Adidas France

"For all of Adi Dassler’s disdain, clothing promptly made up nearly half of Adidas sales in Germany. The explosion occurred at a time when the distinction between leisure and sports clothing was be- coming increasingly blurred. There was such huge demand for Adidas clothing that the company’s managers hardly bothered to take orders; the retailers would have accepted almost anything. Unencumbered by his father’s hang-ups, Horst eagerly delved into the clothing market. Just like their neighbors in Germany, the French managers sold millions of three-striped shorts and tracksuits. But this was merely the skeleton of a bustling apparel business that beat the German equivalent many times over. The French clothing operation owed its edge largely to Ventex, a former supplier that Adidas France had gobbled up. Previ- ously owned by a chemical company, the Ventex laboratory soon became the envy of the industry. “When German managers asked to be shown around at Ventex,” said Jean Wendling, then textile manager at Adidas France, “I made sure that the lab remained tightly sealed.”"

"The two came to a secret agreement. In the eyes of the Dassler family, Adidas France owned just 49 percent of Le Coq Sportif. But André Guelfi gave 2 percent of his own package to Horst, and granted him an option to acquire the remaining 49 percent at any time. The 2 percent and the option were issued to Horst person- ally, as opposed to Adidas. In other words, unbeknownst to his family, Horst had taken over control of Le Cog Sportif. The agree- ment marked the beginning of an intense partnership between the two men."