AZADEA buys Adidas
operations and franchise

Stores will reopen in April 2021

AZADEA Group, a Beirut-based regional retail company, has acquired the local operations and franchise rights of the Adidas Group’s brands Adidas and Reebok, said Said Daher, the Group’s CEO.

Starting April 2021, AZADEA will gradually reopen the stores of the two international sports brands. AZADEA also plans to expand sales of the two brands through the e-commerce channel.

“Both brands have a strong presence and continue to be in high demand,” said Darren Cooke, General Manager of Adidas Group.

Daher said that the franchise contract is a long-term deal and that they are taking a high risk on the local market while anticipating that the country would eventually be put back on the road to recovery.

He said AZADEA will offer competitive prices as consumers can easily switch to other options through different means including online purchases. Daher said that the Adidas and Reebok sports shoes will be imported because their manufacture requires sophisticated know-how and is done according to the Adidas Group’s proprietary technology.

Adidas said last year that it will no longer operate its own stores in Lebanon and will close its local back office by the end of 2020.

AZADEA operates a network of more than 600 retail stores representing over 35 international brands. The brand names include fashion and accessories, food and beverage, home furnishings, sporting goods, multimedia, as well as beauty and cosmetics. The group, which has a workforce of more than 10,000 employees, is present in 13 countries in the Middle East and Africa.