Adidas founder

Horst Dassler

German businessman (–)

Horst Dassler (12 March – 10 April )[3]:&#;&#; was a German businessman. The son of Adolf "Adi" Dassler, founder of Adidas. Horst Dassler founded Arena, a swimwear company, and became chairman of Adidas, and at the time of his death it was the world's largest sporting goods manufacturer with affiliates in 40 nations.[4] Horst himself was known as the father of sports sponsorship as a result of his separate business of managing rights for the world governing bodies of football and the Olympics.

Horst was also the nephew of Rudolf Dassler, founder of Puma.

Career at Adidas

Dassler joined his father's firm in and founded an Adidas affiliate in Alsace that later became the dominant sporting goods manufacturer in France.[4] Among Dassler's achievements was the founding of the Arena line of swimwear in Dassler had been impressed by the performance of Mark Spitz at the Munich Olympics.

Having developed an ultra-light fabric, Dassler persuaded Australian swimmer Shane Gould to enter a sponsorship agreement to promote the Shane Gould Female Swimsuit Collection. Dassler continued to sign athletes to sponsorship deals and by the Montreal Olympics the "Arena Elite Team" included Mark Spitz, Novella Calligaris, Steve Furniss, David Wilkie, Shirley Babashoff, Gary Hall Sr., Klaus Dibiasi, Ulrika Knape and Maxine “Miki” King.[5] Beyond signing individual athletes, Dassler led Adidas's pioneering drive to sign national sports federations and Olympic committees to exclusive shoe and apparel contracts.

Although Adidas lost a considerable share of this business after Dassler's death, even five years later Adidas had ties with about companies.[6]

After the death of his father in , Dassler's mother Käthe Dassler became chairman of the company and Dassler returned to Germany to take his place in the top management of the firm.[7][4] When his mother died in , Dassler assumed the office of chairman, a position he retained until his death.[7]

On assuming control, Dassler was immediately faced with the challenge of increasing competition for sports shoeware: Nike, Inc.

was eroding Adidas's market share in the United States and Japan, and Puma SE, a company founded by Dassler's uncle after a dispute with his father, had increased its sales of athletic footwear by 35% the previous year. Dassler responded to the challenge by installing a professional management team at company headquarters to replace family members.

Adidas horst dassler biography wikipedia In recent years, Adidas has increasingly focused on digital and social media as critical components of its marketing strategy. This strategy is designed to create an aura of exclusivity and high quality, appealing to consumers who are willing to pay more for premium features. Marketing Spend: A Strategic Investment Adidas has consistently invested heavily in marketing to maintain its competitive edge. Throughout the s and s, Adidas expanded its product line to include apparel and equipment, becoming a household name in global sports.

In the United States, where Adidas's sales had slipped to one third of Nike's, Dassler attempted to diversify distribution channels and respond to a shift in consumer demand from athletic to casual footwear, a shift that Adidas had failed to satisfy.[8]

Career as sports marketer

Horst Dassler was known as the father of sport sponsorship.

In the mids, Dassler formed arguably the first sports marketing firm with British advertising executive Patrick J. Nally. The two approached newly elected FIFA President João Havelange, who believed that the soccer body was not maximizing revenues. Dassler proposed obtaining corporate sponsorships for the World Cup and other activities of FIFA.

It took the two 18 months of high-pressure salesmanship to persuade Coca-Cola to become FIFA's first corporate sponsor, committing $8 million.

Rudolf dassler This approach allows the company to maximize revenue by varying prices for different market conditions. This can also open up new markets and create long-term brand loyalty. Username Please enter your Username. The Washington Post.

Coca-Cola thus became the first exclusive worldwide sponsor of a sport.[9] Dassler and Nally continued acquiring sponsorships from blue-chip companies like McDonald's and Levi Strauss. Dassler's business practices had few limits and David Yallop in his book How they Stole the Game says his relationship with Havelange was "Drahtzieher." Dassler was the "puppetmaster." In the , Dassler broke with Nally and established ISL Marketing A.G.

(ISL), a firm which continued marketing FIFA rights but also added television rights to the advertising package which it bought up en masse from FIFA.

In May , ISL was selected to manage the corporate sponsorship program of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The highly lucrative contract was awarded without competitive bidding, and even without providing the opportunity to Nally's rival marketing company, West Nally, Ltd., to make an alternative proposal.

Many suspected that personal relations between Adidas and the IOC were behind the private arrangement. IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch denied any impropriety, and Dassler, claiming to be motivated solely by good will for the Olympics movement, denied he had a conflict of interest.[11] According to British sports journalists Vyv Simson and Andrew Jennings, Dassler and ISL were largely responsible for turning the Olympics into a hugely successful revenue-generating enterprise.

Dassler used his contacts to obtain Olympic sponsorship by Coca-Cola and other important companies, and obtained Olympic financing from Monte Carlo banks. Years later, Samaranch was the main eulogist at Dassler's funeral.[12]

Years after Dassler's death, in May ISL filed for bankruptcy, with a stated net debt of $ million.[13]

Death

Horst Dassler died on 10 April from complications due to cancer.

He left behind his wife Monika and two children, Suzanne and Adi.[4]

References

  1. ^horst death. (The South Bend Tribune). Retrieved 13 Aug
  2. ^"Adidas Company President Dies". Lawrence Journal-World. 4 October Retrieved 30 October
  3. ^Smit, Barbara ().

    Adidas horst dassler biography pdf Username Please enter your Username. Sign in to annotate. Herzogenaurach , the small town where both companies were based, became a microcosm of this rivalry. Times Everywhere.

    Sneaker Wars. New York: Harper Perennial. ISBN&#;.

  4. ^ abcd"Horst Dassler dies at 51". The Washington Post. April 11,
  5. ^"– First Decades, The Innovations".

  6. Founder of adidas and puma
  7. Dassler brothers
  8. Horst dassler children
  9. Adidas company profile
  10. Adidas history

    11. History of Arena Water Instinct. Retrieved July 9,

  11. ^Sandomir, Richard (April 2, ). "Top Athletes Are Being Wooed to Fill Some Big Shoes: 'We are all battling for the same athletes,' said one shoe executive". New York Times. p.&#;Sec. 8, p. 3. Retrieved July 10,
  12. ^ abAP wire report (April 11, ).

    "Horst Dassler Is Dead at 51; Led Adidas Sporting Goods". New York Times. p.&#; Retrieved July 9,

  13. ^Tagliabu, John (September 3, ). "Adidas, the Sport Shoe Giant, Is Adapting to New Demands". New York Times. p.&#; Retrieved July 9,
  14. ^Bensinger, Ken ().

    Red Card: How the U.S. Blew the Whistle on the World's Biggest Sports Scandal. New York: Simon & Schuster.

  15. Armin dassler
  16. Adidas horst dassler biography book
  17. Adolf dassler

    18. pp.&#;28– ISBN&#;.

  18. ^Schmitt, Eric (February 6, ). "Revam,ping the Olympic Franchise". New York Times. pp.&#;F6 –F7. Retrieved July 10, insert: "A Deal that Has Some Crying Foul" on p.

    Armin dassler: Dassler, who long managed the highly successful French operations of the company, became board chairman after the death of his mother, Kaethe, three years ago. This investment has delivered substantial returns , both in terms of direct sales and brand equity. Dassler had been groomed in the world of subterranean sport marketing, paying athletes to wear the Adidas brand at Olympic Games, and he knew who to target and how to impress. Username Please enter your Username.

    F7.

  19. ^Lipsyte, Robert (February 21, ). "Evidence Ties Olympic Taint To Games". New York Times. pp.&#;SP1 & SP3, at SP3. Retrieved July 10,
  20. ^Staun, Jakob (June 2, ).

    Adidas horst dassler biography Adidas uses penetration pricing to enter new markets or promote new product lines. Death [ edit ]. This can also open up new markets and create long-term brand loyalty. Horst was a visionary who understood the importance of branding and sponsorships in sports.

    "The Fall of ISL". Play the Game. Retrieved July 10,