Patrik Nilsson appointed as President of adidas North America
Portland, Oregon, January 23, 2007 - adidas has appointed Patrik Nilsson as President of adidas North America with immediate effect. Patrik Nilsson will be in charge of all adidas operations in the North American market and report directly to Erich Stamminger, President & CEO of the adidas brand. Patrik Nilsson succeeds Rob Langstaff, who has decided to leave the company for personal reasons.
Patrik Nilsson, a Swedish national, has a long and successful track record with adidas both on a global and local level. He started his adidas career in 1991 as Head of Sales and Marketing in Sweden. In 1994, he joined the Global Marketing organization, and during his tenure as Business Unit Manager Tennis, adidas regained market leadership in this category globally. In 2000, Patrik Nilsson was appointed Head of adidas’ Global Sport Heritage Division where sales doubled under his leadership. Since November 2003, Patrik Nilsson has been Managing Director Area Nordic within adidas Region Europe. In this role, he brought adidas back to a leadership position in the Scandinavian market-place.
“I am very much looking forward to supporting Patrik in his new role,” said Erich Stamminger. “His appointment further strengthens our management team in Portland. Patrik draws on rich and successful experience with our Group and has a clear understanding of our strategic plans for North America. At the same time, I would like to thank Rob for his passion and many contributions to our company and wish him all the best for the future.”
Patrik Nilsson’s current role as Managing Director Area Nordic will be assumed by Roland Auschel, adidas’ Head of Region Europe, Middle East & Africa, on an interim basis.
About the adidas Group
The adidas Group is one of the global leaders in the sporting goods industry, offering a broad range of products around the three core segments adidas, Reebok and TaylorMade-adidas Golf. Headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Germany, the Group has more than 25,000 employees worldwide and expects 2006 sales of around € 10 billion.