Adidas, the Germany-based sportswear company, has announced the financial results for fiscal 2017.
North America, Greater China and Digital Commerce – were the main growth drivers for the company. During the reporting year, it further made great progress towards achieving the mission to be the best sports company in the world, said CEO Kasper Rorsted.
During the quarter under review, the sportswear retailer’s revenue noted a 19 per cent increase on a currency-neutral basis.
Adidas’ operating profit increased by 31 per cent to € 2.1 billion in 2017. Its operating margin went up by 1.2 percentage points to 9.8 per cent during the reporting period. Further, a massive 57 per cent increase in its online sales at 1.5 billion euros was also a record, contributing 7 per cent to total 2017 sales.
The group said its operating margin will rise to 11.5 per cent by 2020, up from the previous target of 11 per cent and sales to increase at a rate of around 10 per cent on a currency-neutral basis in 2018. On the other hand, its rival Nike reported an operating margin of 13.8 per cent for fiscal 2016-17.
The retailer, which has been facing a tough time in the past few years, has now started returning to form.
Last year, Adidas North America President Mark King said, “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 focussing on key cities and in America – those are New York and Los Angeles – which set the trends for young consumers.”
It remains to be seen how Adidas maintains its growth rate to compete against the likes of Nike and Under Armour, which has been rapidly eating on Adidas’ sports market in the US.
