Stephen Garner
4 min read
In This Article:
JD Sports is continuing to focus on building its North American business with its latest store on the Las Vegas Strip.
On Saturday, the UK-based athletic retailer debuted its third U.S. flagship store next to the recently opened Adidas and Puma locations in the new BLVD retail development on Las Vegas Blvd.
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The nearly 29,000-sq.-ft. store joins the company’s other American flagship stores in New York City and Chicago. According to the company, there were 339 JD stores across North America as of May 3.
In an interview with John Hall, managing director for JD North America, the executive noted that the growth in the professional sports scene in Las Vegas is what led to the opening.
“Vegas has really become a major player in the sports world, with its own NFL team, NHL team and hosting F1,” Hall told FN. “This is a really exciting place for sports. Vegas is an electric city, and it offers us an incredible way to make a brand impression.”
And it’s this brand awareness that is essential to JD’s growth in the U.S. Over the last year, the company has been hard at work converting much of its Finish Line store fleet to the JD banner, as well as bringing several of its loyalty programs to North American market.
“The best brand awareness tool we have is to open a store,” Hall said. “Because when you have a good footprint of physical stores to complement a digital business, it creates a strong base for brand awareness. And certainly, in these key cities around the country where we’re investing in stores, we have also been investing in marketing and media to amplify the brand. But the work we’re doing around building the brand in North America has been successful, primarily through our store opening program.”
The executive also noted that the new flagship highlights JD’s concept of head-to-toe dressing, offering footwear, apparel and accessories. Customers can expect to see hyped drops and only-at-JD brand moments from global sportswear giants such as Nike, Jordan, New Balance, Adidas, On and Asics, as well as Vegas-inspired pieces from Supply & Demand, New Era, Von Dutch and Hoodrich.
“At our stores, we fully intend to serve the customer’s entire look,” Hall added. “And we are really excited about how these brands have helped us come to life for the complete story. It’s been exciting to bring this concept to the U.S., because it’s something different in the space that we operate in.”
