The official opening of the Adidas Originals flagship store marks the arrival of the first international sports brand on Anfu Road | Latest News

36Kr learned that on May 20th, the flagship store of German sports brand Adidas Originals opened at No. 322, Anfu Road. This is the first international sports brand store to enter the neighborhood and also Adidas' first global flagship store for Originals in Shanghai.

According to the brand introduction, the global flagship store of Originals on Anfu Road belongs to the highest - level of the brand's directly - operated stores, which means that the latest products, limited - edition collaborations, and region - specific products of Originals will be launched here first.

Source: The brand

This German sports giant is relying on brand centers and flagship stores in the core business districts of first - and second - tier cities, as well as diversified stores in the vast "lower - tier markets" through cooperation with dealers, in an effort to reach consumers more widely. Undoubtedly, the Anfu Road store is at the top of the "pyramid" channel network carefully built by Adidas.

Compared with stores of other specifications, the product update frequency of the Anfu Road store is higher. "We have new products launched every week," Lu Zhenhan, the vice - president of marketing for Adidas' sports fashion brand in Greater China, revealed to us. He said that choosing Anfu Road means choosing the young people. "(The significance of opening a store on Anfu Road) is as important as opening stores on Huaihai Road and Nanjing East Road."

Brand insiders also revealed to us that Adidas signed the lease for this address after The Beast withdrew, and the preparation period lasted for a whole year.

The predecessor of the flagship store building was the Yongle Palace Cinema. Therefore, in the design of the store's exterior facade, the brand retained many features of the original site, integrating cinema aesthetics and Shanghai - style culture. On the basis of retaining the original building structure and the wooden veneer of the exterior facade, the classic three - stripe and the Originals logo were incorporated, and products were displayed through three different display windows.

Photo source: The brand

Stepping into the first floor of the store, local cultural elements such as the old Shanghai terrazzo floor are combined with simple mechanical art installations and metal backboards with hand - crafted patterns, creating a rather avant - garde overall style. The shoe display area on the second floor retains the embossed glass doors and windows of the old villa, and the color design is more immersive and retro.

"We want to be a good neighbor," Wu Liang, the senior director of corporate public relations and sustainable development for Adidas in Greater China, told us. This is almost a common move for all brands entering Anfu Road.

In addition to being close to the style of the original site in terms of design, in order to match the characteristic street view of "one person, one dog" in the Wutong area, the limited - edition pet products of Originals were launched for the first time during the opening, and they were on sale here from the 20th to the 27th. In addition, there are also many region - limited single products inspired by Shanghai - style culture on sale.

Of course, the faster update frequency and more localized products are all the results of Adidas' strong promotion of the strategy of "In China, for China". Xiao Jiale, the managing director of Adidas in Greater China, once told us in a previous exclusive interview that 80% of Adidas' products in China are now made in China, and more than 50% of the products are designed in China.

The latest financial report data shows that in the first quarter of this year, Adidas' global revenue was 6.153 billion euros, a 13% increase year - on - year under currency - neutral conditions (the same below). The operating profit increased strongly from 336 million euros in the same period of the previous year to 610 million euros, a year - on - year increase of 82%. Among them, the Greater China region achieved a revenue of 1.029 billion euros, a year - on - year increase of 13%, and has achieved "quality growth" for eight consecutive quarters.