Hibbett Sports 2012 Annual Report Download - page 9

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PART 1
Item 1. Business.
Our Company
Our Company was organized in 1945 under the name Dixie Supply Company in Florence, Alabama, specializing primarily
in the marine and small aircraft business. In 1951, the Company started targeting school athletic programs in North Alabama and by
the end of the 1950’s had developed a profitable team sales business. Since 1960, we have been solely in the sporting goods
business. In 1965, we opened Dyess & Hibbett Sporting Goods in Huntsville, Alabama, and hired Mickey Newsome, our current
Executive Chairman of the Board. The following year, we opened another sporting goods store in Birmingham and by the end of
1980, we had 12 stores in central and northwest Alabama with a distribution center located in Birmingham and our central
accounting office in Florence. We went public in October 1996 when we had 79 stores and were incorporated under the laws of the
State of Delaware as Hibbett Sporting Goods, Inc. We incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware as Hibbett Sports, Inc.
in January 2007, and on February 10, 2007, Hibbett Sports, Inc. became the successor holding company for Hibbett Sporting
Goods, Inc., which is now our operating subsidiary.
Today, we operate sporting goods stores in small to mid-sized markets predominantly in the Southeast, Southwest, Mid-
Atlantic and the Midwest. As of January 28, 2012, we operated 832 stores consisting of 812 Hibbett Sports stores as well as 19
smaller-format Sports Additions athletic shoe stores and 1 larger-format Sports & Co. superstore in 26 states. Our primary retail
format and growth vehicle is Hibbett Sports, a 5,000 square foot store located primarily in strip centers, which are usually influenced
by a Wal-Mart store. Approximately 77% of our Hibbett Sports store base is located in strip centers, which includes free-standing
stores, while approximately 23% of our Hibbett Sports store base is located in enclosed malls. We expect to continue our store base
growth in strip centers versus enclosed malls.
We offer convenient locations and a broad assortment of quality athletic equipment, footwear and apparel with a high
level of customer service. Our merchandise assortment emphasizes team sports complemented by localized apparel, footwear
and accessories designed to appeal to a wide range of customers within each individual market.
Available Information
The Company maintains an Internet website at the following address: www.hibbett.com.
We make available free of charge on or through our website under the heading “Investor Relations,” certain reports that
we file with or furnish to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in accordance with the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 (Exchange Act). These include our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and our current
reports on Form 8-K. We make this information available on our website as soon as reasonably practicable after we
electronically file the information with or furnish it to the SEC. In addition to accessing copies of our reports online, you may
request a copy of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 28, 2012, at no charge, by writing to:
Investor Relations, Hibbett Sports, Inc., 451 Industrial Lane, Birmingham, Alabama 35211.
Reports filed with or furnished to the SEC are also available free of charge upon request by contacting our corporate
office at [phone].
The public may also read or copy any materials filed by us with the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100F
Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20549. Information may be obtained on the operation of the Public Reference Room by calling the
SEC at 1-800-732-0330. The SEC also maintains a website that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other
information regarding issuers that file electronically at www.sec.gov.
Our Business Strategy
We target markets with county populations that range from 25,000 to 75,000. By targeting these smaller markets, we
believe that we achieve important strategic advantages, including store growth opportunities, comparatively low operating costs and
a more limited competitive environment than generally faced in larger markets. In addition, we establish greater customer, vendor
and landlord recognition as a leading sporting goods retailer in these local communities.
We believe our ability to merchandise to local sporting and community interests differentiates us from our national
competitors. This strong regional focus also enables us to achieve significant cost benefits including lower corporate expenses,
reduced distribution costs and increased economies of scale from marketing activities. Additionally, we use sophisticated
information systems to maintain tight controls over inventory and operating costs and continually search for ways to improve the
customer experience and efficiencies through information system upgrades.
We strive to hire enthusiastic sales people with an interest in sports. Our extensive training program focuses on product
knowledge and selling skills and is conducted through the use of in-store clinics, DVDs, self-study courses, interactive group
discussions and Hibbett University designed specifically for store management.