Germany's Adidas expects double-digit sales growth in 2022

“Unfortunately, we release our 2021 results in unsettling times. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Ukrainian people, our teams on the ground and everyone affected by the war. We strongly condemn any form of violence and stand in solidarity with all those calling for peace. We also provide immediate humanitarian aid to those in need of support. We will continue to follow the situation closely and take future business decisions and actions as needed, always prioritising our employee’s safety and support,” Kasper Rorsted, CEO of Adidas, said.

In 2021, Adidas was able to increase its currency-neutral revenues by 16 per cent despite several external factors weighing on both demand and supply throughout the year. In total, the challenging market environment in Greater China, extensive COVID-19-related lockdowns in Asia-Pacific as well as industry-wide supply chain disruptions reduced revenue growth by more than €1.5 billion during the year.

While sales increased in all market segments in 2021, the top-line development in the regions differed significantly depending on the impact the various demand and supply challenges had on the specific region. While all markets were negatively impacted by industry-wide supply chain challenges, the company recorded particularly strong developments in markets that operated without major COVID-19-related disruptions. Accordingly, currency-neutral sales in EMEA, North America, and Latin America increased by 24 per cent, 17 per cent, and 47 per cent, respectively. At the same time, the challenging market environment in Greater China (+3 per cent) and the extensive COVID-19-related restrictions in Asia-Pacific (+8 per cent) weighed on Adidas’ results in these markets, the company said in a press release.

“In 2021, we delivered a strong set of results despite several external factors weighing on both demand and supply throughout the year,” Rorsted continued. “Wherever markets operated without major disruptions we have been experiencing strong top-line momentum. This is reflected in double-digit revenue growth in EMEA, North America and Latin America. While we continued to invest heavily into our brand, our direct-to-consumer business, and our digital transformation, we improved our bottom-line by more than €1 billion. Taking it all together, 2021 was a successful first year within our new strategic cycle. In 2022, we will build on this momentum and continue to grow both our top- and bottom-line at double-digit rates amid heightened uncertainty.” 

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RR)