By RICHIE HALL
WESTFIELD – Attention, class: Academy Sports + Outdoors is open for business.
The assignment for those who attend this Academy is to get outside and “Have Fun Out There,” according to its hashtag on X, formerly known as Twitter. The 85-year-old sports and outdoors store is officially opening its first Indianapolis-area location right here in Hamilton County today.
Academy is located at 1960 Greyhound Pass, just north of the Westfield-Carmel border in the building that had formerly been occupied by Marsh Supermarket. Customers were already in the store on Thursday, taking advantage of a wide selection of sporting goods and outdoor gear.
And there is quite a selection in the 75,000 square-foot store.
“This store is a sports and outdoor store, so we have everything from hunting, fishing, camping, kayaking,” said Khatijah Smith, the store director of the Westfield-Carmel location. In addition to the outdoors section, Academy also offers goods for various sports, including basketball, baseball, golfing, ice hockey, wrestling, football and much more.
“Geared towards fun,” said Smith.
Store director Khatijah Smith is welcoming Hamilton County shoppers to Academy, which officially opens its first Indianapolis-area location today. The store is located at 1960 E. Greyhound Pass (in the old Marsh building)
and features a wide selection of items for sports and outdoor activities. (Richie Hall)
Academy’s clothing and shoe selection ranges from national brands such as NIKE, Columbia, adidas and the North Face, as well as private labels such as BCG, Magellan Outdoors, Freely and Roe. There’s also plenty of team apparel available for fans, including for the Indianapolis Colts, Indiana Pacers and college teams.
The fishing section has everything from bait – including the store’s private label, H2OX – to electronic fishfinders.
“Everything in our fishing department can be for the professional angler to just somebody who’s a beginner, intermediate,” said Smith. “We do also like to highlight our reel bar. We do free line spooling as well for our customers.”
If you also enjoy eating outdoors as much as playing outdoors, there is a sizable grilling section at Academy. The store offers charcoal and gas grills, along with a good-sized selection of spices to flavor up your food.
Academy got its start as the Academy Tire Shop, which opened back in 1938 in San Antonio, Texas. The store became a military surplus store the following year, moved to Austin, Texas in 1956, then to Houston in 1978. Two years later, Academy began offering sports and outdoor items.
In 1990, the Academy headquarters relocated to its current home in Katy, Texas, and soon began expanding across the country. Academy entered Indiana in 2014 and had four locations (Evansville, Terre Haute, Jeffersonville and Lafayette) before opening its fifth Hoosier state location here in Hamilton County. Academy also will soon be opening a sixth Indiana location in Avon.
“We just want to find a community that we can be engaged and involved with and just provide more fun for all,” said Smith.
Even before its grand opening, Academy is giving back to the Indianapolis area. The store invited 20 children who are involved with the Indianapolis Police Athletic League to the store Thursday afternoon for a $5,000 donation. Each child received a $150 Academy gift card to shop the store, then Academy donated a $2,000 gift card to Indy P.A.L. to purchase new equipment for the program. Indiana Pacers star Isiah Jackson and Indianapolis Indians mascot Rowdie were also on hand to greet the children.
The kids were happy to receive the gift cards, and Sgt. Babacar Diouf, the supervisor sergeant of the Police Athletic League, was overjoyed at the donation of the $2,000 card, something that will benefit the kids in the P.A.L.
“We’re trying to build that future generation through sports, through mentoring, mentorship, but also with parental involvement, because those three things are very important for our growth and what we’re trying to do,” said Diouf. He also said that if the P.A.L. expands, “the future is a little bit brighter and also safer for the kids,” and opportunities will be provided to them so they can be more successful.
Ribbon cutting
Academy will officially cut the ribbon on its store at 8:40 a.m. this morning. Team members and leadership will welcome customers, along with Indianapolis sports mascots Zeke (Indy Eleven), Boomer (Indiana Pacers) and Freddy Fever with the city’s WNBA team.
Early-bird customers can line up for free gift cards, as the first 150 people (18 and over) in line will receive a free gift card, with values ranging from $20 to $500. There will also be special appearances by Colts defensive tackle Grover Stewart, Major League Fishing pro angler and Indianapolis native Jacob Wheeler, Fever point guard Grace Berger, and Westfield’s own competitive eating legend, Joey Chestnut.
Academy will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. every Sunday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays and 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturdays. For more information, visit academy.com/Westfield.