Here you will find information about Adidas as a company and how they started. You will also find info and pictures of some of their shoes.

Adi Dassler

 



 

 

 Adidas - Company History
Adidas was founded in 1924 by Adolf and Rudolf Dassler. In 1928 the Dassler brothers supplied the shoes for several athletes for the Olympics which helped with the companies international growth. In 1947 the Dassler brothers went their seperate ways and Adolf continued with the brand but renamed it Adidas. Rudolf started his own brand now known as Puma - another large footwear manufacturer still running today. Adolf developed a new method of keeping the foot stable - 3 parallel stripes running down each side of the shoe. This is now famously the Adidas logo and is a worldwide trademark. In 1978 Adolf Dassler sadly passed away and the company was run by his wife Kathe, and then later his son Horst Dassler. After 3 years, Horst also sadly passed away which left Adidas in some financial problems. In 1989 the company was bought by Bernard Tapie who was famous for rescuing bankrupt companies. In 1992 Tapie had his own financial problems and the company had to be sold to a friend of his - Robert Louis-Dreyfus.

Adidas Superstar

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Adidas Superstar - History
The Adidas Superstar was released in 1969 as a low top version of the Pro Model basketball sneakers. Within the first few years 75% of all NBA players were wearing them and they were extremely popular for sports. Soon after the inevitable happened - people started wearing them as casual sneakers and the general public caught on. Famously known as 'shell toes' they feature a rubber shell style toe piece which is consistent on every pair of Superstars. In 1983 the Hip-Hop trio, Run DMC started wearing Adidas Superstars on stage and in a way used them as part of their act. They even released a track called 'My Adidas' which spread worldwide and helped to make Adidas Superstars so popular with urban music and its surrounding cultures - breakdancing, graffiti etc. Run DMC proved to be perfect promotion for Adidas so eventually they signed a one million dollar deal with the group and released the first line of endorsed clothing. From here onwards Adidas Superstars spread and became more and more popular not only in the US but all over the world. In 2005 Adidas brought out a whole range of Superstars to celebrate the 35th anniversary. This featured 35 different pairs, all of which were collaborations with icons from the world of music, fashion and arts. Some of these were produced in very small numbers and now are very rare and expensive trainers.Today you will find an Adidas Superstar of some description in nearly every sports shop. The range is huge and they often release new colourways and collaborations making them highly collectable.

Adidas Gazelle Adidas Gazelle - History
The Gazelle was first released in 1968 as a running / training shoe and quickly became popular for this purpose. As time and shoe performance progressed, the Adidas Gazelle found it's way to the streets and was worn more as a casual shoe. Gazelle's are usually made of a soft suede and to date, hundreds of variations have been made including some limited edition rare pairs. Today they are still very popular and are available to buy worldwide.

 

 

 

 Adidas Stan Smith History
Stan Smith was an American tennis player in the 1960's and 70's. Adidas first approached Smith in 1971 to endorse the Haillet shoe. The shoe was originally designed as a high performance tennis shoe with a minimalistic style and lowkey branding. As with most sports shoes, the Stan Smith started being worn as a casual shoe and became a popular, fashionable pair to wear. They are now available in nearly every sports shop worldwide and are one of Adidas' top selling shoes. Today, Stan Smith's are made in many different styles and colours. The classic lace-up pairs are still being produced as well as the newer style with velcro. 

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