Academy Sports + Outdoors was putting the finishing touches on its new Fort Walton Beach store before opening to the public this week.
- The store, located at 546 Mary Esther Cut Off NW in the former Walmart and ResortQuest/Vacasa building, will welcome customers beginning Monday, May 12, with grand opening festivities scheduled for Friday, May 16 through Sunday, May 18.
“We are excited to be in the community. All of our associates are excited to welcome them to the new store,” said T’Keyah Taylor, store director for the new Academy location.
The 65,000-square-foot store will carry a wide range of sporting goods, outdoor equipment, and apparel. Product offerings include fishing gear, traditional sports equipment, and newer activities like pickleball, alongside an extensive clothing selection.
- “We partner with Nike, which is one of our bigger apparel assortments, also the new Jordan assortment that is just coming,” Taylor said. “We sell pretty much all the major brands and we even started carrying Chubbies for swimwear.”
In addition to national brands, the store will feature Academy’s private label products. “Then we go into our private labels, like our Freely, R.O.W., which is an athletic leisure type for men and women,” Taylor added.
The store will have a soft opening beginning today. On Thursday, May 15, when Academy will donate a $5,000 shopping spree to the Boys & Girls Club of the Emerald Coast.
The official grand opening celebration starts Friday at 8 a.m. and runs through Sunday. Customers in line during this period will have chances to win gift cards ranging from $20 to $500.
The store will bring approximately 60 new jobs to the community. This marks Academy’s 20th location in Florida, with the retailer describing the new store as a “one-stop shop” for sporting goods and outdoor recreation needs.
