Foot Locker Acquiring Two Sports Retailers for $1.1B

Foot Locker announced two separate deals Monday to acquire athletic retailer WSS for $750 million and streetwear and sneaker shop Atmos for $360 million.

The deals, expected to close in Q3, come as part of Foot Locker’s plans to “find new customers and new consumer markets,” according to CEO Richard Johnson.

The New York-based company, which has around 3,000 stores, wants to expand beyond its enclosed mall locations. WSS, based in Los Angeles, will add 93 locations in the U.S., with Atmos contributing another 49 across the U.S. and Japan.

• WSS generated $425 million in 2020 revenue, with a largely Latino consumer base, per The Wall Street Journal.
• Atmos recorded $175 million in sales last year — its customers are mostly Japanese.

Both companies will keep their names.

The deals follow Foot Locker’s announcement that it would convert one-third of its Footaction stores into Foot Lockers and shut down the remaining locations. Foot Locker acquired Footaction in 2004 for $160 million.

Foot Locker’s revenue hit $7.5 billion in fiscal 2020. Back in May, the company reported that first-quarter revenue was up 83.1% year-over-year to $2.15 billion.

In 2019, Foot Locker made another major move in the space, investing $100 million into popular sneaker marketplace GOAT.