Adidas on of the leading retailers has seen a growth in sale by 16% in the first quarter of 2017 in comparison to the same period last year. The company’s operating profit increased 29 per cent during the first quarter. As a result, the operating margin improved 0.9 percentage points to 11.1 per cent. However, its gross margin decreased 0.2 percentage points to 49.2 per cent as against 49.4 per cent for the same period in the previous year.
For 2017, Adidas expects sales to increase at a rate between 11 per cent and 13 per cent driven by double-digit growth in Western Europe, North America and Greater China. Gross margin is forecast to increase up to 0.5 percentage points to a level of up to 49.1 per cent. Gross margin will mainly benefit from the positive effects of an improved pricing, product and regional mix as well as further enhancements in the company’s channel mix.