Newly designed Adidas stores focus on interaction

By Alexandria Sage

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - German sporting goods maker Adidas is changing the format of its fast-growing global chain of Adidas Originals stores, focusing on customized design and interaction among shoppers to boost market share.

New stores in New York and Berlin, opened this past week, feature the new design that will eventually be rolled out to its 83 stores worldwide in what the company calls its largest marketing spend ever at its Originals brand.

"In the next 12 to 18 months I think we will have the new format everywhere," said Hermann Deininger, chief marketing officer of sports style at Adidas, Europe's biggest sports goods maker.

The new Originals stores, which sell athletic lifestyle fashion rather than performance gear, will feature workbench-type tables, shoe molds and shoes on display that are split open to show their inner workings.

Shoppers can customize their own shoes, choosing from an array of colors, materials and design options, through interactive computer displays.

Nike Inc, the industry's number one player, have touted customization at some of its stores, but Deininger denied the move was a competitive reaction to its larger rival.

Adidas had already featured interactive design at its chain of performance-focused stores and through mobile units brought to sporting events, he said.

"It's a permanently evolving concept, the customization, and deeply rooted in the Adidas DNA," Deininger said. "That other brands have similar ideas -- that's normal in a competitive environment."

The new marketing strategy and Adidas Originals' largest-ever campaign launches during New York Fashion Week, where thousands of journalists are in attendance.

"Of course we expect this will have further positive impact on the U.S. market and it will strengthen our brand profile here for sure," Deininger said.

Globally, Adidas hopes to open between 80 and 100 more Originals stores this year, Deininger said, adding that the rollout this year is accelerated due to the popularity of the brand in emerging markets like China and Russia.

Adidas has also teamed up with jeans brand Diesel to sell co-branded premium denim at its Originals stores. The jeans, designed jointly at both companies, will cost between 160 and 210 euros ($236.75-$310.72).

(editing by Elizabeth Fullerton)