The adidas Group at a glance
adidas – a name that stands for competence in all sectors of sport around the globe. The vision of company founder Adolf Dassler has long become reality and his corporate philosophy the guiding principle for successor generations.
The idea was as simple as it was brilliant. Adi Dassler’s aim was to provide every athlete with the best possible equipment. It all began in 1920, when Adi Dassler made his first shoes using the few materials available after the First World War.
Today, the adidas product range extends from shoes, apparel and accessories for basketball, soccer, fitness and training to adventure, trail and golf.
The adidas name dates back to 1948, deriving from the first two syllables of Adi Dassler’s first and last name. One year later, Adi Dassler registered the Three Stripes as a trademark. After a period spanning almost 70 years, the Dassler Family withdrew from the company in 1989, and the enterprise was transformed into a corporation (“Aktiengesellschaft”).
French-born Robert Louis-Dreyfus was Chairman of the Executive Board from April 1993 to March 2001. It was he who initiated adidas’ flotation on the stock market in November 1995. Since 2001, Herbert Hainer has been leading the Group.
adidas Group – In 1997, adidas acquired the Salomon group, and the company’s name changed to adidas-Salomon AG. The Salomon group also included the TaylorMade golf brand.
In October 2005, the Salomon business segment, including the related subsidiaries and brands Salomon, Mavic, Bonfire, Arc’Teryx and Cliché, was sold to the Finnish Amer Sports Corporation. The company will change its legal name to “adidas AG” following shareholder approval at the Annual General Meeting in May 2006.
On January 31, 2006, adidas-Salomon AG acquired Reebok International Ltd. The closing of the Reebok transaction marks a new chapter in the history of the adidas Group. By combining two of the most respected and well-known brands in the worldwide sporting goods industry, the new Group will benefit from a more competitive worldwide platform, well-defined and complementary brand identities, a wider range of products, and a stronger presence across teams, athletes, events and leagues.
The new adidas Group has more than 25,000 employees worldwide, with more than 2,000 working at the company’s headquarters in Herzogenaurach. A team of designers, product developers and experts for biomechanics and material technology carries out research in Portland and at adidas’ second technology centre in Scheinfeld near Nuremberg.
In Scheinfeld models, prototypes and made-to-measure performance products are also manufactured and tested. It is here that adidas maintains the only sports shoe production facility still in existence in Germany.
More than 80 subsidiaries guarantee marketplace presence for adidas products around the world. Sales and distribution of adidas products is grouped in four regions worldwide: Europe/Emerging Markets, North America, Asia/Pacific and Latin America. Today, adidas is Europe’s biggest supplier of athletic footwear and sports apparel.
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