London – German athletic company, Adidas Group, has bolstered its reach
with its acquisition of the fitness app Runtastic. The transaction, which
was signed and closed on Wednesday, values Runtastic at 220 million euros
(155 million pounds).
The new acquisition is said to be part of the group’s strategic business
plan ‘Creating the New’ and reinforces Adidas’s commitment to inspire
athletes around the world. Founded in Austria in 2009, Runtastic has over
20 fitness, health and endurance apps, as well as fitness trackers. Since
its launch the app has over 140 million downloads in total and at the point
of acquisition counted around 70 million registered users. By
combining Runtastic’s capabilities with its own technology and data,
the sportswear group hopes to offer users “unexpected sports experiences
that will resonate and clearly stand out in a crowded and constantly
changing landscape.”
Herbert Hainer, chief executive officer of the Adidas Group commented:
“This investment will add considerable value on our journey to deliver new
world-class sports experiences. In addition, it offers the opportunity to
grow a highly engaged athlete user base and leverage the power of our broad
product portfolio. Therefore, I am very happy to welcome Runtastic’s
passionate employees and their 70 million active athletes and sports lovers
to the adidas Group family.”
German media giant Axel Springer, through its investment subsidiary Axel
Springer Digital Ventures was the largest shareholder of Runtastic, with a
50.1 percent stake prior to the acquisition. Other main shareholders
included Austrian business angel Dr. Johann Hansmann and company founders
Florian Gschwandtner, Alfred Luger, René Giretzlehner and Christian Kaar
who will continue to run Runtastic from within Adidas. “Both companies
firmly believe that together we can build a
unique product portfolio and unparalleled customer journey for
our existing community members and future users,” wrote Gschwandtner on the
Runtastic blog.
“By bringing cutting-edge input from our leading position in the digital
space to one of the great world leaders in the sports and fitness industry,
I am personally looking forward to pleasing and surprising new and loyal
users with the best products in the world,” he added. “Together, we will
make exceptional and unexpected things happen.”
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