Sport brand and retailer Adidas, has been going from strength to strength since 1949. The company’s story began in Bavaria, Germany in 1924 as Adolf Dassler registered ‘Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik’ and embarked on a mission to provide athletes with the best possible equipment. It was not until 1949, however, that Dassler decided to start over. On August 18, 1949, he registered the ‘Adi Dassler adidas Sportschuhfabrik.’ It was also on this day that Dassler registered a shoe that featured the registration of the famous adidas three-stripes, and in doing so set in motion an extraordinary launch to fame making Adidas one of the most recognisable sportswear brands in the world, impacting branding in ways previously unimaginable.
When consumers think of Adidas, their next immediate thought is undoubtedly the company’s signature three-stripes — with even Dassler having been known to have referred to his brand as ‘The Three Stripe Company.’ Although at first these were used for superficial aesthetic, they have since transcended into a more conceptually driven foundation to the Adidas brand. Another distinctive visual of the Adidas brand is the swiss, sans-serif, lower-case typestyle used that was in emergence in the nineteen-twenties in Russia, The Netherlands and Germany when Dassler began registering his ventures. This bold, modern aesthetic has served the company great purpose in establishing a timeless brand that has remained and maintained a current, contemporary identity despite the time that has passed since its creation.
The next milestone in the Adidas branding came in 1972, with the introduction of the trefoil logo, potentially the most significant symbol in Adidas history. The logo was developed as the company began to expand into leisure and apparel markets, and as such was their first purposefully designed logo having simply relied on the three stripes featuring on all they manufactured as an element for consumer identification.
The logo shows a symmetrical three-leaf trefoil. Each of these leaves represent the main landmasses of the Americas, Europe and Africa (and Asia respectively) in order to communicate the company’s expansion into a global brand. Three intersecting horizontal lines are suggested through space across the trefoil, representative of the brand’s diversity whilst providing cohesion and connection to the company’s established identity. This understated, iconic logo has been cemented into cultural consciousness across the globe having been worn by celebrities and hence has permeated every aspect Popular Culture. Though this logo is now reserved for only the heritage Adidas Originals products, it remains legendary as part of the brand.
In 1990, the brand produced a new logo for use on equipment and sporting goods to differentiate them from their leisure and apparel products. The aesthetic of this logo is reminiscent of the three-stripes originally featured on Adidas trainers. Exhibiting three slightly staggered diagonal lines — horizontally cropped at the bottom — the logo was created by creative director Peter Moore to resemble a mountain to signify the challenges athletes face and the limits they push themselves to for success. Though this logo did achieve the same success as the trefoil, it remains consistent as part of the Adidas brand and therefore shares the same fame. This logo was made the overarching company logo 1997.
The Adidas logo in 2015 again changed to a simple word-mark logo, still using the type introduced in the company’s early years. Featured left, alongside the word-mark are 3 horizontal lines, said to represent quality and leadership whilst maintaining flexibility for the future.
In addition to the companies undeniable leadership in the sporting industry, the fame of the brand has manifested itself into an altogether new form that comes by the name of ‘Sports Luxe.’ This being one of the most significant fashion trends of 2015, going into 2016, consisting of sport-inspired garments worn as statements of identity — whether an athlete or not. Adidas have achieved this through collaborations with major high-street fashion retailer Topshop via the ‘Topshop x Adidas Originals’ collection, acclaimed British fashion designer Stella McCartney via the ‘Adidas by Stella McCartney’ collection as well as British singer Rita Ora’s collection ‘Adidas Originals by Rita Ora.’
Adidas unquestionably owes its success to the simplicity, adaptability and understated aesthetic of it’s branding. By remaining consistent, cohesive and distinct in their approach to the identity the brand has survived numerous logo adaptations and remained at the forefront of its industry. The brand has also established and maintained a thriving relationship with its target consumers by remaining true to its heritage and visual language throughout its time as a leader in its field.
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