Two weeks before releasing its fourth-quarter earnings report, Adidas CEO Kasper Rorsted said that sales at the German sportswear giant rose between 15 and 20 percent to more than 20 billion euros ($24.4 billion) in 2017.
At a conference in Düsseldorf, Germany, Rorsted spoke about the company’s 2017 figures, which he said were spurred by growth in China and North America, as well as its e-commerce business. A company spokesperson told FN that there would be no change to the sales forecast — a currency-adjusted rise of 17 to 19 percent — before the report is released on March 14.
Adidas has been on a winning streak in North America, posting a third-quarter sales gain of 31 percent in the region. Revenues have also been strong in China, advancing 29 percent there in Q3. “The company’s strategic growth areas — North America, greater China and e-commerce — were again the main drivers of our strong top-line performance during the third quarter,” Rorsted said at the time.
In an exclusive interview with FN last year, Adidas North America president and FN’s 2016 Person of the Year Mark King described the firm’s winning strategy in the U.S.: “A few years ago, we decided to put a lot of energy, resources and investments in the North American marketplace — at a level that we had not done in the past … What we’re doing is focusing on key cities and in America — those are New York and Los Angeles — which set the trends for young consumers. We’ve [done this so far] with all kinds of activations that make those cities come alive with our brand. We take advantage of sporting events, local athletes and leagues, and we launch a lot of our products in these key cities — [which] keeps our brand cool.”
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