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Adidas Shoe Manufacturer
Adidas, officially called the Adidas-Salomon AG Company, is one of the world's largest shoe manufacturers; the others being Nike, Puma, and Reebok. However, Adidas revealed its interest in August 2005 in acquiring Reebok for $3.8 billion. This highly publicized purchase will make the company's market share increase across North America.
The sports corporation has its headquarters in Germany. It is named in honor of its creator, Adolf (Adi) Dassler. Adi, as he was likely called, begun making shoes in the 1920s in his hometown in Herzogenaurach, Germany. However, Adidas was officially established in 1949. The corporation's official logo is the three parallel stripes with matching colors.
Historically, Adidas was purchased by many different companies. In 1990, it was acquired by billionaire businessman Bernard Tapie for $320 million. He then transferred the company's production to Asia for its cheap and quality labor.
Robert Louis-Dreyfus, a close ally of Bernard Tapie and the president of France's Olympique de Marseille football team, bought Adidas in February 1993. As a result, Dreyfus became the company's new Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
The Salomon Group Company was purchased by Adidas in 1997. However, it was then sold to Amer Sports of Finland in May 2, 2005 for 485 million Euros.
Among Adidas most famous endorsers include Madonna and Missy Elliott. Missy was hired by the company in 2002 to promote its various apparels. This made Adidas a household name both in US' and EU's urban communities.
Adidas launched the first ever intelligent shoe in 2005. The shoe was made of a microprocessor which can carry out 5 million calculations per second. Its cushioning system can customized itself to go with its environment. At present, its retail price is $250.
Newcastle United, Chelsea F.C, Bayern Manchen, AFC Ajax, AC Milan, ACF Fiorentina, Real Madrid, Kansas City Wizards, Rennes, and FC Zenit Saint Petersburg are among the soccer teams in the world who officially wears the Adidas jersey.
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