Adidas set a target on Tuesday for sales in North America to "rise by almost half" by '20, "predicting strong demand will continue for fashion sneakers" after its retro Superstar was the top selling shoe in the U.S. market in '16, according to Emma Thomasson of REUTERS. The "revival of the German brand has been hurting rivals" Nike and Under Armour but "some investors are concerned" that adidas is "too reliant on fickle trends such as the recent popularity of its Superstar and Stan Smith shoes." CEO Kasper Rørsted said that the North American market is the "biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity" for adidas, targeting sales of €5B ($5.3B) by '20, after a 24% "jump" to €3.4B in '16. Global Brands Dir Eric Liedtke said that he was "comfortable with the balance," noting that a recent survey by market intelligence group NPD showed that "two-thirds of sportswear is actually used for leisure rather than sport." Liedtke added, "It doesn't mean we want to become a leisure brand. It just means we need to understand how the consumer is consuming the product" (REUTERS, 3/14).
