale Sports advances the co-operative towards its mission". UFA.com//. Retrieved July 16, 2008.
  2. "UFA's CEO Explains Acquisition of Sportsman's Warehouse". Newwest.net/. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  3. "Sportsman's Warehouse files for Chapter 11". ktvb.com//. Retrieved October 14, 2009.
  4. "Wholesale Sports to Open New Location in Prince George, BC". Marketwire. Marketwired.com/. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
  5. "Wholesale Sports to Open New Location in Westbank, BC". Marketwire. Marketwired.com/. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  6. "Canadian outdoor retailer meets digital expectations with hybris". ChainStoreAge.com/. Retrieved February 26, 2015.
  7. "Wholesale Sports Outdoor Outfitters Splashes Into Personalized E-Commerce" . Retrieved August 26, 2015.