eCommerce: Athletic Wear

Adidas Sales Development: Key Insights

• Online Sales Support Resilience: During the pandemic, Adidas AG has increased online sales, making up about 20% of total net sales since 2020. This helped offset losses during the global health crisis.

• Adidas Shoes Bring in the Most Revenue: Footwear, which is Adidas' most successful product category, consistently contributes over 50% of total net sales. While apparel and accessories have seen some growth in recent years, the overall trend remains unchanged.

• Physical Stores Remain Important: Adidas primarily relies on physical stores for the majority of its sales, mainly due to the strong footwear segment. Shopping for the right shoe size and fit online can be difficult, contributing to this preference for in-store purchases.

Adidas effectively increased online net sales during the pandemic, and this portion remained significant despite the reopening of physical locations. Data demonstrates the brand's resilience during the health crisis and despite price increases caused by inflation.

Here is how this translates into concrete numbers.

Online Share of Net Sales at Around 20% Since 2020

According to data on the Adidas AG store page, the pandemic led to an increase in the share of online net sales generated by the Group.

While Adidas AG was hit hard by Covid lockdowns, which reduced total net sales by 16% from US$23.6 billion in 2019 to US$19.8 billion in 2020, the online share of net sales increased to 21%. Previously, online channels accounted for no more than 12% of total net sales.

In the following years, 2021 and 2022, the online share of net sales remained at around 20%, while net sales increased gradually. In absolute terms, online net sales were US$4.2 billion in 2020, decreasing slightly to US$3.9 billion in 2021. However, 2022 was a particularly successful year for Adidas AG. Not only did total net sales increase by US$4 billion year-over-year to US$25.2 billion, but online sales also grew remarkably to US$5.2 billion. This represents 21% of total net sales.

Learn More About ECDB Store Profiles Here

The data shows us that while online sales mitigated some of the losses during the pandemic, and a hybrid model appears to remain a viable solution after restrictions have been lifted, physical store sales still represent the larger portion of net sales for Adidas.

The following examines how this finding relates to the primary product categories sold by Adidas AG:

Shoes Make Up More Than 50% of Net Sales

Footwear has traditionally been Adidas AG’s strongest product segment. It has consistently contributed more than 50% to the company’s revenue. This pattern continues to this day, as evidenced by the fact that 55% of Adidas' sales were generated by shoes in 2022.

In recent years, there has been a slight shift towards the other two product categories, apparel and accessories, but shares remain at around 40% for the former and 5% for the latter.

One factor potentially causing stagnant footwear sales shares could be the inconvenience for consumers when ordering shoes online. Except for repeat orders where customers are familiar with a specific pair and their preferred size, trying on shoes in person remains the preferred choice in many cases. The story is different for accessories and apparel. The overall rise in Adidas' online sales could be linked to a shift towards product categories beyond the footwear segment.

Adidas Online Sales: Closing Remarks

Adidas AG was able to mitigate overall losses during the pandemic by increasing sales through online channels. After the pandemic, the share of online net sales remained high at around 20%. While shoes have traditionally been the largest product segment, its share has remained above 50% in recent years. However, there has been a slight shift towards apparel and accessories.