Adidas has the desire to challenge Nike's market dominance in North America, and the company plans to focus on creating technology to improve apparel designs, launch footwear stores, sign endorsement deals with mega-star athletes, and build a connection with customers.
"We have more sports here," President of Adidas North America Mark King said in an interview with "CNN Money" on Friday. "Trends, media attention, just overall hype around sports, the epicenter is America."
Adidas, the fastest-growing brand, saw an 80 percent increase in footwear sales last year, and wants to separate itself from Nike and Under Armour.
By comparison, while Nike reported total sales of $14.8 billion in North America last year, Adidas hit $3.7 billion in sales.
Adidas uses celebrity endorsements to connect with brand and customers
Adidas has successfully inked endorsement deals with professional athletes, including Houston Rockets guard James Harden, Denver Broncos outside defensive linebacker Von Miller, and Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant. The German-based company aspires to acquire world-class athletes in order to build a relationship with customers and flourish the brand.
Beaverton, Oregon-based Nike, which has deals with Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James and tennis star Serena Williams, remains the dominant sports apparel manufacturer around the globe.
Adidas has expanded with non-athletes like Kanye West, with the ultimate goal of developing the lifestyle brand and launching sports performance designs.
Importance of listening to customers
In the past, Adidas had the power to determine what products to sell. Currently, the company plans to listen to customers and enable them to get involved in the decision-making process.
Adidas intends to improve the business by targeting and embracing women in the sports marketing world. The main thing for the company is to pay attention to what customers need, and listen to customer feedback.
"We haven't been very effective in how we've talked to women, the way we've designed products for women, the way we've taken products to market," King admitted.
Adidas store opens in Atlanta
Customers want Adidas to establish "speed factories" in Germany and Atlanta so that they can find products they wish to purchase. The Atlanta factory will manufacture 50,000 running shoes this year. The 5,000 Futurecraft 4D, the innovative shoe (made out of plastic and crafted with light and oxygen), will be available at retail stores, scheduled to open in the fall and winter.
King told "CNN Money" that the company does not have to focus solely on generating revenue from an innovative product. Instead, the company wants to focus on future possibilities for consumers.
