Adidas perfumes and colognes

Adidas is a German athletic shoe and apparel brand founded in 1948 by Adolph “Adi” Dassler. The company name is a actually a hybrid of “Adi” and “Dassler,” though it also is popularly known as an acronym for “All Day I Dream About Sport.”

The company’s distinct three-bar logo which adorns most of their apparel and merchandise was originally used by a Finnish apparel company called Karhu Sports. Adidas bought the logo from Karhu in 1951.

Adolph Dassler’s interest in athletic footwear production began with his return from World War I. The Dassler Brothers began manufacturing shoes from their mother’s laundry business. The shoes were first used in an Olympics event in 1928, and were the first athletic shoes to feature studs and spikes. Women’s 800M competitor Lina Radke-Batschauer was the first athlete to win a gold medal in the shoes. In 1936, the Dassler brothers drove samples to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, where they persuaded American athlete Jesse Owens to try to the shoes. This represented, in essence, the first athletic sponsorship of an African-American athlete. Owens’ four gold medals from the 1936 Olympics greatly improved the company’s reputation, and athletes around the world were requesting a pair of the Dassler Brothers shoes.

The Dassler brothers had a falling out after World War II . Adolph and Rudolf dissolved the Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory and parted ways, each going on to form rival shoe companies. Brother Rudolf founded athletic shoe company Puma, also based in Herzogenaurach, where Adolph Dassler registered Adidas as a company in 1949.

Adidas’ reputation as a shoe manufacturer expanded over the years as the company shod winning athletes and several winning sports teams in notable victories, such as Germany’s 1954 World Cup victory over Hungary, known today as the “Miracle of Bern.” This game was the first in which the players wore football shoes with removable studs. The company began producing shoes not just for track and field or football, but tennis, golf, boxing boots for Muhammad Ali, and footwear for other sports. The company even produced an early “shower shoe” at the request of athletes who wanted a rubber slip-on to wear in the locker room. Some of the companies most enduring styles—the Samba, the Adilette, the Superstar—have been in production for 40 years or more.

Adidas began producing athletic apparel in 1960 and added athletic equipment such as footballs to its offerings in 1963. Since 1970, the official ball at all important football events has been an Adidas-branded ball.

Founder Adolph Dassler passed away in 1978, but the company continued under the leadership of his wife Käthe and son Horst. Horst passed away unexpectedly in 1987. Adidas AG officially became a corporation in 1989 and that same year, the company was bought by French businessman Bernard Tapie. It was later sold to Robert Louis-Dreyfus in 1993. Under the leadership of Dreyfus, Adidas expanded with the acquisition and sell-off of multiple sports and athletic companies. Adidas acquired the Reebok brand in 2006. Today, Adidas AG offers products under the Adidas, Reebook, Taylor-Made Adidas Golf Comapny and Rockport brands.

Adidas partnered with Coty in 1985 to produce a line of fragrances. They have achieved particular success in the male market, and fragrances and body care products are marketed under the Adidas brand in more than 82 countries today. The fragrances for men and women often feature a sporty name and bottle design.