Brand History

Adolf 'Adi' Dassler founded Adidas in 1948, following the split of the company he started with his older brother Rudolf, who went on to start Puma. The company was registered in 1949, and is based in Herzogenaurach, Germany.
 
Beginnings
When Dassler returned to his home in Bavaria he began making sports shoes himself in the back room of his mother's room. His brother Rudolf 'Rudi' Dassler joined this new company on July 1st 1924 and they gave it the name Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik (Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory).

The electricity supply in their town was so temperamental that the brothers often had to use a stationary bicycle to power their equipment.

In 1936 Adi drove to the Oylmpic village during the games of that year and managed to convince Jesse Owen to wear a pair of his running shoes. This was the first corporate sponsership of any African American athlete. Owen then won four gold medals which cemented the Dassler's reputation amongst the world's top athletes for producing quality footwear. Soon orders came flying in from various national teams. This started a boom and by the beginning of World War II they were selling 200,000 pairs a year.

Company Split

Both brothers joined the Nazi party during the 1930's, but Rudolf always showed a greater affiliation. A rift grew between the brothers during the war. Their relationship was pushed to breaking point after an argument in a bomb shelter during an Allied attack. Towards the end of the war Rudolf was arrested by the Americans and accused of being a Waffen SS officer. He ws convinced that his brother had turned him in, and this divide led to the brothers parting ways in 1947.

Rudi went on to form a new company called Ruda, which was was soon renamed Puma. Adi started up Adidas having taken the first three letters from his first and last names to form the name.

Adidas Originals

Adidas Originals is a wing of the company that specials in casual wear and carries the heritage line of the brand, supporting products such as the Superstar and the Gazelle. The brand is recognized by the infamous Trefoil logo. The logo was used on all products made by adidas until 1997 when the company decided to use it solely for their heritage line. All adidas Originals products take influence from sports fashion of the 1940's to the 80's. The brand is recognizable by it's retro look.