A Warning Sign for Adidas

Good morning, friends! Happy New Year! Welcome back to The Kicks You Wear. Thanks so much for reading today. I appreciate you giving me a bit of your time.

I hope you’ve had a great week so far! That first week of the new year is always a weird one. Getting back into the swing of things is always a bit of a process, right? Hopefully, things are going well for you!

QUICK HITS:

Now, let’s dive in.

Adidas Needs Its Next Big Thing

It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Adidas has been the strongest brand in footwear over these last few years. While Nike took a few steps back during the John Donahoe era, Adidas took just as many forward under Bjørn Gulden’s leadership.

With that said, it also isn’t a stretch to say that Adidas currently finds itself in a bit of a tenuous position.

What’s new: Bank of America hit Adidas with a double-downgrade this week, shifting the company’s rating from “Buy” to “Underperform” in a move that sent a shockwave throughout the industry.

The why: The reasoning was two-fold.

• First, and most importantly, BofA noted that the sneaker industry is in the midst of a prolonged downcylce after 20 years of what they called the “casualisation trend,” which refers to the relaxed shift in styles we’ve seen over the last few decades thanks to the streetwear, athleisure and sneaker boom. The analysts, led by Theirry Cota, are saying that era is coming to an end.
• Second, analysts noted that as growth is slowing, Nike is making its comeback. As that happens, there will be less room for competitors to operate in the ways that they have over the last few years. While Nike’s rise will help the industry, it’ll also suck the air out of the room.

The numbers presented do reflect a legitimate slowdown with the sneakers industry’s organic sales growth only reaching 2.37 percent through three 2025’s first three fiscal quarters, according to Bank of America’s sales data (the fourth quarter hasn’t been officially reported yet).

What this means: There’s a larger conversation to be had about the overall slowdown for the industry and how this might impact things for years to come. We’ll touch more on that soon. But, in this particular newsletter, I’m interested in interrogating this moment for Adidas.

Zoom out: After separating from Yeezy, Adidas bounced back in a major way with revenue reaching a company record $25 billion for 2024. It completely rebuilt its foundation and found something that worked in its classic styles — namely the Samba. Not only did that sneaker carry Adidas through its toughest period, but it shifted industry-wide trends and made footballer fashion cool.

Yes, but: That time is over. While BofA’s callout of the overall sneaker market is certainly worth heeding, for Adidas this has to serve as a warning sign that the fire isn’t as hot as it once was. The Samba peaked in 2024. While the shoe has remained relatively hot through the last year, it’s coming down from the highs it once experienced. As of now, Adidas still hasn’t found its next bell cow.

• Pharrell’s Adidas Jellyfish had a huge moment last year, but it was extremely limited and extremely expensive. The shoe can’t be as ubiquitous as the Samba was.
• The Adistar Cushion 3 had a moment last year, but it doesn’t stand out as a Y2K mesh runner when you put it next to an Asics or New Balance model.
• The Adidas Superstar also took back a bit of the spotlight with a few solid collaborations last year, but it’s a model we’ve seen numerous times before.

The state of play: While Adidas has to get back on the ball, this certainly doesn’t mean it’s time to panic.

• Nike is still the company’s biggest competitor. While it’s making it’s comeback attempt now, it’s nowhere near complete. The Swoosh, itself, just received a downgrade from Needham to “Hold” from “Buy.”
• There are opportunities for Adidas to catch momentum again through big sports moments like the World Cup and the Milan Olympic Games.
• The industry, as a whole, faces quite a bit of uncertainty due to the US’s tariff policy and general consumer malaise.

Amid all this chaos, there’s opportunity. Adidas needs to figure out what it’s next big thing is.

Nike’s RTFKT Dump

Virtual sneaker brand RTFKT is no longer under the Nike umbrella. The Swoosh quietly sold the company in late December.

Details:

• The company was sold to a mystery bidder. The buyer nor the terms of the sale have been publicly disclosed at this point.
• What they’re saying: “RTFKT transitioned to a new owner on Dec. 17, launching a new chapter for the company and its community,” Nike said in a statement.

Why it mattered: Nike shocked the industry when it acquired RTFKT in 2021 at the height of the NFT boom. RTFKT rose to prominence quickly behind its buzzy NFTs and, for a second, it continued to do so under Nike’s umbrella through various projects.

The deal was praised as a kingmaking move for Nike during the peak of the metaverse hype. The acquisition supposedly showed just how far ahead of the curve Nike.

Why it doesn’t anymore: Consumer fatigue is the culprit here. The NFT market’s speculative bubble burst. Very few people were willing to pay money for shoes they’d never own. By the time RTFKT produced actual, physical products, its moment passed. It was only a matter of time before this happened following Elliott Hill’s takeover in October of 2024.

The bottom line: Nike’s gamble on RTFKT made sense. It’s a gamble any company would make, but it probably leaned a bit too hard into it. Remember, this was a brand Nike touted as one of its main arms alongside Jordan Brand and Converse. The company invested a lot into the brand.

Unfortunately, that investment never quite materialised into anything that mattered for Nike.

A Legit Suitor For Puma

Puma is one of the biggest question marks for the sportswear industry. The brand has seemingly been flirting with a sale for the last calendar year. Things might be getting serious soon though.

The latest: Chinese sportswear company Anta has reportedly made a serious offer to buy the Pinault family’s 29 percent stake in Puma, according to the latest from Reuters.

• Anta made the offer a few weeks ago in December after securing the necessary financing to buy Pinault’s stake.
• The deal stalled, however, with the Pinault family reportedly looking for any offer to exceed more than $47 per share.

What this means: From the reporting out there, it doesn’t feel like the two sides are necessarily close to a deal. But this sort of news usually doesn’t get out. The fact that we have this reporting means that someone is shaking the table to try and get things rolling.

If I were a betting man (which I’m not), I’d say it’s the Pinault family. There are lots of companies out there interested in their stake in Puma. Anta is obviously one, but there’ve also been reports about Li-Ning, Authentic Brands Group and even Japan’s Asics.

Why this matters: Now that it seems clear that Anta is serious about making a push for Puma, that might shake up the market enough to drive up that price.

I’d bet this gets done sooner rather than later.

Max B Loves Hoka

The author has shared a Tweet.You will need to accept and consent to the use of cookies and similar technologies by our third-party partners (including: YouTube, Instagram or Twitter), in order to view embedded content in this article and others you may visit in future.Accept

In our last newsletter of 2025 I wrote a bit about Hoka needing to tap in more with celebrity to bring a few more eyes to its products. We’re only about a week into 2026 and it’s already happening.

What’s new: The brand has a new fan in New York-based rapper Max B.

• Max posted on X that he’s a new fan of Hoka. He said he bought 10 pairs of Hoka shoes and loved them.
• Hoka teamed up with Footlocker to deliver the rapper several new pairs to add to his collection of 10.

Why this matters: This does not feel like something Hoka would’ve engaged with a year or two ago. The moment might’ve just passed and the brand wouldn’t have capitalised on it. Maybe Hoka would’ve been a bit too highbrow for someone like Max B.

But this is the sort of small move that endears a brand to everyday consumers. It gives Hoka a bit more cultural credibility than it had yesterday, even if some people are roasting the shoes in the comments for how chunky they are. Remember, once upon a time, people roasted Crocs, too. Now, the brand is doing collaborations with Salehe Bembury and has hired Steven Smith as its head of innovation.

Good job, Hoka. Keep this up.

#TheKicksWeWear

This is the community section of the newsletter where you (Yes, you!!!!) send me your best fits and kicks from the week. Feel free to send submissions to michael.sykes@businessoffashion.com or shoot me a message via social channels @MikeDSykes

First, the homie Chuck got us started with the Ice Blue AJ10s. Fantastic choice, if I do say so myself.

The homie Shine followed up with more Jordan love. The Cool Grey 3s are so underrated, y’all.

The homie D Hudson popped out with the Lil Swamp JFG 610s. Can I tell y’all a secret? These might be my favourite Joe joints.

Then Big Sosa came through for with the most ADORABLE baby dunks you’ll ever see to send us home. Now THIS is how you celebrate your second birthday! Happy birthday So!

SOOOOO STINKING CUTE.

Thanks for reading, gang!

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, reach out to me via email at michael.sykes@businessoffashion.com or shoot me a message @MikeDSykes via socials.

Peace and love. Be safe, be easy, be kind. We out.

-Sykes 💯

Want to dive deeper into an insight from this article? Check out The Brain of Fashion, BoF’s new generative AI tool where you can unlock BoF’s sports archive with a single question.