Top two quit at Adidas India

MD Subhinder Singh Prem and COO Vishnu Bhagat call it a day

Subhinder Singh Prem, managing director of Adidas Group India, has called it a day on Monday after spending 17 years with the company. The German sportswear maker replaced him with expatriate Claus Heckerott, who took over with immediate effect.

Also quitting alongwith Prem is the group's chief operating officer Vishnu Bhagat. Adidas abolished this position and appointed Frederic Serrant as sales director for the group. He takes over from April 1.

Prem, who was in the US, said over the phone, “I worked in the same company for 17 years, I have reached the tipping point and it’s time to go.” He did not divulge his future plans. However, it is widely expected he will start a venture of his own.

 

Adidas said the realignment of leadership was intended to help achieve its ‘Route 2015’ objective.

“In 2010, Adidas laid down a strategic business plan with the objective of driving profitable growth across the group. As a part of the plan, India was identified as one of the key markets across the globe. The change in leadership is a step in that direction," it said.

Adidas has three brands in India, including the flagship brand that shares the same name as that of the group, Reebok and TaylorMade. The latter targets the golfwear market, while Reebok and Adidas are known sportswear products.

Prem, who was earlier Reebok India MD and took over as Adidas India MD only last year, has been credited with turning around the fortunes of Reebok in the country. Globally, Reebok comes fourth after Adidas, Nike and Puma. However, in India, the pecking order is lead by Reebok, which is at number one. It leads with a share of over 53 per cent in a market estimated to be over Rs 3,500 crore in size.

Before the global takeover of Reebok by Adidas in 2005, the company had mostly Indians as their top bosses in India, which included Muktesh Pant, Siddharth Verma, and many of them have taken key postings abroad. Sources who know Prem say he has repeatedly rejected taking foreign postings and has preferred to expand the Indian operations. With over 1,000 stores in over 325 towns and cities, Prem had expanded the operations aggressively.

With products, both affordable and premium-priced, Reebok has been able to establish leadership position. Prem has been credited with expanding the Reebok retail outlets in every small city and even in rural India and bringing down sportswear prices to less than Rs 1,000. He has also pushed Reebok's association with sports and has send super bucks for celebrity endorsements of top Indian cricketers.

Heckerott, who replaces Prem, is a Canadian national, with 14 years of senior management experience with Adidas. Till recently, he held the position of vice-president, finance and global sales, at the group.

Heckerott will report to Roland Auschel, Adidas Group's chief sales officer, multi-channel markets.

Serrant, a French national, joined the Indian team in January. He was sales director since 2007 at Adidas' French operations. He will report to Heckerott in his new role.