JD Sports to buy American footwear player DTLR Villa

JD Sports Fashion Plc has entered into a conditional agreement for the acquisition of 100 percent of DTLR Villa LLC, an athletic footwear and streetwear retailer based in Baltimore, Maryland. The company said in a statement that total cash consideration for the acquisition is 495 million dollars, of which approximately 100 million dollars will be used to repay existing indebtedness of the company. Commenting on the acquisition of DTLR, Peter Cowgill, Executive Chairman of JD Sports Fashion Plc, said: “ Like Shoe Palace, DTLR pride themselves on the deep connection they have with their consumers and the active role they play in the communities that they serve. As such, we intend to retain the DTLR Villa fascia and its proposition.” The company added that DTLR management team, headed up by Glenn Gaynor and Scott Collins, who will be continuing in their roles as Co-CEOs, will also be reinvesting a portion of their proceeds back into DTLR in exchange for a new minority stake of approximately 1.4 percent. The acquisition of DTLR, will enhance JD’s presence in the north and east of the United States complementing its existing JD and Finish Line as well as the recent acquisition of Shoe Palace which is based on the West Coast. In the 52 weeks ended 1 February 2020, DTLR delivered an EBITDA of 45.6 million dollars. After recognising a charge for depreciation and amortisation of 24.7 million dollars and net funding costs of 19.3 million dollars, DTLR delivered a pre-tax profit of 1.6 million dollars. Currently majority owned by BRS & Co. and Goode Capital, DTLR was established in 1982. Originally named Downtown Locker Room, the company later re-branded as DTLR and, in 2017, merged with Sneaker Villa Inc, previously based in Philadelphia. DTLR currently operates from 247 stores across 19 states, principally in the north and east of the United States. Picture:Facebook/DTLR Villa
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