Fortune: adidas top exec: we need to look cool again in the U.s.
Less than a year ago, King — the executive that doubled sales of the company’s TaylorMade-Adidas Golf business in the span of a decade — was appointed president of the company’s North America business. He officially took over the reins in June 2014, an appointment that Adidas has touted as a display of its commitment to the North America marketplace. The problem he faces? That North America business is in shambles.
Forbes: culture is king: three ways adidas is striving to build a culture of extraordinary
According to Mark King, “Great companies have great cultures.” He arrived at adidas America wanting to create a group that would be a foundation for future sustainable growth. King instead found a company with a fragmented culture. Strong cultures existed, but they were subcultures. One sport vs. another sport and US vs. Global. King immediately targeted his efforts towards building a cohesive culture that works together.
Wall Street Journal: how adidas aims to get its cool back
Mr. King, an American, says headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany, has given him more leeway than to predecessors to craft a U.S.-specific strategy. America is “a very different mind-set from Germany,” Mr. King says. “That’s really the epiphany.” Branding and product creation for most products sold in America will originate in the U.S. for the first time, Mr. King says. Last year, he announced plans to hire three Nike shoe designers for a new Brooklyn, N.Y., studio—Adidas’s first American design outpost outside U.S. headquarters in Portland, Ore.
CNN: How adidas plans to win the footwear race
“Historically brands have said, 'This is who we want to be,' so they built products, advertising and distirbituion around it and if you liked that you'd go buy it. Well now it’s completely different, we’re asking you, 'What do you like?' and 'What are we doing wrong?' and then we’re constructing things based on consumer feedback. The brands who do that the best will be the brands who win."
YahoO! Finance: adidas U.S. CEO on 31% growth in North America: 'Our brand is getting hotter'
The biggest story is the performance of the Adidas brand in the U.S.: It's flying. Adidas brand sales rose 31% in the U.S. in the third quarter, and 17% globally (tempered by a drop in Russia, where competitors Nike and Under Armour are also seeing declines due to store closures and bad sentiment there). Adidas is doing so well that Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, at the company's Dreamforce conference this week, gave it props: “They own sports today. Kanye is there, and Pharrell is there, and the products are changing constantly… I think they’re winning versus everybody.”
HYpebeast: adidas group North America president mark king speaks on the brand's growth
Earlier this year, adidas made headlines all over the world when it overtook Jordan Brand as the second largest sneaker brand in the United States. With a number of notable collaborations with the likes of Kanye West and Rick Owens, the brand is in a much better place than it was three years ago when North American president Mark King arrived at the Three Stripes. “We’re back in the game. Three years ago, we weren’t. We’re now growing at a pretty substantial clip. And (our competitors) are not. I think they feel it. I think consumers see it, retailers can sense it. We hear about it from athletes. Three years ago, they didn’t want to be part of the adidas community. Now they do.”
Benzinga: adidas' Mark King talks about the company's comeback, turning the corner in North America
With North American President Mark king at the helm, Adidas has quickly become the most exciting company in the industry. Following a strong fourth quarter earnings report that saw the company raise guidance, Adidas shares are approaching all-time high territory. The stock is up more than 70 percent over the past year.
Portland business journal: Executive of the year: adidas' mark king shows his stripes
As a collegiate golfer, Mark King played better with a trophy on the line. That competitive focus, coupled with his boundless enthusiasm and energy, have helped revive Adidas’ flagging $3 billion North American business, earning him the title 2016 Executive of the Year. He is easy to misunderstand and underestimate. An easygoing, routine-loving Midwesterner, King eats dinner every night at the same restaurant and speaks in plain English. But behind the average Joe exterior is an ace motivator, communicator and strategist who engineered one of the most impressive turnarounds in recent Portland history — one that got the attention of the estimated $100 billion global sportswear industry.
Footwear news: Why the u.s. head of adidas believes employees are in charge
“The command-and-control model, of leading from the top, is the reason businesses will fail,” King said this morning at the Footwear News CEO Summit, heldin Miami. “You have to distribute the leadership.” Part of that, he said, is encouraging each employee to take part in creating the company’s future. King, who spends about 80 percent of his time defining corporate culture, said effective leaders don’t have to have all the big ideas. “It’s not our jobs to do that,” he said. “It’s our job to help others find the ideas.”
Sports Business Journal: What I like: Mark King, CEO and president, taylormade-adidas golf
"The only secret to life: Get up early, work hard, take responsibility."
Fast Company: adidas North America president mark king launches new sports business podcast
It’s no secret that the upper echelons of global society mix and mingle on a regular basis. We’re not just talking Davos here, but all the Gwyneth and Beyonce-style celebrity friendships that may or may not comprise a modern Pentaverate. Either way, these business and cultural leaders must have some pretty interesting conversations. In sports, you’d expect that the leaders of giant brands like, say, Adidas would have some compelling chats with those that straddle the hallowed halls of sports and business. Which goes a long way to explain why Adidas North America president Mark King is launching a new podcast series.
Golfweek: Mark king leaves big shoes to fill at taylormade
Under King’s guidance, TaylorMade’s presence and success on the PGA Tour increased dramatically. Based on official equipment counts at each tournament, TaylorMade has been the No. 1 driver on the PGA Tour for more than 10 years. King oversaw an aggressive marketing scheme, featuring PGA Tour players and promising significant performance benefits. Numbers were King’s friends – if Justin Rose gained 17 yards with a new fairway wood, consumers were going to hear about it. Along the way, King hired scientists and engineers who loved golf. TaylorMade became known for its abundance of brainy golf guys, and King never abandoned this principle. He never wavered from his steadfast philosophy: great people, great products.
HBO REAL SPorts with bryant gumbel: The Future of Golf
"In the world today, if things aren't progressing, they eventually die. And I think that's the mentality we have to have about our game and the industry. If we don't find how to progress, it will die."
ASU Now: ASU, adidas announce partnership to shape the future of sport
"We're coming together to test the boundaries of the universe and make quantum leaps in what our future looks like. We're looking at the world through the lens of sport and exploring things like diversity, sustainability and human potential. Sport is so much bigger than the game. We believe that through sport, we have the power to change lives. adidas and ASU have a shared passion for innovation and creativity, for leading change and finding what's next. We're on a quest to explore the unknown. We want the whole world to benefit from what we discover."
CBS Undercover Boss: Taylormade-adidas golf CEO Mark King
The boss of Tayloremade Golf Company breaks his cover when one of his employees takes a special interest in him, on UNDERCOVER BOSS, Friday, April 6 on CBS!
Accolades
2017 Footwear News No. 1 spot on the Power 100 list
2017 Portland Business Journal Executive of the Year
2016 Yahoo! named adidas Sports Business of the Year
2016 Hypebeast named adidas the Most Relevant Brand
2016 Portland Business Journal Executive of the Year
2015 Footwear News Person of the Year at the FN Achievement Awards
2015 Sports Business Journal’s 50 Most Influential People in Sports
2012 Featured Executive on CBS’s Undercover Boss
2002 University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Sports Hall of Fame Induction
2001 Golf Industry’s Executive of the Year