zides.com Working with champions since 1958 Home About Us Team Products Contact Us When Bob Zide established Zides Sport Shop in 1958, he wanted to mix his passion for sports with his understanding of athletic business. Bob ‘s experience coordinating YMCA sports leagues and establishing local youth baseball programs, as well as lessons learned during his semi-pro baseball career, gave him an appreciation of the role equipment and safety plays in sports. During his lifetime, Bob set the standard for sports innovation. Zides was the first team dealer in the country in individually fit helmets and shoulder pads on football players. It was also one of the first companies to establish continual equipment training programs for sales people. As for product innovations, Bob himself held nine U.S. patents on equipment including the Shockblocker® football faceguard attachment, now used extensively throughout the NFL, NCAA and high school. Over the past 45 years, Zides has also maintained a commitment to growth. After opening a series of stores in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Zides began focusing on team sports. In 1994, the store opened an expansive 4,400 sq. ft. football reconditioning facility. Just two years later, Zides upgraded their lettering facility with a 12-head embroidery machine and design digitizer. In 1999, the lettering facility also received a one-head and a six-head embroidery machine, a new dryer and an autopress machine, making it the largest and most modern facility in Ohio and West Virginia. TIMELINE 1958 – Zide’s Sport Shop was founded by Bob Zide. 1964 – Zide’s had expanded to include retail and team/sales service of athletic equipment and uniforms, a lettering department and a trophy division. 1973 – Zide’s opened their first mall store in the Grand Central Mall in Vienna, WV and incorporated the business. 1975 – Moved the Marietta store into current location and expanded our lettering capabilities to include screen-printing. 1977 – Zide’s rapidly growing screen-printing division was moved into a 5,000 sq. ft. facility along with our existing heat seal and sewing divisions. 1978 – Added a computerized embroidery department to our lettering division – Opened a store in the Ohio Valley Mall in St. Clairsville, OH. 1981 – Opened a store in Huntington Mall in Barboursville, WV 1983 – Opened a store in the Meadowbrook Mall in Bridgeport, WV. 1988 – Opened a store in the University Mall in Athens, OH. 1992 – Our trophy and jacket production facilities were moved into a building adjacent to our lettering division. – Moved our Vienna, WV, location to a newly refurbished location in the Grand Central Mall. 1994 – Zide’s built a new 4,400 sq. ft. football reconditioning division. 1996 – Upgraded our lettering facility with the addition of a 12 head “state of the art” embroidery machine, a design digitizer and upgraded computer graphics software. 1999 – Pivotal decisions were made to focus on team sales our main business. To further this goal we continued developing our lettering division by adding a one-head embroidery machine, a six-head embroidery machine, a new dryer and an auto press machine. As a result of our efforts to restructure our business around team sales we chose not to renew retail leases in the Ohio Valley Mall, Huntington Mall, University Mall and the Grand Central Mall. In Huntington we are currently maintaining a team sales office and have a salesman actively working in the area. Follow us on Facebook! Contact Zides Sport Shop 253 2nd St., Marietta, OH 45750 Phone: 740.373.6446 Hours: Mon - Fri: 9:00 am-6:00 pm Sat: 9:00 am-5:00 pm Google Map © 2020 ZIDES SPORTS SHOP Back to Top