About
For over 80 years the adidas Group has been part of the world of sports on every level, delivering state-of-the-art sports footwear, apparel and accessories. Today, the adidas Group is a global leader in the sporting goods industry and offers a broad portfolio of products. Products from the adidas Group are available in virtually every country of the world. The Group’s strategy is simple: continuously strengthen its brands and products to improve its competitive position and financial performance.
Strategy
“To become a zero-emissions company” is the bold vision of the adidas Group's Green Company Initiative which was launched in October 2008. It is all about reducing the environmental impact of its own operations – at the local site level, in its offices, its warehouses and at its own production sites. A lot is already being done at locations around the world, but Green Company brings all these initiatives together under one roof.
The adidas Group's strategy is to become a zero-emissions company by:
- Embedding environmental best practice in everything it does
- Maximising environmental efficiency gains
- Supporting and harnessing its people’s passion for a greener planet.
To become a zero-emission company, the adidas Group has overall environmental targets. These are focussed on the year 2015. Some of the key ones are to:
- Cut the company’s relative energy use by 20 per cent
- Make a total relative cut of 30 per cent in its carbon emissions by also sourcing green energy
- Managing carbon: Based on the overall Environmental Strategy 2015, the adidas Group has developed an approach to managing its carbon emissions: The aim is to reduce its carbon footprint by at least 10 per cent. This will be achieved by driving energy and carbon efficiencies throughout the value chain, beginning with a ‘hot spot’ approach, targeting specific areas.
There is a hierarchy of approaches that will be followed in order to reach the goals:
- Reduce energy consumption
- Use energy with a lower carbon footprint
- Offset carbon where appropriate in approved schemes. There is a comprehensive programme in place for the Group’s own sites with targets to reduce carbon emissions by 30 per cent in total.
The adidas Group reports its own sites’ emissions to the Carbon Disclosure Project. Last year, the company improved its score in the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index from 53 to 68. To find out more about the adidas Group's performance, please visit the Green Company section on the Group’s corporate website.
The adidas Group also works with its suppliers, focussing on the top 50 energy consumers relative to the production output for the Group. The Group aims to help them reduce their carbon footprint by:
- Developing guidelines for energy auditing
- Conducting energy workshops
- Developing benchmarking tools and reports.
The adidas Group is committed to transparent reporting about its environmental impact and performance. The Group reports about its progress publicly through the Carbon Disclosure Project and its annual sustainability report.