Number of retail stores of the adidas Group worldwide 2008-2021, by store type

This timeline depicts the number of retail stores of the adidas Group worldwide from 2008 to 2021, by store type. In 2021, the adidas Group operated 987 concept stores worldwide.

Adidas

Adidas first grew out of a family business in Herzogenaurach, Germany, in the 1920s. However, the company is on the move and always has been. It has had an adventurous history: from the hostile separation of two brothers’ interests in the 1940s to nearly going bust in the 1980s, and then executing two rescue operations, first by sending production offshore to Asia and then by reinventing itself into the design and marketing company we know today.

Adidas AG is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe and the second largest in the world. In fact, the company employed over 60,000 people worldwide in 2021. The Adidas Group's global net sales amounted to about 21 billion euros that year. The North American region of the adidas Group accounted for 24 percent of those retail net sales.

The competitive sportswear market

The global sports and fitness clothing industry is highly fragmented, with many brands competing, from basic discount brands to high-end fashion names. Adidas is one of the most popular brands amongst men and women when it comes to sportswear worldwide, however, even such well-established brands have to work hard to maintain their share of the market. Consumers are demanding more versatile wear with wider functionality, which means retailers continue producing new styles of sports apparel for men and women. In some instances, sports apparel companies, like Adidas and Puma, have begun collaborating with fashion designers in order to produce new styles which will broaden their product lines.