Latest news with #FinishLine
Miami Herald
08-07-2025
- Miami Herald
Trainer beat ‘beautiful' racehorse in NY, then it died, feds say. He's sentenced
A harness racing trainer from Canada was convicted on criminal mischief charges in connection with beating a racehorse that then died in 2023, New York prosecutors said. Frederick Bourgault, the 27-year-old trainer, 'was convicted of all charges against him' stemming from the beating death of a racehorse named Finish Line in July 2023, the Orange County District Attorney's Office said in an April 7 news release. Bourgault was sentenced to two to six years in prison and was also ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution, the district attorney said in a July 7 post on Facebook. Bourgault now must register with an animal abuse registry managed by the Orange County Sheriff, prosecutors said at his July 7 sentencing hearing. 'The Orange County Legislature's legislative findings when it passed Rocky's Law stated, 'The Legislature … finds and determines that individuals who abuse animals are statistically more likely to commit violent acts against humans and, in particular, the Legislature also determines that a strong correlation has been established linking individuals who abuse animals with incidents of domestic violence,' and, I cannot agree more with that assessment,' District Attorney David M. Hoovler said in the post. Bourgault pleaded guilty to attempted assault charges 'for having attempted to cause physical injury to a woman using her cellphone' in a different case on June 25, prosecutors said. He's scheduled to be sentenced in that case on Oct. 2. The indictment in the horse death case said Bourgault was charged with criminal mischief in the second degree 'for having 'damaged'' Finish Line at the Pine Bush Training Facility in the town of Crawford. The horse had an estimated value of at least $5,000, officials said. Bourgault was accused of striking the horse with a heavy object and causing a linear depressed skull fracture — 'which resulted in the horse having to be euthanized,' prosecutors said. The indictment said Bourgault was also charged with interference with or injury to certain domestic animals, 'a felony under the New York State Agriculture and Markets Act, for willfully or unjustifiably injuring or destroying a racehorse.' The New York State Police, Orange County District Attorney's Office and New York State Gaming Commission partnered on the investigation, which involved having the horse's remains exhumed, officials said. Experts at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine examined the remains, and the gaming commission provided expert witnesses and coordinated with the New York State police to arrest Bourgault. 'The beautiful horse that was the victim of this defendant's senseless act of violence deserved the justice that was delivered on his behalf,' District Attorney David M. Hoovler said in the release. 'We will not, as a civilized society, allow abusers to bring harm to helpless animals.'
Yahoo
17-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
JD Sports Lands on Las Vegas Strip as UK Retailer Doubles Down on North America
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. More from WWD Kering's First Generation Award x Jewelry Winners Revealed at JCK Get to Know the Couture Show Design Atelier Freshman Class of 2025 Academy Sports + Outdoors Forge Ahead With 3 New Doors 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.' This news comes just weeks after JD Sports reported revenue in fiscal 2025 of 11.46 billion pounds, an increase of 10.2 percent from 10.40 billion pounds in 2024. Profit before tax and adjusting items was 923 million pounds, a 4 percent decline from 961 million pounds the prior year. By category, footwear continued to perform strongly with revenue growth of 15.2 percent to 6.82 billion pounds in 2025. As for apparel, revenue in the category grew 4.2 percent to 3.55 billion pounds, while accessories revenue grew by 4.8 percent to 702 million pounds. According to JD, footwear makes up 60 percent of its sales, while apparel accounts for 31 percent and accessories at 6 percent. 'Other' categories accounts for 3 percent and includes outdoor living equipment and gym memberships. By region, revenue in the UK declined 4.1 percent to 3.21 billion pounds, while Europe revenue increased 9.5 percent to 3.51 billion pounds. North America revenue increased 27 percent to 4.24 billion, and Asia Pacific revenue increased 0.4 percent to 501 million pounds. The company noted that North America generates 37 percent of total revenue, while Europe accounts for 31 percent, the UK accounts for 28 percent, and Asia Pacific makes up 4 percent. Launch Gallery: JD Sports Opens Las Vegas Strip Flagship Store, PHOTOS Best of WWD All the Retailers That Nike Left and Then Went Back Mikey Madison's Elegant Red Carpet Shoe Style [PHOTOS] Julia Fox's Sleekest and Boldest Shoe Looks Over the Years [Photos] Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Forbes
09-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
JD Sports Builds On Hibbett Acquisition And Opens Largest Store Yet
Usain Bolt opened JD Sports' largest store to date down the road from its Manchester offices. It's fair to say that when JD Sports goes, it goes big. After several years when U.K. sports and fashion retailer JD Sports could just not stop expanding, the Hibbett-owner is switching lanes from the 100 metres to long distance running as CEO Régis Schultz consolidates on what has been a remarkable rise in the U.S. and internationally. Usain Bolt was the guest of honor as JD Sports opened its largest store to date down the road from its Manchester headquarters in north west England at the weekend, but it is the U.S. which is now the company's biggest market. And while many British brands have stumbled as they attempted to win over American consumers, JD Sports has hardly put a foot wrong since making its first acquisition and in just a few short years it now leads the pack. 'It has been a fantastic story for us. In 2018 we bought Finish Line and we turned around this business. We bought Shoe Palace, DTLR and Hibbett and now have a business of $6 billion annually,' Schultz said. 'We built a business that came from nothing to be bigger than the market leader.' He believes that many rivals focused too heavily online and stopped investing in their stores, a trend accelerated by the pandemic, which allowed JD Sports to bring something different as 'the new kids on the block, bringing, modernity and something fresh and with a different proposition, with a bigger apparel section.' Footwear only stores missed out on the lifestyle opportunity and the consumer desire to mix and match different brands, he stressed. North America is now JD's largest market, with a mix of fascias depending on where the company sees the best brand resonance. The company has nearly 350 JD Sports rebranded storefronts and around 257 stores still branded as Finish Line, plus 256 concessions in Macy's. The billion dollar acquisition of Alabama-based Hibbett added 1.169 stores across 36 states but the strength of the brand domestically means it will retain its fascia. JD Sports is focused on bigger and better stores. 'We will be continuing to convert our runway for the coming five years, continuing to convert Finish Line stores. There are still over 200 stores to convert to JD, plus opening new stores," Schultz said. It is anticipated to hit a global profit before tax of $1.25 billion and JD now has nearly 4,900 stores worldwide, including in the U.S., Canada, U.K., France, Italy, Australia, Spain and Portugal. The differing brand approach reflects how JD Sports sees its most effective connection with the consumer after the U.S. team from Finish Line saw something that made JD Sports different and decided to push for a change of brand. 'This is quite rare, and I think it will be a business case in 10 years time, having the guts to do it. And they did it, and very well,' Schultz reflected. As a result, the Finish Line name will only remain at Macy's, where it attracts a different customer who is typically a little older and more biased towards females. Indeed, national coverage also comes with demographic nuances, with Shoe Palace connecting on the west coast and in the south with Hispanic customers and the apparel ranges at DTLR focused more on black American shoppers, especially around basketball culture. 'A key learning is a strong back office, we are leveraging the back office in the U.S. for finance and HR, and through the acquisitions have introduced a strong discipline to deliver more than $25 million of synergies that we plan mostly around logistics. We were at capacity in Indianapolis, so we invested in a new warehouse, so now we are west coast, south and Midwest. We have five years of capacity, whereas we were at max when we made the acquisition, and it gives us to the ability to deliver better service,' he said, stressing that the key for online delivery is stores. 'It is the best model, especially in the U.S., it's cheaper to fulfil from store. Unless you are Amazon, with a warehouse in every town, leveraging your store is a much better model, much more efficient, because it increases your stock turn in your store," he said. "It increases your ability to sell, it's a win, win. And we believe that the best proposition for the consumer. What we're seeing is that it's the only channel position where they can go in store, they can come pick up in store, they can receive from online.' The U.S. has not been a happy hunting ground for many established U.K. retailers, and Schutlz puts JD Sports' success in part down to choosing acquisitions for expansion and having a U.S. management team. In addition, he points out that trends in fashion and sports are global. 'We keep evolving. We are not fixed on one model, and we keep what is great. Every store is the opportunity to do something different and at Trafford Centre [the mall location of its new flagship in Manchester] we can put all the brands that we dream of in the store, because it's near, it's 15 minutes from our offices, so let's give the opportunity for the buyer, for the merchandizer, for the property guy, for the concept guy, to have something which is too big. Being too big means that you can test new products. You can test new brands. And that is really the idea behind the store,' he said. While most stores will not be at the scale of the Manchester flagship, he believes that some of the digital elements, the differentiation between the male section and the female section, plus new checkouts, may well influence new stores, although domestic store expansion has largely reached maturity. 'I want to make sure that we continue to have the best stories possible, and it will be bigger and better,' the JD Sports boss said. "I think that size matters in a world where omnichannel is important, the store experience needs to be an experience. And if you are in a bigger store, you get a better experience. You also have more product, more availability. We have 35,000 pair of shoes in the store. So it's highly likely that you will find the shoes that you want to take away right away,' he stressed.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'Finish Line Campaign' Erases More than $83,000 of debt for Howard Community College Graduates, Continuing Students
Howard Community College COLUMBIA, Md., May 22, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Howard Community College (HCC) President Daria J. Willis today announced more than $83,000 of cleared institutional balances for graduating and continuing students at the institution. The 'Finish Line' fundraising initiative launched by the Howard Community College Educational Foundation (HCCEF) invited donors and supporters to help eliminate outstanding tuition and fee costs for 34 members of this years' graduating class and approximately 50 currently enrolled students to encourage their continuation at HCC. Students will now have one less burden associated with starting a career, transferring to a four-year institution, or soon moving towards degree completion. 'We are beyond honored to have the support of community members who help us meet our students where they dream every day,' said Willis. 'This first-of-its-kind HCCEF campaign is making a huge difference in the lives of our students and our county.' "I chose to support this initiative because I want to help students leave Howard Community College without debt," said Mildred Murray, a generous donor who is leading the effort. "I believe education is the key to building a stronger country—whether it's through a degree, a certificate, or a trades credential. An educated community is an empowered community." The inaugural fundraising campaign which lasted just over 30 days will culminate with HCC's 54th Commencement Ceremony on May 23, a momentous occasion where over 600 hardworking students will proudly walk across the stage to receive their degrees and certificates. However, the path to graduation is not always smooth. Some students face financial hurdles that can threaten to derail their dreams. "Far too often, rising costs prevent hard-working individuals from achieving their goals, and hinders economic mobility for families," said Jarrett Carter Sr., Vice President of External Affairs, Communications and Advancement. "We believe in the power of educational investment, and we are thrilled that a community of supporting donors is eager to partner with our administration and our students in such powerful ways." "Supporting students on their journey to graduation means helping them achieve their dreams and finish what they started," Murray added. "Each of us has the ability to make a meaningful impact. By giving students the opportunity to succeed, we're not just helping individuals—we're preparing future workers, leaders, and public servants who will help make our communities and country stronger." ABOUT HCC Since 1970, Howard Community College (HCC) has been a preferred college choice for students and families in Howard County, Maryland. A public community college, HCC offers associate degree and certificate programs, as well as workforce development training and continuing education classes, to nearly 22,000 credit and noncredit students each year. HCC received the 2019 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation's only presidential-level honor for performance excellence in organizations. Contact: Jarrett CarterHoward Community Collegeprmarketing@ A photo accompanying this announcement is available at
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
UK's JD Sports falls on lower sales, US tariffs warning
HighlightsBritish sportswear retailer JD Sports experienced a 2% decline in first-quarter sales and warned that increased prices in the United States due to tariffs could negatively affect customer demand. The company's shares dropped by 6% following the announcement, reflecting a 30% decline over the past year, significantly underperforming the UK's bluechip index, which has risen by 4%. JD Sports aims to mitigate the potential impact of tariffs by diversifying the range of countries from which it sources goods while maintaining confidence in delivering improved shareholder returns through its multi-brand model. British sportswear retailer JD Sports posted a 2% fall in first-quarter sales and warned that higher prices in its key U.S. market from President Donald Trump's tariffs could hit customer demand, sending its shares down 6%. JD, which makes nearly 40% of its sales in the United States through its Finish Line , Shoe Palace and Hibbett stores, warned in April that profits would only grow slightly, if at all, this year, even before any potential impact from tariffs. The company is facing headwinds from a competitive and volatile market, worries over consumer spending and a drop-off in demand for Nike products, which account for 45% of its sales. Shares in JD Sports slid 6% to 87 pence in early deals. The stock has lost 30% over the last 12 months, underperforming Britain's bluechip index, which is up 4%. RBC analysts said the 2% drop in underlying sales for the 13 weeks to May 3 was softer than market expectations. The group said on Wednesday that while it had limited visibility on the impact from tariffs, it was taking action by further diversifying the range of countries from which it sources goods. The biggest potential impact would be a rise in the price of products for U.S. consumers, which could impact demand and dent confidence, JD warned. "The tariff impact, though manageable, keeps us on hold," Panmure Liberum said, adding that current weakness was an opportunity for long-term investors. JD, which also sells Adidas , On, HOKA and other sports brands from nearly 5,000 stores worldwide and online, did not on Wednesday give guidance for the current financial year. The consensus is for a 3% fall in pretax profit to 890 million pounds ($1.19 billion). In the medium term, JD said it remained confident of delivering improved shareholder returns and said it was well positioned given its multi-brand model and focus on costs.
