When Adidas revealed its third-quarter earnings today, there was one stat that stuck out: The German giant posted a 31 percent increase in North American revenues.
Mark King, the company’s North American president and FN’s 2016 Person of the Year, outlined the firm’s winning strategy in an interview with FN, noting that it all starts with great product.
While Adidas is riding high, Nike and Under Armour — Adidas’ chief 00American competitors — continue to face major challenges on their home turf.
Under Armour said last week that Q3 revenues slid 5 percent to $1.4 billion, missing analysts’ forecasts for revenues. Much of the challenges stemmed from a 12 percent decline in North American sales.
“Independent of macro challenges in North America, the second side of the intersection are the growing pains that came as a result of such rapid expansion,” Plank told investors. “As detailed on previous calls, we’re well underway with a strategic transformation designed to simplify our go-to-market, correct our inefficiencies and take advantage of the scale and infrastructure we’ve built to better serve our consumers.”
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Nike, meanwhile, said in its first-quarter earnings report in September that North American sales declined 3 percent. Sustained growth in international geographies was offset by an expected decline in North America wholesale revenues.
In a report released this week, NPD analyst Matt Powell elaborated on why Adidas has been able to emerge victorious. It continues to experience momentum in both running and basketball.
“In the case of Adidas, they are fully exploiting the modern runner trend. Adidas is very much aligned with what the consumer wants,” Powell said.
