The chosen article ‘History matters: The role of history in corporate brand strategy’ by Iglesias et al. analyzes the significance of the background of the business group and its influence on the brand strategy. The authors discuss the history of the Adidas company and compare it to the development of other prominent brands, such as Lego, Burberry, and Apple (2). Furthermore, Iglesias et al. elaborate on the purpose of history to improve the image of the company and state that business groups frequently ignore their backgrounds to avert a short-term crisis (3). Next, the authors discuss the overall development of Adidas starting in 1924 in Germany and the financial crisis of the company in 1990 (4). Lastly, Iglesias et al. look at how the company managed to regain its position in the competitive market due to the effective usage of history and its initial values in strategy making (5). Overall, the current article provides insights into the history of Adidas, and how the company uses its background to its own advantage.
The current Adidas tagline is ‘Impossible is Nothing’ which is considered one of the most influential sayings in the industry alongside ‘Just Do It’ by Nike and ‘Fuel Your Passion’ by Puma. The authors specifically discuss the famous brand communications throughout the history of the company and their effects on the image of the business group (7). For instance, Iglesias et al. believe that the introduction of the tagline ‘We knew then. We know now.’ in 1996 the Olympic Games had a positive influence on the company (7). The current tagline ‘Impossible is Nothing’ was first launched for the 2004 Olympics and had a similar impact (7). Overall, the authors agree that brand communications play an essential role in the development of the company.
Work Cited
Iglesias, Oriol, et al. “History Matters: The Role of History in Corporate Brand Strategy.” Business Horizons, 2019, pp. 1-10.