In reporting very good results for the first quarter, Dick's Sporting Goods described its recent £20 million (€150.0m-$186.1m) investment in JJB Sports as a “high-risk, high-reward” proposition. It expressed confidence in the new management of the British chain to turn it around, without diverting the attention of the U.S. management. Dick's feels that JJB has strong potential for development because of a share of only 6 to 7 percent in a British market estimated to be worth $9.5 billion a year. Dick's posted an impressive 15.1 percent sales increase to $1.28 billion in the first quarter of this year, with comparable store sales rising by 8.4 percent, and its net earnings jumped by 52.5 percent to $57.2 million.

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