Sport spells cash for Adidas and Reebok

German sportswear producer Adidas is second after Nike in global earnings, but it's ahead of its main rival by almost 50pc in Russian sales. The lead grew substantially last year after Adidas bought the third largest sportswear company on the Russian market, American firm Reebok. By 2009, the group, including Reebok, plans to increase sales in Russia to $1bn, and to open 160 new Adidas and 210 new Reebok shops.

"Since 2000, we have been increasing our sales in Russia by 50pc every year," says Adidas CEO Herbert Hainer.

"Adidas gets 70pc of its profit from selling sports equipment to professionals and amateurs and only 30pc of its profit from the sale of sportswear for wider use.

"We have also announced plans to invest an additional 50m euros in developing Reebok. The money will mainly be spent on developing new products, marketing communication and developing growth in Russia and China. In three years, Reebok is expected to have more than 250 retail outlets in Russia."

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