The letters JD in JD Sports stand for the initials of the founders of the company, John & David. In 1981, the company was established by John Wardle and David Makin, trading from a single shop in Bury, Greater Manchester. In 1983, the company opened a store in the Arndale Centre in Manchester. In 1989, the first London store opened on Oxford Street, London. In October 1996, the company was first listed on the London Stock Exchange. In December 2001 it acquired nearly 200 further stores with the acquisition of First Sport from Blacks Leisure Group. In October 2005 it bought 70 stores from the administrators of Allsports, who entered administration in September 2005. In May 2005, Pentland Group bought Wardle's and Makin's shares for £44.6M; the pair later resigned from the board. In December 2007, the company bought out Bank Stores, which sold fashion clothing, such as Firetrap, Alu, Henleys & Adidas Originals for around £19M. JD Sports is the official supplier and sponsor of numerous association football teams, players and associations. In August 2008, JD Sports announced sponsorship deals with Bournemouth, Charlton Athletic, Dundee United, Blackpool, Luton Town & Oldham Athletic. In May 2009, JD Sports acquired Chausport, which operated 75 small stores in France. In addition, JD acquired the rugby heritage brands 'Canterbury' and 'Canterbury of New Zealand' as well as 'The Duffer of St. George' and 'Kooga Rugby' brands. In January 2011, JD Sports acquired Champion Sports for €19.6M. In January 2012, JD Sports purchased the troubled Blacks Leisure Group from administration for a total of £20 million. In February 2012, JD Sports acquired streetwear clothing brand FLY53, for an undisclosed sum. The same year JD Sports acquired a 40% stake in fashion retailer Tessuti, before acquiring the brand in full in 2016. In February 2013, it purchased Cloggs, a shoe retailer, out of administration however closed it in 2018. In January 2016, JD Sports opened its first store in Malaysia. , Perth In November 2016, JD Sports acquired GO Outdoors for £112 million. In late 2016, JD Sports Fashion acquired an 80% stake in the Australian retailer Next Athleisure for A$6.6 million. The first Australian JD Sports store opened in Melbourne in April 2017. In 2017 the company saw 30 per cent rise in sales which was credited partially to growing trends in athleisure. In March 2018, JD Sports reached a deal to acquire Finish Line for $558 million. In 2018, JD Sports continued its expansion in the Asia Pacific region. It opened its first store in South Korea on 13 April 2018, its first Singapore store on 24 May 2018 and its first store in Thailand on 9 November 2018. In 2016 and again in 2019 JD Sports was the subject of accusations of mistreatment of its UK warehouse staff, with comparisons being made to Victorian 'dark satanic mills' and 'prison' conditions. In 2020, JD Sports is anticipated to appoint administrators for its Go Outdoors brand, placing additional high street workers at risk amid the Covid-19 pandemic. In July 2020, JD Sports and champions of Scotland, Celtic Football Club, announced an exciting new partnership that will see the leading sports fashion retailer team up as the club’s official retail partner. Alongside Celtic’s new official kit supplier, adidas, the new partnership will see all official kits and training wear product available in JD stores across the globe, online and in club shop outlets. This new partnership will supplement and enhance Celtic’s own excellent retail and e-commerce operation. JD’s relationship with adidas has helped the high-street retailer grow to over 700 stores across 19 countries. Now they will be joining forces with the most decorated club in Scotland as part of its continued expansion of its football portfolio. JD are thrilled to be on board with Celtic as they aim to "win" an historic 10th league title in a row. The club and JD, alongside adidas, will be looking at new ways to bring the club's merchandise closer to the fans through a range of activations in the UK and abroad. JD Group Executive Chairman, Peter Cowgill, said: “We are delighted to partner with Celtic as they enter such an exciting season after winninh their ninth consecutive league title.” “Celtic is an iconic club with an incredible support base; both the club’s and JD’s ambition for the future remains as strong as ever, which is something JD are proud to be associated with. We are extremely excited to launch a fantastic range of new kits in partnership with adidas and the club".
