That Introduction to Business course that Dick’s CEO Edward Stack took must have been a mail-order scam instead of a legitimate college course. Otherwise, how can you explain his recent decisions?
First, the company arbitrarily decides to raise the buying age for long guns to 21—despite federal law saying anyone over 18 can buy a rifle. Then, the sporting goods store decides to take hunting-related items off the shelves at 10 percent of its stores.
Not surprisingly, the store saw sales plummet in the most recent quarter. Stack’s brilliant response to the backlash: Hey, let’s just quit selling hunting gear all together.
Say what? The dean of St. John Fisher College, where Stack earned an accounting degree, must be embarrassed to show his face on campus. Stack’s decision completely flies in the face of sound business practices. But then, almost every move he has made since the unfortunate shooting in Parkland, Fla., has been questionable from an economic standpoint.
Stockholders should be up in arms. Not that it matters. Even when the topic was brought up at the last annual meeting of stockholders for Dick’s, Stack blew off the concern. When a shareholder challenged the company’s decision to put its anti-gun advocacy above the interests of investors, Stack said it was just “fine” if that investor and others never shopped in Dick’s again!
Looks like Stack’s wish might be coming true.
