Adidas suffered a big Covid-19 blow in its second quarter, leading to a net loss of 295 million euros. However, the German sportswear brand is positive as demand has seen a huge recovery since lockdowns ended.
Online sales doubled
The world’s second biggest sportswear producer saw last year’s second quarter net profit of 531 million euros disappear completely: instead, records now show a net loss of 295 million. That is not a surprise, CEO Kasper Rorsted explains: almost three quarters of all Adidas stores worldwide were closed at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, leading to a 35 % turnover drop to 3.579 billion euros.
The CEO did emphasise the bright side of his company’s financial results: online sales almost doubled (+ 93 %) and sales in China – the first country to be released from the Covid lockdowns – grew significantly in May and June. He says that this huge recovery is happening everywhere as soon as stores reopen after lockdown.
Promesing prospects
“Where we are open for business, be it in physical stores or in the digital space, consumer demand for our products is high“, the CEO says in a press release. “This is a solid foundation to build on as the long-term growth prospects for the industry have become even more promising”, he said, referring to the increased attention for fitness and casual clothing since the start of the Covid crisis.
Adidas has recorded recovery everywhere since June, and expects turnover growth again in the third quarter – leading to a quarterly profit of 600 to 700 million euros if there are no more major lockdowns. Due to the uncertainties relating to Covid-19 and how it will impact the world’s economy, the company does not want to provide an outlook for the full financial year.
