Adidas and Hummer’s grievances

Adidas and Hummer’s grievances

After the Second World War, the brothers of the various stoves launched a commercial war, and the sports stadium became the main battlefield of Adidas and Hummer.

Text|Reporter Zhang Yantao

"This is the same root, why is it too urgent?" However, since ancient times, how much blood is thicker than water can't stop it, and even make you die.

The same childhood, the same city, the same faith. The two brothers of the Dassler family could have created the world's greatest sports brand. However, in the chaos of war, there is no need to betray the opponent's foot, and they will be killed by love.

Over time, the two brands, adidas and PUMA, no longer belong to the Dassler family. Like a tombstone where two brothers are facing each other but always separated.

Brother shoe shop

During the German period, Bavaria’s economic development attracted worldwide attention. Before the outbreak of the two world wars, the people’s lives were rich and healthy.

The story of the Dassler family begins with a small town in Bavaria called Herzog Orach. Christopher is the backbone of this family, with four children under his knees. This is the weaver's Krisdorf caught up with the changes of the times, and industrial manufacturing is gradually replacing manual manufacturing.

As a last resort, Christopher switched to a shoemaker. The innate talent made the Dassler family very popular. Rudolf and Adolf, both brothers, were deeply impressed by the father’s ears and had a deep understanding of the footwear industry.

However, the arrival of the First World War quickly dragged down the German economy, and the children wanted to inherit the cloak and carry forward the dream of being overwhelmed by the reality of the food.

The war was in a hurry, and all three brothers were enlisted in the army and came to the front. But the two-year war brought in a failed ending, and the three lost their hometown.

At this time, childhood dreams reawakened Adolf's ambition. He decided to learn from his father and learn to make shoes. Adolf, who is a gifted person, worked diligently to learn from his father. Soon, Adolf was blue.

At the beginning of the business, Adolf traveled all over the country to find shoe materials, persuaded his mother to move the venue in the laundry room to place equipment, and finally he hired three workers. The business has finally started hard.

Adolf designed the first sneakers to be canvas-yellow-skin sneakers and innovative use of iron studs. Soon, this kind of sneakers became a hit. The expansion of the scale caused the shortage of personnel, so that her sister Mary was also helped to pick up the shoes.

However, Adolf's character is more restrained, and the expansion of business has made him somewhat tired. On the contrary, Rudolf is deeply acquainted with the world, especially with a three-inch tongue. This is the ability of a good sales.

According to this, Adolf invited his brother Rudolph. The two co-registered the Dassler Brothers Shoe Factory in 1924. When excellent products and outstanding marketing double swords, the market will naturally surrender to the brand.

Love each other

At the beginning of the business, the two brothers must be close to each other and do their best. Dassler brand sports shoes soon became famous.

During the reign of Hitler, sports were highly valued, and the business of the two brothers benefited from this, and orders were growing.

The two brothers thought that the Olympic Games held in Germany would make Dassler brand sports shoes shine. However, the Hitler government completely controlled the upcoming Berlin Olympic Games and required all German athletes to wear uniform clothing and shoes. This pair of brothers' business is undoubtedly a blow.

Sayong lost his horse and knew that he was not blessed. Adolf went to the Olympic Village with his spikes and successfully persuaded the famous American athlete Jesse Owens to use his running shoes.

At the 1936 Berlin Olympics, Jesse Owens shined and became the first track and field athlete in the history of the Olympic Games to win four gold medals in one competition. This also makes Dassler's running shoes a huge sensation in the world. It can be said that an Olympic Games has won two Adolf.

Conceited Hitler then declared war on the world, and Germany once again set off a war.

In 1933, the brothers joined the Nazi Party, Rudolph was more loyal, and Adolf secretly helped the Jews. This also led to their different fates after the war.

When the Allied forces investigated whether the shoe factory was contaminated with the Nazis, Adolf’s old-fashioned efforts to help the United States win the gold medal at the Olympics were remembered, and more importantly, Adolf personally performed the “Schindler List” during World War II. Saved a lot of Jews and was eventually released without sin.

On the contrary, Rudolf paid a price for his loyalty to the "head of state" and became a prisoner of war. He firmly believes that it is the brother Adolf who reported his cronies to the Allies.

The crime of "not needing to be" was thus placed on Adolf. This is a ruthless choice in history. The friendship between the two brothers has also deteriorated and decayed.

Rudolph was released after being detained for one year. The disappointment and resentment against Adolf made him two decisions. One was to tell his brother to the military ruler at the time, and the other was to separate from the Dassler brand.

In 1946, he established his PUMA at a place 5 minutes from the original site, and Adolf renamed the original brother factory to adidas. The two brothers turned against each other and set off a decade of commercial war.

Historical regret

After the Second World War, the brothers of the various stoves launched a commercial battle, and the sports stadium became the main battlefield of adidas and PUMA. The two are indistinguishable in the way of celebrity endorsements.

The PUMA flag is winning. In the first football match after the Second World War, several players of the West German National Football Team wore PUMA sneakers, including the then famous star Herbert Budensky.

Not to be outdone, adidas then began a tug-of-war with PUMA. At the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland, the West German national team established a cooperative relationship with adidas. In this World Cup, adidas sneakers with spiral ball nails made a great contribution. It has strong anti-slip performance and finally helped West Germany win the World Cup championship trophy and stage the Bern miracle. From now on, adidas went to the world.

In 1958, adidas, which had successfully entered the US market, increased its publicity efforts. For the first time, it was self-proclaimed as "the best sports shoes in the world." Then Rudolf was furious and personally called Adolf to warn him, who expected the latter to bring Rudolph to court and accuse him of illegal commercial competition. In the end, Rudolf was defeated and was sentenced to a huge fine.

Rudolf, who has a must report, hates his heart and passes the war to the next generation. After the transfer of power, Rudolf’s son, Amin Dessler, and Adolf’s son, Horst Dessler, signed a Bailey agreement, claiming that both adidas and PUMA no longer sponsor famous football players.

However, on the occasion of the 1970 World Cup finals, Bailey asked the referee to postpone a few seconds to start the laces. At the moment he fell, millions of TV viewers saw the PUMA sneakers up close. The two companies broke their faces. In this way, with hatred towards each other, the two went to the end of life. In 1974, Rudolph died of lung cancer, and Adolf’s public condolences said: “In the spirit of human compassion, the Adolf Dassler family will not comment on the death of such a person.” Four years later, Adolf also passed away.

The killing between the second generation is no longer a simple competition between brands, but after all, both companies have become listed companies. The final professional manager system completely eliminated the irrational retaliation in the enterprise. Since then, this is the two major sports brands of Tonggensheng who ended the family business.

The love of the Dassler brothers has made the world miss a sporting brand that is more great than adidas or PUMA or even NIKE.

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