BERLIN, Germany -- During the first quarter of 2008, adidas Group sales increased 10 percent on a currency-neutral basis, driven by double-digit sales growth in the adidas and TaylorMade-adidas Golf segments, company officials have announced.

Revenues in the Reebok segment, however, declined, as currency movements negatively impacted sales in euro terms. Group revenues grew 3 percent in euro terms to slightly more than $4 billion in the first quarter of 2008 from $3.9 billion in 2007.

"We are off to a fast start to 2008," commented adidas AG CEO and Chairman Herbert Hainer. "adidas and TaylorMade-adidas Golf were our growth engines. At Reebok, we are progressing on plan to reposition the brand. As a Group, we are stronger than ever before. Most importantly, Group profitability has improved substantially."

The adidas and TaylorMade-adidas Golf segments set the pace for the Group's sales growth in the first quarter of 2008. Currency-neutral adidas segment revenues increased 14 percent during the first three months, driven by strong performance product sales in nearly all major categories. Currency-neutral sales in the Reebok segment declined 6 percent in the first quarter of 2008, mainly as a result of Reebok's repositioning efforts in the USA and the UK.

At TaylorMade-adidas Golf, currency-neutral revenues increased 17 percent, due to the strong product offering in all major categories, helped by several new product launches. TaylorMade-adidas Golf sales in euro terms increased 6 percent to $293 million in 2008 from $276 million in 2007.

In 2008, adidas Group sales are expected to increase at a high-single-digit rate on a currency-neutral basis, driven by growth at all brands. Currency-neutral TaylorMade-adidas Golf sales are forecasted to grow at a mid-single-digit rate. The adidas Group gross margin is expected to increase modestly to a range of 47.5 to 48.0 percent by improvements in all three brand segments.

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