✍🏻 Inspiration of the week
“Impossible is nothing.”
— Muhammad Ali, Adidas campaign
What if a shoe company didn’t just sell footwear but helped people run faster, feel stronger, and live bolder?
Adidas wasn’t just chasing Nike.
It was crafting a design legacy that connects sport, culture, and human potential.
Welcome to the Adidas story, through the lens of UX.
👟 The Brand Story
It began in a small town in Germany.
In the 1920s, a shoemaker named Adi Dassler worked in his mother’s laundry room, hand-crafting spikes for runners. He believed performance came from precision. By 1936, his shoes helped Jesse Owens win four gold medals at the Berlin Olympics.
That wasn't a marketing move.
It was design with intent.
Adidas, officially founded in 1949, has since become one of the most recognized brands on Earth. But the story isn’t just about celebrity endorsements or slick ads. It’s about designing for human movement, and using experience to connect athletes, artists, and activists alike.
In the 1980s, Adidas defined streetwear before it had a name.
Run-DMC made the Superstar iconic without laces. Their anthem “My Adidas” turned utility into culture.
By the 2010s, Adidas was no longer just outfitting athletes.
It was shaping identity.
They launched collaborations with Kanye West, Beyoncé, Pharrell, Prada. Each drop blended performance with expression. Each design felt tailored to purpose.
Behind every product was something deeper.
UX was evolving from the physical to the digital.
The Adidas app became a portal. Personalized drops. Size-based recommendations. Augmented Reality try-ons. Limited sneaker reservations. Everything was shaped by data, emotion, and micro-interactions that felt seamless.
Then came Sustainability as UX.
Adidas launched the first performance shoe made from ocean plastic in partnership with Parley for the Oceans. It wasn’t a one-off campaign. It was a new supply chain, designed to make eco-conscious behavior effortless.
Today, Adidas doesn’t just fit your foot.
It fits your values, your feed, and your lifestyle.
🧠 UX Lesson: Design What Moves People
Adidas understood something powerful.
Good design doesn’t only look good. It moves people — emotionally, physically, ethically.
Here’s how Adidas puts that into motion:
👟 Personalized drops and AR previews
Apps now predict sizing based on past behavior and let you preview sneakers in your own space through camera-based overlays.
🌊 Futurecraft Loop
A 100 percent recyclable running shoe. Return it, melt it, and create a new one. UX meets circular economy.
🧵 Stories behind products
From Made Originals to Ultraboost, Adidas blends storytelling into its interfaces. Each product isn’t just bought. It’s explored.
🌍 Sustainability made native
From carbon footprints on product pages to recycled packaging UX, Adidas bakes sustainability into everyday choices.
When users feel like they’re part of the process,
design becomes mission.
🛠️ What You Can Learn from Adidas
✅ Build emotional and ethical layers into your product
✅ Treat digital retail as a journey, not a transaction
✅ Use collaborations to test design boundaries, not just to trend
✅ Let sustainability be a part of the product's story, not just its packaging
Want to go deeper? Check out:
🔍 Adidas and Parley Ocean Plastic Innovation
🙋🏻♂️ Signing Off
I’m KSB, and every week through uxLetter, I decode how world-class brands scale meaning, culture, and movement through intentional design.
Adidas didn’t just create sportswear.
It built a brand that lives on the street, in the feed, and in the soul of its users.
Keep designing with intent.
KSB, UXLetter #39
P.S: What’s your Adidas moment? Your first Superstars? A Yeezy drop? A sustainability story?
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