Gart Sports Announces Record First Quarter

- Diluted EPS Increases 175% to $0.22 -
- Net Income Increases 328% -
DENVER, May -- Gart Sports Company (Nasdaq:GRTS) announced results for its first quarter ended May 4, 2002. On June 7, 2001, Gart Sports Company completed its acquisition of Oshman's Sporting Goods, Inc. The 2002 first quarter includes the results of Oshman's operations for the full quarter. Comparable 2001 results are for Gart Sports only. First quarter net income increased 328% to $2.6 million, compared with $0.6 million in the prior year's quarter. These results reflect first quarter earnings of $0.22 per fully diluted share, compared with $0.08 per fully diluted share in the prior year's quarter, an increase of 175%. Total sales for the 13 weeks ended May 4, 2002 rose 50.6% to $245.0 million compared with $162.6 million in the prior year's first quarter. First quarter comparable store sales, which do not include the Oshman's stores, increased 5.5% from last year. Doug Morton, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Gart Sports Company, stated, "We are very pleased to report record first quarter earnings that exceeded consensus estimates and were also well above last year's results. Our first quarter results were driven by the addition of the Oshman's stores and the solid 5.5% increase in comparable store sales, which occurred in all merchandise categories in the Gart and Sportmart stores. We also delivered a strong gross margin rate improvement, primarily in the footwear and apparel categories. Our gross margin improvement is attributable to the continued refinement of our buying disciplines and increased economies of scale, combined with our investment in systems to support automated allocation and replenishment." Gart Sports Company, headquartered in Denver, Colorado, is the second largest publicly traded, full-line sporting goods retailer in the United States and the leading full-line sporting goods retailer in the Western United States, in each case as measured by net sales. The Company was established in 1928 and offers a comprehensive high-quality assortment of brand name sporting apparel and equipment at competitive prices. Gart Sports Company operates 180 stores in 25 states under the Gart Sports, Sportmart and Oshman's names. The Company's e-tailing websites, located at gartsports.com, sportmart.com and oshmans.com, are operated by Global Sports Interactive, Inc. under a license and e-commerce agreement. The Company trades on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol GRTS.