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A Sporting Business
Drive through Calgary's sprawling expanse, and you'll see Help Wanted signs everywhere, along with some distinctly Canadian oddities, including a company called Boston Pizza.
Oil and additional extractive industries are fueling Calgary's boom, but other natural resources are also in great supply. Head west into the Rockies, and in a couple of hours you'll hit Banff, a world-class capital of snow sports. Combine lots of disposable income with the region's ample recreation opportunities, and that's good news -- but also a challenge -- for Forzani. "The economies of British Columbia and Alberta are absolutely on fire," Sartor says. "It's the tightest labor market I've ever experienced. Our single biggest challenge is finding people."
A former footballer named John M. Forzani, who was an offensive guard with the Calgary Stampeders, founded the company with three former teammates. In 1974 they opened an athletic shoe store called Forzani's Locker Room in Calgary, which eventually became the Forzani Group Ltd., Canada's largest sporting goods chain.
In 2003, Forzani retired as CEO and, later, became the owner of his former football team. Bob Sartor, who joined the company as CFO and then became president, took over as CEO. A former hockey player known for stopping pucks with his head, Sartor is an avid outdoorsman himself, with a weekend house in Canmore, near Banff, and a passion for reaching formidable summits such as Mount Rainier.
Forzani, too, has risen to the top of its industry. The company is a billion-dollar business, running more than 200 stores under four different brands: Sport Chek, Sport Mart, Coast Mountain and National Sports. The company also franchises 200 stores under several different brands. In total, Forzani commands 20% of its market.
"We're the 800-pound gorilla," Sartor says. "Ten years ago, 61% of the market was made up of independents and regionals. Now that's 51%, and we've taken most of that growth. Our target is 30% of the market. I'm shooting for $2 billion in sales in four years."
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