Adidas expands 3D printed 4D FWD line, launch Tokyo Olympic sneakers

With net income from continuing operations reaching € 387 million and its FY outlook increased with sales to grow up to 20%, and net income from continuing operations to reach € 1.4 to € 1.5 billion, footwear manufacturer adidas is living through a very positive period after the pandemic challenges and forced store closures. Some of that success is due to the company’s constant investment in innovation, ideally represented by the 4D FWD line of 3D printed footwear. Adidas also revealed that the special edition 4D FWD shoes worn by Olympians at the Tokyo Olympics will become available to consumers on August 12, 2021.

“With sports taking back center stage this summer, we delivered a very successful quarter. Driven by the strength of our brand and better-than-expected demand for our products, we saw an acceleration in our top- and bottom-line,” said adidas CEO Kasper Rorsted. “Sales in our strategic growth markets EMEA and North America almost doubled. Revenues in our key categories Football and Outdoor even grew at triple-digit rates. The share of full-price sales increased strongly, fueling exceptional profitability improvements. This momentum gives us all the confidence to increase our full-year outlook despite the external challenges that our industry continues to face.”

For the readers of this website, the most relevant announcement to emerge from the company’s Q2 financial report is that the company’s Futurecraft 4D portfolio will be significantly expanded by the introduction of the 4D FWD Pulse. As Hybeast also reported, the line of adidas-Carbon 3D printed products has been evolving with the latest 4DFWD Pulse, an adidas Running silhouette that boasts a “precisely coded” midsole and 3D printed details for optimum fit and feel, the 4DFWD Pulse follows up other 4D models such as 4DFWD and 4D Cush.

The 4DFWD Pulse’s is available in a PRIMEGREEN black and green mesh upper offset by a thick slab of latticed 4D cushioning on the heel. This 4D setup tilts downwards from heel to midfoot to assist the runner — or walker — through their stride, and is given extra support by reinforced foam pieces in the heel and forefoot. The adidas 4DFWD Pulse “Signal Green” are expected to become available on the adidas webstore on August 12 for $160 USD.

Given the accelerating top-line momentum, adidas now expects currency-neutral sales to increase at a rate of up to 20% year-over-year in 2021, driven by strong double-digit improvements in all markets. This new outlook reflects sales growth of up to 7% in the second half of the year compared to the 2020 level, which will be fueled by an array of innovative product releases beyond the 4D FWD Pulse.

The top-line expansion in the second quarter was driven by increases in all market segments except Greater China. Currency-neutral sales in EMEA (+99%) and North America (+87%) almost doubled versus the prior year’s period, reflecting strong double-digit growth versus the 2019 level. Revenues in Latin America (+230%) more than tripled during the quarter, and sales in Asia-Pacific grew 66% despite the negative impact from the extended lockdowns in the region. In Greater China, the company recorded a steady business recovery as well as sequential sell-out improvements throughout the quarter. Nevertheless, revenues in Greater China declined 16% during the three-months-period. This development also reflects the strong recovery in last year’s second quarter, when sales in the market had grown at strong double-digit rates in May and June.

As a result, wholesale revenues, as well as sales in adidas’ own-retail stores, grew at a high-double-digit rate during the second quarter of 2021. E-Commerce revenues declined 14% in the quarter, reflecting the exceptionally high growth in the prior-year period when digital revenues had almost doubled. In euro terms, the company’s revenues grew 51% or more than € 1.7 billion in the second quarter to € 5.077 billion (2020: € 3.352 billion).