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SALT LAKE CITY — The Larry H. Miller Group of Companies announced Friday that it has sold Fanzz, its sports apparel division, to Ames Watson Capital, LLC, a Maryland-based operating company. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
Fanzz, which now includes 120 stores in 22 states, was founded in 1985 in Salt Lake City primarily to market the Utah Jazz. In 2013, they acquired Just Sports, a chain of retail sports apparel stores in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana, to continue their growth.
But a growing societal emphasis on online retail, not Fanzz's specialty, and a desire by new Larry H. Miller management to concentrate on its core businesses left Fanzz with an uncertain future with the company.
"Fanzz had a diminished strategic role in our core businesses," Frank Zang, senior vice president of communications told KSL.com. "We're fortunate to find a buyer that has deep retail experience to manage a large network of stores."
Ames Watson Capital is also acquiring the trademark to the Fanzz name, and will use it under the name Fanzz Gear Inc. When reached by telephone, Ames Watson Capital declined to comment on their plans with the Fanzz name and the currently open stores.
The two stores located in the Jazz's sporting venues, the Utah Jazz Team Store and the Salt Lake Bees Team Shop, will continue to be owned and operated by the Larry H. Miller Sports and Entertainment division.
