Adidas was founded by Adolf Dassler on August 18, 1949. Here is the development history of the Adidas brand:

  1. Initial Establishment: In 1920, Adolf “Adi” Dassler founded a shoe company, using a leather cutting machine to process shoe soles. The company initially had only three employees.
  2. Brotherly Collaboration: In 1923, Adolf “Adi” Dassler convinced his brother Rudolf Dassler to join the shoe company with the investment of a typewriter.
  3. Company Formation: In 1924, Adolf “Adi” Dassler and his brother Rudolf registered the “Dassler Brothers Shoe Company” in Germany.
  4. Post-WWII Resumption: In May 1945, after the unconditional surrender of the Nazis, Adi and his brother Rudolf resumed their shoe-making business.
  5. Company Split: In 1948, due to irreconcilable differences, the two brothers parted ways. Adolf “Adi” Dassler founded Adidas, derived from the first six letters of his name. Rudolf Dassler started the brand Puma.
  6. First Design: In 1949, Adidas introduced its first brand logo featuring a spiked athletic shoe with three stripes and the word “adidas” below. The two “d” letters in the center supported the shoe, symbolizing its ability to excel on the track. The three stripes represented mountains, indicating the desire to achieve challenges, future success, and continuous goals.
  7. Business Expansion: In the early 1950s, the Adidas logo evolved into a more distinct positive-negative space design. The letters (d) were shortened, and the overall style became more rounded.
  8. Apparel Field: In the late 1960s, building on the 1950s logo, the letter spacing became more compact, the (d) letters were further shortened, and the dot on the “i” became a square. The visual shifted from rounded geometric shapes to more direct rectangular forms. In 1972, Adidas first adopted the trefoil logo to represent its brand, aiming to expand into the apparel industry.
  9. Brand Matrix: In the 1990s, inspired by the three stripes on the shoes, Adidas upgraded the logo to three slanted bars representing a mountain, symbolizing upcoming challenges. In 2002, Adidas formed three major product lines: Performance (three stripes), Originals (trefoil), and Style (round ball logo) with three sub-brands: Y-3, SLVR, and NEO LABEL.
  10. Product Innovation: Adidas continuously innovated its products, introducing many classic shoe models such as the Superstar, Stan Smith, and Yeezy.
  11. Market Expansion: Adidas expanded its brand globally through sponsorships of sporting events and collaborations with athletes. The brand also extended its product lines to include apparel, accessories, and more.
  12. Sustainable Development: In recent years, Adidas has focused on sustainable development, launching a series of eco-friendly products and initiatives.

This outlines the major milestones in the development of Adidas.