Adidas has split its former Area Central into two new geographical business units in order to give more focus to the brand’s growth in Eastern Europe, as part of its “Win the Consumer” strategy. Like the Nordics unit, they will both be headed up by a general manager with full profit and loss responsibility, focusing on sales and marketing.
The new East unit – comprising the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland – will be run by Peter Virsik, based in Bratislava. The West unit – covering Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Slovenia – will be run by Ralph Kotterer.
These two units will be merged together with the Nordics business unit, following the previously reported establishment of a common logistic platform between Area Central and the Nordics. Magnus Rylander, a former pentathlon champion, has been promoted from finance manager to managing director of Adidas Nordics, which covers Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland and the Baltics. He replaces Patrik Nilsson who was placed in charge of North America at the beginning of this year.
Virsik and Rylander will both report to Kotterer, who previously ran the business area comprising Russia, Greece, Turkey, the Balkans and the Middle East and Africa out of Dubai.
