Living up the company belief that sport has the power to change lives, adidas Outdoor is proud to announce a new partnership with 1Climb, a non-profit organization
Source: adidas Outdoor announces partnership with 1Climb to give 100,000 kids their first climb in life
In 2011 adidas acquired Five Ten. The outdoor sports company has since continued building their loyal following in the niche areas of neo climbing and outdoor sports. As brands like Patagonia and Merrell gain ground in a world that is no longer run by traditional sports in the U.S., adidas has decided to form a new division with Five Ten (adidas Outdoor) and they’ve brought the brand under the umbrella by adding them to the adidas platform and building Terrex into a division that is being given more importance.
In the post above I discussed the Terrex True Colours campaign by adidas. adidas has finally placed in motion a plan for their new Terrex division and it involves grassroots. In other articles on the site I’ve discussed how brands competing against Nike in the U.S. have to hit the segment leader where they aren’t. I coined the term Niche-Out Marketing to explain how the marketing battle could be won by investing serious effort into sports not considered “mainstream” I use quotes because mainstream has switched in the U.S. I’ll come back to this. adidas has partnered with 1Climb and Kevin Jorgeson to build ten climbing walls in boys and girls clubs around the country. This is very similar to the Glitch movement and investment by adidas into soccer in major michigan in the U.S.
When I made the statement above that mainstream has switched, I have as an example a neo climbing gym built in the middle of the hood in Memphis. Memphis Rox sits in South Memphis across the street from the Stax Museum and less than 500 feet away from the only HBCU in Memphis. I also look towards a show that has produced stars in a sport that didn’t exist ten years ago, Ninja Warrior. Kids are intrigued by Ninja Warrior and they are interested in neo climbing. These are kids who traditionally would have been trying out for basketball or football.
While all investments made by brands are for marketing purposes I am always intrigued by brands that show a willingness to build in communities where the opportunities are diminishing. While it’s not certain that the ten new neo climbing walls being added to Boys and Girls’ Clubs will be in areas similar to Memphis Rox, Boys and Girls Clubs have always catered to the underserved communities and I appreciate the introduction of a sport that kids are fully aware of, but haven’t had access to. Most successful American Ninja Warrior competitors are typically people who competed in climbing and adidas is making an investment into communities. Kudos to adidas. Use the source link to read more.