Adidas sales have soared 18 per cent last year as the German sportswear brand plays catch-up with America’s Nike.

For the first time in its history, Adidas’ net income topped €1 billion.

In Greater China, sales soared 28 per cent year-on-year.

“These results are proof positive that our strategy ‘Creating the New’ is paying off,” said Adidas CEO Kasper Rorsted. “2016 was an exceptional year for Adidas. We have improved the desirability of our brands and products around the globe. Building on our 2016 performance, our momentum continues and we will again achieve strong top- and bottom-line improvements in 2017.”

Total sales reached euro 19.3 billion with operating margins up 1.3 percentage points to 7.7 per cent. Net income soared 41 per cent to euro 1.019 billion, allowing the company to promises shareholders a two euro per share dividend.

The company is projecting another sales increase during 2017 ranging from 11 to 13 per cent, another increase in operating margin to between 8.3 and 8.5 per cent and net income up between 18 and 20 per cent to euro 1.225 billion.

Even the troubled Reebok brand gained ground in 2016, currency-neutral sales up 6 per cent year-on-the-year, reflecting double-digit sales increases in its Classics range as well as mid-single-digit growth in the training and running categories.

The Adidas group achieved double-digit revenue growth in nearly all market segments. In Western Europe, sales increased by 20 per cent, in North America by 24 per cent, in Russia by 3 per cent, in Latin America by 16 per cent and in Japan by 16 per cent. Revenues in Middle East and Africa also grew 16 per cent on a currency-neutral basis, reflecting double-digit growth in almost all of the region’s countries.

The story first appeared on sister site Inside Retail Asia.

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