ADIDAS SCORES HEAD OF PUMA

It’s no secret that Adidas and Pumas are two rival companies. The rivalry dates back to when the two companies were founded by the famous Dassler brothers, Adi and Rudi.

A fight led to Rudi leaving Adidas and starting what has now become one of the company’s biggest rivals, Puma.

So, when Adidas announced that it has appointed the head of Puma to succeed its outgoing CEO, you can just imagine the conversations it sparked.

Come 1 January 2023 and Bjorn Gulden will take over the reins from current CEO Kasper Rorsted.

Gulden is not only a great businessman, having managed to create a massive comeback for Puma worldwide since he took over in 2013, but he also used to be a professional football and handball player.

The Norwegian businessman/sportsman extraordinaire was also the CEO of Pandora, the Danish jewellery brand. Added to that, he is also chairman of Denmark’s largest food retailer. So, this man knows a thing or two about business.

CNN reports that shares of (Adidas) gained around 1% in Frankfurt. The announcement was widely expected after Adidas confirmed on Friday that it was in talks with Gulden, news that sent its stock up 20%.

Gulden is no stranger to Adidas though, he was at the head of the German sports retailer for seven years during the 1990s.

Image credit: The Business Journals