MC Sports was an American retail

sporting goods Sports equipment, also called sporting goods, are the tools, materials, apparel, and gear, which varies in shapes, size, and usage in a particular sport. It includes balls, nets, rackets, protective gears like helmets, goggles, etc. Since the p ...

chain. Founded in

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

in 1946, the chain operated 75 stores in the

Midwestern United States The Midwestern United States (also referred to as the Midwest, the Heartland or the American Midwest) is one of the four census regions defined by the United States Census Bureau. It occupies the northern central part of the United States. It ...

before permanently closing in 2017 after filing for

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

History

MC Sports began in 1946 as Michigan Clothiers in Grand Rapids, Michigan. At this time, men's clothing had shared the shelving spaces with military surplus items. It was founded by Jack and Genevieve Finkelstein and later run by their three sons, Ed, Raleigh and Mort Finkelstein. MC Sports switched its focus from clothing to sports equipment, footwear and apparel. In 1987, MC Sports accelerated its expansion through the acquisition of Morrie Mages' Sports, a three-store chain located in the

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

area. A year later, Browns Sporting Goods was acquired adding 19 stores to its portfolio. MC Sports had over 75 locations in Michigan,

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

, and

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

. Amid competition from chains such as

Sports Authority Sports Authority, Inc. (formerly The Sports Authority) was an American sports retailer based in Englewood, Colorado. At its peak, Sports Authority operated 463 stores in 45 States and Puerto Rico. The company's website was on the GSI Commer ...

, MC Sports still retained a vast majority of their locations until the company's ultimate demise. At the time of its closure, the company was ranked as the 75th-largest retailer of sporting goods in the United States.

Charitable contributions

Every May, MC Sports promoted Miracle May; a month dedicated to helping charities within MC Sports communities. Each week in the month of May, a specific vendor item was advertised. Portions of these sales, and the proceeds from sponsorships and other business were donated to the

Children's Miracle Network Children's Miracle Network Hospitals (CMN Hospitals) (French: (RES)) is a nonprofit organization that raises funds for children's hospitals in the U.S. and Canada. Donations support the health of more than 10 million children each year. Donat ...

for each featured item.

Bankruptcy

The company announced that it would file for

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...

in February 2017. It was ultimately converted to

Chapter 7 liquidation Chapter 7 of Title 11 U.S. Code is the bankruptcy code that governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. This is in contrast to bankruptcy under Chapter 11 and Chapter 13, which govern the process of ''reor ...

. This plan was approved on February 16, and going-out-of-business sales at all 68 remaining stores began immediately thereafter. All stores closed by June 2017.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mc Sports Companies based in Grand Rapids, Michigan Economy of the Midwestern United States Sporting goods retailers of the United States Retail companies established in 1946 1946 establishments in Michigan Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2017 Companies that filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2017 Companies that have filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy Retail companies disestablished in 2017 2017 disestablishments in Michigan Defunct companies based in Michigan Defunct retail companies of the United States

History

Charitable contributions

Bankruptcy

See also

References

External links