adidas Japan Portfolio Planning
Project Overview
adidas Japan was going through a sustained period of rapid growth and was looking to ensure that its sponsorship portfolio could support the business’ future needs. Gemba was retained by adidas Japan to recommend the optimal mix of sports assets with alignment to the overall business plan. The business outlined the ambition of moving into baseball and a stronger focus on the women’s market.
Execution
Working closely with the adidas team, Gemba collated a broad range of consumer insights, media data and learnings from industry experts. The information was then segmented by sports category (running, football, baseball, etc.) to align to the overall business plan. A series of recommendations relating to acquisitions, retentions and exits were made, and this was mapped out in a detailed transition plan.
Results
As a result of the project adidas made several significant changes to its sponsorship portfolio. Its relationship with the Japan Football Association was restructured to better align to future business needs, adidas acquired the Tokyo Giants baseball team and several sponsorships were exited at the end of their contractual period.