About our programme

View from the top

CEO Herbert Hainer gives us his view of the year

In sport, before and after any big match a team talk is held. Questions are asked and answered, winning strategies are proposed and on-the-field performances are reviewed. Here in this annual review of our sustainability performance, we are doing much the same. We are responding to the questions our stakeholders have asked us, reviewing our social and environmental performance over the past year and presenting our strategies for successfully managing the issues. Just as team talks are straightforward affairs, so have we tried to be especially clear and direct in our reporting this year. We want to connect with the consumer as well as the analyst.

A challenging year

2009 has been a challenging year for the adidas Group in manoeuvring through a difficult business environment. We rationalised and drove efficiency across the business to manage our costs and we reorganised to keep the company successful and sustainable over the years ahead.

The financial crisis, as well as everyone's shared concern over climate change and the threat facing our planet has reinforced our responsibilities to:

  • Consider those impacted by our business operations
  • Manage our business in a resource-efficient way fulfilling our role to contribute to a low carbon economy.

Positive steps taken in 2009

In 2009, we have made further progress in driving our sustainability agenda, be it through the creation of new products, remodelling business processes or making improvements in our supply chain operations. Some examples that illustrate our pragmatic approach are listed here:

  • We have set short and longer-term social and environmental goals as benchmarks for those suppliers who wish to qualify as strategic partners for our core footwear and apparel business.
  • We provided intensive support to those suppliers who were forced to downsize their factory operations as a consequence of the financial crisis. We counselled factory owners on how they should properly look after their workforce.
  • Under both the adidas and Reebok brands we have launched new ranges where the products are made of environmentally improved materials such as organic cotton, recycled polyester and reused rubber.
  • Based on rigorous environmental assessments we set Group-wide targets to reduce the company's own environmental footprint by 2015. We have targets for energy consumption, carbon emissions, water, waste and travel.
  • Through the Green Company Initiative we have further inspired our employees to act as green ambassadors and drive green thinking.

External recognition

Our continued efforts and achievements in improving our social and environmental footprint have been recognised by many of our stakeholders. For the tenth consecutive time, the company has been selected to join the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI), the world's first global sustainability index family that tracks the performance of the leading sustainability-driven companies worldwide. In the 'Clothing, Accessories & Footwear' category, the adidas Group was rated as the industry leader in sustainability issues and corporate responsibility for the seventh successive time.

Looking forward

This is a great recognition of our efforts but it does not blind us to the significant challenges lying ahead as we address our material social and environmental issues. While we have been able to commit to a demanding target for 2015 of relatively reducing carbon emissions from our own operations by 30%, we are conscious that other areas of our business, such as the manufacture and transport of our products, also give rise to carbon dioxide emissions.

In any good team talk, several voices will be heard. So too in this review, where we hear from several people around the business who have made a real difference to our social or environmental performance in 2009. Reading their stories I am more confident than ever that the passion and dedication of our people will help us rise to the challenges ahead as we continue on our journey to becoming a truly sustainable business.