Adidas bets big on omni-channel play in India

Adidas Group is aggressively rolling out its omni-channel strategy in India to integrate 200 of its 750 stores with shopper-friendly technology by March 2016 and tap into the online shopping boom.
"We have already integrated 50 stores in the north with the 'endless aisle' technology and will cover 200 stores in all by March 2016," Abhishek Lal, senior e-commerce director for Adidas Group in India, told PTI here.
'Endless aisle' technology equips Adidas and Reebok franchisee stores with iPads where shoppers can browse and order for items that are not in stock at the physical stores, he said.
"By 2017, we will cover all our existing stores, and are targetting a 10 to 15 per cent rise in revenues from every store through this technology integration," Lal said.

Adidas Group, which presently has 500 stores under the Adidas brand and 250 stores under the Reebok brand, follows a franchising model.
The company is now evolving into the second phase of its omni-channel strategy.

Adidas Neo, a brand specifically targetting the youth has been launched "online-only" in India.
"We have launched Adidas Neo exclusively online, and are also looking at retailing certain products for cyclists online going forward," Lal said.
Once these gain traction they will introduce the products in the physical stores, he added.
Since these products are available exclusively online, the marketing strategy is also entirely digital in keeping with the target audience, he pointed out.

Adidas and Reebok products are available on other online marketplaces as well, and the company considers it as a 'complementary strategy'.
"Integrated online business is only going to increase, and our plan is to make all our retailers gear their focus towards this," he said.