MUNICH – It was 1994 when Eric Liedtke (50) joined adidas, then as a Global Line Manager for Cross Training in Portland, USA. After working in several roles in the company, he moved to the Mid-Franconian town of Herzogenaurach in 2006 where he worked as the Senior Vice President in Sport Performance Brand Marketing at the headquarters. In 2011, he was finally appointed Head of Sports Performance and in 2014 he became the Executive Board Member responsible for Global Brands. Leidtke succeeded in recharging the once “dusty” adidas brand and in positioning adidas as an innovative lifestyle brand. The CMO of the Year jury honours the performance of the American by awarding him the title of CMO of the Year 2017.
Prof. Anton Meyer, Executive of the Marketing Institute at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and Chair of the CMO of the Year award jury explained: “As the Executive Board Member responsible for Global Brands with adidas, Eric Liedtke has significantly contributed to considerably developing the competitive standing of the brand in a market with strong global competitors thanks to innovative product launches and customisable products and on-site production and by doing so, strengthening the brand. Adidas was positioned far beyond its role as a traditional sports goods brand as a modern lifestyle brand and did not only communicate through brand touchpoints, it also made itself more distinguished via experience platforms and providers: just think of the flagship store on 5th Avenue in New York or the strategic collaboration with influential individuals from music, fashion and sport.”
The award winner, Eric Leidtke, added: “The award goes to everyone at the company who made it possible to position adidas as the creator brand of sports brands. We are constantly working on the brand, continuously confronting and scrutinising existing projects and doing everything we can to break out of the status quo. We are delighted that our efforts have been recognised, but at the same time we want to stress that our work has only just begun.”
