Analyzing Dick's Sporting Goods' E-commerce and Omnichannel Strategy

This case study examines Dick's Sporting Goods' strategic shift towards independent e-commerce operations and the implementation of a comprehensive omnichannel strategy. Initially a small camping and fishing supply retailer, Dick's Sporting Goods grew into a major sporting goods retailer, eventually relocating its headquarters to Pennsylvania. The company's success was fueled by superior customer service and robust e-commerce sales, which accounted for approximately 10% of overall revenue, leading to a 40% revenue increase. The decision to leave eBay and develop its own e-commerce platform was driven by increasing sales, the desire to reduce commission expenses, and the need for greater control over omnichannel features. Dick's omnichannel strategy involved converting physical stores into distribution centers, enabling online order fulfillment from these locations, and improving delivery efficiency. The migration to the new website involved a phased approach, starting with smaller sites like Golf Galaxy and Field & Stream, before relaunching the flagship Dick's Sporting Goods platform. The new system provided numerous benefits, including the ability to buy online and pick up in-store, enhanced analytical capabilities, increased sales from multichannel customers, and accelerated development and innovation cycles.

Dick’s Sporting Goods

Introduction of company
 It has grown from a small company
that sold camping and fishing
supplies.
 From a few number of stores, it grew
into a sporting goods powerhouse
 The headquarters shifted to
Pennsylvania
 It outperformed its customer service
compared to competitors.
Diagram 1: increase in Dick’s
sporting goods business
(Source: Ben & Schuppan,
2015, p.165)

Summary
 The company maintained a good
relation with their customers with
instant responses.
 It maintained a strong e-commerce
sales compared to competitors.
 It had increased the revenue up to
40%.
 E-commerce represented around
10% of the overall sales of the
company.
Diagram 2: increase in Dick’s
sporting goods sales
(Source: Johnson, 2016, p.
143)

Summary
 Some amount of revenue was
dedicated to the e-commerce site
which made the owner to decide
creating their own e-commerce
platform
 It used various strategies like
converting physical stores into
distribution centers for better results
 It utilized various unique
omnichannel strategies for better
services to customers. Diagram 3: new stores of Dick’s
sporting goods
(Source: Brewer & Holmes, 2016,
p. 75)

Why did Dick’s decide to leave eBay
and take over its own e-commerce
operations?
 Dick’s revenue started slowing down due to the fixed commission provided to
eBay.
 Numerous businesses took over their own e-commerce operations for reducing
external expenses.
 The migration is very difficult in initial stages but after it is done it provides
numerous benefits to the organization.
 By the year 2017, Dick’s had moved to their independent e-commerce
operations
 The increasing sales had allowed the budget to take up the transition.
 The entire control of e-commerce operations had allowed the organization to
obtain better support for omnichannel features.

What is Dick’s omnichannel
strategy?
 Dick’s had adopted various unique
features of omnichannel like shipping
various online orders from the
physical stores.
 The organization converted the
stores into various stores into
distribution centers along with retail
showrooms.
 This improves the quality of services
provided to customers by increasing
the efficiency and improving
delivery. Diagram 4: field and stream
(Source: Goldman & Rascher,
2017)

What are the three steps in Dick’s
migration to its new website?
 In the year of 2014, the company completed its development of e-
commerce platform and strategy integrating its present system.
 In the year 2015 it combined two brands, Golf Galaxy and Field &
Stream into one.
 Next, it planned to re-launch the flagship Dick’s Sporting Goods in the
platform.
 It launched its smaller sites one by one to prevent major issues

What are the primary benefits of
Dick;s new system?
 Ability to buy online along with
picking products from store
 Great analytical capabilities
 Higher sales because of multi-
channel customers
 Speeding up development and
innovation cycles
Diagram 5: growth rate of Dick’s
sporting goods
(Source: Ben & Schuppan, 2015)

References
 Ben, E. R., & Schuppan, T. (2015). E-Government Innovations and Work
Transformations.
 Brewer, E. C., & Holmes, T. L. (2016). Customer Service Challenges in
Omni-Channel Retailing.
 Goldman, M., & Rascher, D. A. (2017). Determining Fair Market Value
for Duke’s Sporting Goods Store.
 Johnson, M. (2016). Retail Inventory Control Strategies.